Media Strategic Writing - Michelle Obama Fighting Childhood Obesity

One of the classes that I really enjoyed was the COM345 Media Writing course. During this course, I learned the different career possibilities that can be obtained in this field. One career choice is a Copy Writer. A Copy Writer needs experience in producing material that will capture the attention of the audience while using a language that is easy to understand. They will also need Internet and website experience to perform the necessary research to compile the data that will be a part of the final article. Researching the makeup of the audience who will be reading the final production is important. Having organizational skills is necessary to organize the information that will be included in the document.

The final assignment was to write a feature story based on research conducted on the subject that was chosen to be featured. The paper would either add to what has already been written on the subject, or you could change up and write on a whole different topic. We first had to write a proposal on what we thought is known about the topic or what we believe is new information on the topic.  Websites that I reviewed were on CNN.com Larry King Live and Lets Move, a website from the U.S. government for Michelle Obama's Let's Move program.

 

Several excerpts from my final paper that discusses her program reads as such:

First Lady Michelle Obama’s agenda while occupying the White House is recognizing the plight of obesity of America’s youth. She unveiled a plan to “reverse the epidemic of childhood obesity” (Obama, 2010). Her Let’s Move program is a plan to raise a generation of Healthier Kids in America. She released a report entitled Solving the Problem of Childhood Obesity Within a Generation. Mrs. Obama states a little known fact that currently, one in three children are considered to be overweight or obese, ‘If we meet the goals we set, we will reverse a 30-year trend’ (King, 2010).

 On eating healthy:  Consulting with the Academy of Pediatrics, Mrs. Obama is working with “providing counseling for healthy eating early on” and the academy, for the first time ever, will write prescriptions for parents laying out the simple things they can do to increase healthy eating and active play” (Obama, 2010). Mrs. Obama knows that it is not always convenient to eat right, so parents can find healthy facts and tools to help their children make healthier food choices in the Eat Healthy – Food & Nutrition section of her Let’s Move plan.

Mrs. Obama believes that while it is important to get enough exercise, we should also get enough sleep. It helps developing healthier children. She states that we can encourage our children by limiting TV time, encouraging them to join a sports team, purchasing toys that get our children off the couch, make sure children get enough sleep that they need. Most children under age 5 need 11 hours or more per day. Naps included. Children age 5-10 need at least 10 hours per day and children over age 10 needs at least 9 hours per day.

Helping America’s children to develop a healthier lifestyle results in not only looking good, but to eat healthy and get physically fit.

References: 

Let’s Move. (February 9, 2010). America’s Move to Raise a Healthier Generation of Kids. The Epidemic of Childhood Obesity. Let’s Move.gov. Retrieved July 13, 2010, from http://www.letsmove.gov/eathealthy.php

Larry King Live. (May 11, 2010). Michelle Obama’s ‘Road Map’ to Fight Childhood Obesity. CNN.com. Retrieved June 30, 2010, from http://larrykinglive.blogs.cnn.com/2010/05/11/michelle-obamas-road-map-to-fight-childhood-obesity/?iref=allsearch

Process Mechanism Description -Lock the Door!

During the course of my Communication Studies, while in my Technical Writing class, I had to write a simple process that I would routinely perform as the topic for my process/mechanism description. I chose to write a process of Locking the Door of the Home. There was a two-fold purpose to the document. One was to discuss the importance of locking the door when leaving home, and again locking it when you safely arrive. The other was to show the implements used, i.e., a key or push or turn-knob lock to lock the door. Below are excerpts from that paper.

There was a time when one could leave their home and knew the contents therein would remain undisturbed. In the present time, one is not guaranteed that the contents of their home will remain in place should they leave the premises and not lock the front door. Intruders will break into homes through unlocked doors; even when the occupants are present, which is why it is important to lock the door whether leaving or staying in the home. 

There are different elements used to lock doors. The basic element to locking the door is a key. The key is a small metal bar with notches or grooves that when inserted into a lock and turned, it operates the locking mechanism within the lock to either secure or open the lock. Locks are a fastening mechanism for doors to secure the premises. 

There are other types of locking mechanisms used to lock the door. Some locks are within the door knob. One such lock features a button on the outside tip of the knob that can be pushed in to lock, and as a toggle button, can be pushed again to unlock the door. The locking mechanism used to activate the lock is a small bar that is pushed into the door from the lock to prevent the door from being opened. Other door-knob locks feature a turning mechanism on the outside tip of the knob that can be turned to lock the door. Turning the tip activates the lock. Turning the tip back to the original position will unlock the door.

Failure to lock the door when leaving can result in intruders entering the premises and stealing personal belongings. Failure to lock the door can also result in intruders entering the premises while individuals are in the home resulting in home invasion robberies.

It is important to remember to lock the door when leaving for any reason. It is not always strangers who enter and steal. Unfortunately, it can be one’s neighbors. It is also important to remember that when entering the home, and especially if there are no plans to leave, to lock the door while staying in the home, whether daytime or nighttime. This simple act will ensure that intruders can’t enter and threaten the occupant’s safety.

