1. What are your views about Maziar Bahari's arrest and imprisonment in Iran?
2. Are there any reporters or U.S. publications who have done an exemplary job covering foreign affairs?
3.What piece of advice would you give an aspiring journalist?
4.During your decades as a journalist, how has the role of the print journalist changed?
5. What effect do you think the reduction of foreign bureaus will have on journalism?
Monday, December 7, 2009
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Documents Story Proposal
According to the NPDES permits for the Potlatch Mill in Lewiston that I received from the EPA's Region 10 office in Seattle, the mill's main pollutant is heat. The mill uses water from the Snake River to cool machinery and pumps that warm water back into the river, possibly disturbing freshwater fish.
This sparked my interest because sources throughout the semester have said the mill operators decided to just pay the fines rather than modify the plant. These effluent discharge levels have been a source of contention for environmentalists for many years so I would like to see if state and federal fines are too low to make any real difference.
This sparked my interest because sources throughout the semester have said the mill operators decided to just pay the fines rather than modify the plant. These effluent discharge levels have been a source of contention for environmentalists for many years so I would like to see if state and federal fines are too low to make any real difference.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Twitter's fate up in the air
Students who fly home for the holidays are turning to a once unlikely source for travel information: Twitter.
Increasing numbers of airline passengers are making traveling less hectic by using the social networking site that allows users to post messages consisting of 140 characters or fewer.
Airlines such as jetBlue, Alaska and Southwest use Twitter to tout low airfare promotions, provide travel tips and answer customer questions. With public relations officials in the cockpit, airline staffers also use social networking sites to monitor consumer complaints and quickly respond to inquiries.
“When twitter started [jetBlue] saw two or three tweets a day mentioning our brand name, but now we see several hundred a day,” said Morgan Johnston, manager of corporate communications for jetBlue.
Johnston participated in a podcast about new media and social networking sites earlier this year with fellow public relations experts from Southwest and Alaska Airlines. The corporate twitterers acknowledged that the site helps airlines connect with their customers, but it cannot solve every problem. For example, it is not a practical tool when customers have complicated concerns such as lost luggage.
“Twitter is the new hot topic,” said Andrea Schwarzbach, a marketing spokesperson for Alaska Airlines.
It provides a two-way conversation for airlines to engage with customers, she added.
Customers, such as WSU freshman communication major Peter Wagner, are discovering new ways to use the site and connect with fellow travelers.
“I never thought about using it for travel,” Wagner said. “It seems like the next step though. People already use it to get news and everything else.”
Wagner said he made six or seven tweets between his flights home for Thanksgiving last week, posting comments about lines at security checkpoints and flight troubles.
While airlines and travelers have embraced Twitter, airport officials have not gravitated to the site yet.
Officials at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport said they still rely on their Web site to inform travelers of flight delays and new vendors in the terminal.
“Facebook and Twitter are something we have kept an eye on, but people are still turning to our web site,” said Sea-Tac Media Officer Perry Cooper. “For the airlines, it is a great opportunity. For us, we have so many different airlines that people go to our Web site and sign up for our e-mail notifications instead.”
With the Holiday travel season approaching, airport officials are expecting increased traffic in the sky and online. About 362,000 people visited the Sea-Tac Web site in December 2008, which is nearly five times as many people compared to the rest of the year, Cooper said.
Airlines are preparing for more twitter followers this December as well.
“There is a strong connection between the number of travelers and the number of tweets we see,” Johnston said.
To accommodate flyers, travel agencies are taking advantage of new media as well. Travelocity has started placing “spotters” in the nation’s largest airports to blog and tweet about travel conditions at each location.
Though Twitter remains in its infancy, the increased use by airlines and passengers proves its fate in the travel industry is no longer up in the air.
Morgan Johnston - (718) 826-7900
Andrea Shwarzbach- (206) 431-7049
Perry Cooper-(206) 787-4923
Peter Wagner- (360) 220-7545
Increasing numbers of airline passengers are making traveling less hectic by using the social networking site that allows users to post messages consisting of 140 characters or fewer.
Airlines such as jetBlue, Alaska and Southwest use Twitter to tout low airfare promotions, provide travel tips and answer customer questions. With public relations officials in the cockpit, airline staffers also use social networking sites to monitor consumer complaints and quickly respond to inquiries.
“When twitter started [jetBlue] saw two or three tweets a day mentioning our brand name, but now we see several hundred a day,” said Morgan Johnston, manager of corporate communications for jetBlue.
Johnston participated in a podcast about new media and social networking sites earlier this year with fellow public relations experts from Southwest and Alaska Airlines. The corporate twitterers acknowledged that the site helps airlines connect with their customers, but it cannot solve every problem. For example, it is not a practical tool when customers have complicated concerns such as lost luggage.
“Twitter is the new hot topic,” said Andrea Schwarzbach, a marketing spokesperson for Alaska Airlines.
It provides a two-way conversation for airlines to engage with customers, she added.
Customers, such as WSU freshman communication major Peter Wagner, are discovering new ways to use the site and connect with fellow travelers.
“I never thought about using it for travel,” Wagner said. “It seems like the next step though. People already use it to get news and everything else.”
Wagner said he made six or seven tweets between his flights home for Thanksgiving last week, posting comments about lines at security checkpoints and flight troubles.
While airlines and travelers have embraced Twitter, airport officials have not gravitated to the site yet.
Officials at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport said they still rely on their Web site to inform travelers of flight delays and new vendors in the terminal.