Designing an Effective and Visually Appealing Blog

 

Anyone can blog. Some bloggers are professional journalists and some bloggers are students. The word blog is “a contraction of two words, Web and log. Blogs are just one of the many sites via the World Wide Web that individuals use to express their opinions to a wide audience. They exist as Web pages, but some blogs have print links that allow the text to be printed as a hard copy. Blogs can serve as a means for individuals to communicate with one another by submitting comments to the published blog. Readers can use these comments to agree, disagree, or continue the discussion.

Blogs are informal, informative and can be entertaining. Some blogs serve as a daily journal or a personal essay. The design of an appealing blog will attract readers who will want to access the blog. The best thing to do when designing a blog is to view and read other blogs. This will not only help the development of the blog, but one may also find a blog that they want to link with. Well written blogs are informative, updated frequently. They may also include links to other blogs that serve as a resource for their blog.

The content and organization of a well written blog can be developed by first reading other blogs. People can Google “blogs” to help steer them to blogs that are of interest. Most blogs have a focus or a topic that the blogger wants to discuss. Blogs can range from one to several paragraphs. Authors G. Marsh, D. Guth & B. Short encourage blog writers to “be informal: Use the first-person pronouns I and we” (p. 109). Because blogs are informal writings, it is acceptable to use sentence fragments and slang within the blog and comments. However, blogging etiquette must be used.

Obscene or threatening comments can be reported and deleted from the blog page. Some blogs are set to not post a reader’s comments until the blogger has reviewed it. If the comment simply disagrees with the blogger, then the blogger can use it as an opportunity to extend the discussion between the reader and the blogger.

Sometimes no one will access the blog, but even if no one looks at it, the blog may have some information that is important to the blogger and it will allow the author to access that information anytime they wish.

Blogging can be a fun way to journal thoughts and ideas, or to talk about and get the opinion of the reader about a specific subject. A well designed blog will attract readers and invite comments. Successful blogs open lines of communication that can be instrumental in developing a relationship between the blogger and the reader.

Reference: Marsh, C., Guth, D., & Short, B. (2009). Strategic Writing. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

Now That You Have Earned Your Communications Degree, What will You do with It?

The question has come up “What do you want to do with your Communications Degree?” 

  Many of my classmates have different career fields in mind. Earning this Communications degree will open the door for many media related opportunities. I already work as a technical writer, but perhaps it is time for a change. Eventually, I’d like to go for the Communications Director position here at work.  I have a side gig working at a music recording company here in San Diego as their contracts and booking administrator.  I fell into this position when I earned my certification at USD for a paralegal in Business Litigation. Contract law was a part of the curriculum, which came in handy. I also have a friend who I’ve known before he was a DJ, who is now the station manager of KURS AM Gospel radio here in San Diego. They are a 24-hr Gospel radio station that has just been voted #1 on the entire West coast. He is excited about my completing this degree. You never know, I just might try my hand at working in the radio station…

Classmate Jody Terry is looking at a variety of choices from Human Resources Administrator, Communications Director, Media Planner, Public Affairs, to Technical Writer. Best of luck to you!

Classmate Darnell Baker’s choices range from Public Relations Specialist, Advertising Account Executive, Technical Writer, to Film Industry (Producer). His choices are artistic, but realistic enough to apply to his current government position.

Classmate Barbara Thompson’s interests ranged from Communications Specialists, Copy Writers, Market Research Analysts, Publications Specialists, to Technical Writers or Technical Communicators. I believe she will do well in any path she chooses to take.

This Communications degree will indeed open many doors to either make a career change, or enhance the career path we currently work in. Best of luck to all!

It's April Fool's Day!

This is the day that people pull pranks that range from little white lies to the over-the-top and outlandish gotchas! Here are the top 3 April Fool's Hoaxes of all time from the Museum of Hoaxes. Enjoy!

#1: The Swiss Spaghetti Harvest
1957: The respected BBC news show Panorama announced that thanks to a very mild winter and the virtual elimination of the dreaded spaghetti weevil, Swiss farmers were enjoying a bumper spaghetti crop. It accompanied this announcement with footage of Swiss peasants pulling strands of spaghetti down from trees. Huge numbers of viewers were taken in. Many called the BBC wanting to know how they could grow their own spaghetti tree. To this the BBC diplomatically replied, "place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best." 

#2: 1985: Sports Illustrated published a story about a new rookie pitcher who planned to play for the Mets. His name was Sidd Finch, and he could reportedly throw a baseball at 168 mph with pinpoint accuracy. This was 65 mph faster than the previous record. Surprisingly, Sidd Finch had never even played the game before. Instead, he had mastered the "art of the pitch" in a Tibetan monastery under the guidance of the "great poet-saint Lama Milaraspa." Mets fans celebrated their teams' amazing luck at having found such a gifted player, and Sports Illustrated was flooded with requests for more information. In reality this legendary player only existed in the imagination of the author of the article, George Plimpton. 

#3: Instant Color TV

1962: In 1962 there was only one tv channel in Sweden, and it broadcast in black and white. The station's technical expert, Kjell Stensson, appeared on the news to announce that, thanks to a new technology, viewers could convert their existing sets to display color reception. All they had to do was pull a nylon stocking over their tv screen. Stensson proceeded to demonstrate the process. Thousands of people were taken in. Regular color broadcasts only commenced in Sweden on April 1, 1970.