“Facebook and Twitter are something we have kept an eye on, but people are still turning to our web site,” said Sea-Tac Media Officer Perry Cooper. “For the airlines, it is a great opportunity. For us, we have so many different airlines that people go to our Web site and sign up for our e-mail notifications instead.”
With the Holiday travel season approaching, airport officials are expecting increased traffic in the sky and online. About 362,000 people visited the Sea-Tac Web site in December 2008, which is nearly five times as many people compared to the rest of the year, Cooper said.
Airlines are preparing for more twitter followers this December as well.
“There is a strong connection between the number of travelers and the number of tweets we see,” Johnston said.
To accommodate flyers, travel agencies are taking advantage of new media as well. Travelocity has started placing “spotters” in the nation’s largest airports to blog and tweet about travel conditions at each location.
Though Twitter remains in its infancy, the increased use by airlines and passengers proves its fate in the travel industry is no longer up in the air.
Morgan Johnston - (718) 826-7900
Andrea Shwarzbach- (206) 431-7049
Perry Cooper-(206) 787-4923
Peter Wagner- (360) 220-7545
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Beat Update Week 13
Environment Or Economy? Obama's Balancing Act by Don Gonyea
Lede:"President Obama's China visit touched on the issue of climate change and cooperation on green energy research. But his weeklong trip to Asia has also brought an acknowledgment that next month's big climate change conference in Copenhagen will not result in a new treaty."
Climate change bill through coal states by UPI
Lede: "Several U.S. senators have a message for their chamber's leaders: The road to a climate change rumbles through their coal-rich states."
Lede:"President Obama's China visit touched on the issue of climate change and cooperation on green energy research. But his weeklong trip to Asia has also brought an acknowledgment that next month's big climate change conference in Copenhagen will not result in a new treaty."
Climate change bill through coal states by UPI
Lede: "Several U.S. senators have a message for their chamber's leaders: The road to a climate change rumbles through their coal-rich states."
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Thoughts on the Frontline documentary
Here is a link to a J305 blogpost about the Spokesman-Review's handling of the Jim West investigation.
Algae fuels alternative energy movement
Summary (Nut graph): Fueled by volatile energy prices and growing environmental concerns, WSU researchers are working to turn green algae into the next cost-effective, environmentally friendly energy source.
If WSU researchers are correct, pond scum could be the oil of the 21st century.
Fueled by volatile energy prices and growing environmental concerns, WSU researchers are working to turn green algae into the next cost-effective, environmentally friendly energy source.
“The university is becoming a powerhouse in biomass engineering,” said Manuel Garcia-Perez, WSU assistant professor of biological systems engineering. “No single career was offered in biomass engineering just a few years ago. The fact that we are creating an army of people to build a biomass economy now is incredible.”
That army of people is seen in bioprocessing laboratories across the Pullman campus. Graduate students pace between fermentors and high performance centrifuges that look like large washing machines as they work to find the next generation of biofuels.
Algae emerged as a possible savior for America’s energy problems during the summer of 2008 when oil prices topped $100 per barrel. Fears about corn-based biodiesel products displacing valuable farmland increased food costs, helping propel Algae into the spotlight.
Algae’s quick growth rate and high energy content make it appealing to researchers. According to the Department of Energy, algae may be able to produce 100 times more oil per acre than other biodiesel crops, including corn and soybeans.
WSU students and faculty involved in biomass engineering are working to modify the fatty acid composition of plant oils to act as substitutes for petroleum products, John Browse, professor of molecular plant sciences, said.
The amount of attention and funding for biomass engineering has increased in recent years. Last month, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash, announced that a $2 million appropriation for WSU biofuels projects would be included in a Senate funding bill. The appropriation is intended to spur development in algae fuels and create a partnership between WSU and Seattle-based research group Target Growth Inc.
“This funding will support cutting-edge research that will create jobs and continue to position Washington state as a leader in the clean energy economy,” Murray said in an Oct. 15 press release. “It provides a shot in the arm for Washington state biofuels research, and will help our country move toward cleaner and more efficient energy use.”
Funding is also streaming into algae-fuel research from private donors like Bill Gates and Boeing. In 2007, $32 million in venture capital was pumped into businesses working on algae fuel, and that sum increased to $184 million worldwide in 2008, according to Cleantech Network.
"Industry is coming to us," said Shulin Chen, a WSU biological engineering professor working on algae fuels.
"We have new ideas in all the areas that we're working on," he said. "They're promising, but we can't say it's economical at this point."
Harvesting large quantities of algae, extracting the fatty acids and integrating biofuels into the current energy infrastructure have created problems for researches. About 3.9 billion tons of biomass would be required every year to replace the petroleum resources people use, Norman Lewis, director of WSU's Institute of Biological Chemistry, said.
“We can’t afford to build a new infrastructure,” Garcia-Perez said. “We have to create an infrastructure that is compatible with the current system.”
It is an emerging industry, but unless oil prices return to $100 per barrel for an extended period of time, algae fuels will remain a difficult sell, he added.
Until a shift occurs, WSU biofuel researchers said they will look for new alternatives and offer students “a global vision” of biomass engineering.
“America needs an army of people,” Garcia-Perez said. “Capital will come, but you need the people.”
Sources
Manuel Garcia-Perez-(509)335-7758 (in person interview)
Shulin Chen -(509)335-3743
John Browse- (509)335-2293
Norman Lewis-(509)335-2682
If WSU researchers are correct, pond scum could be the oil of the 21st century.
Fueled by volatile energy prices and growing environmental concerns, WSU researchers are working to turn green algae into the next cost-effective, environmentally friendly energy source.
“The university is becoming a powerhouse in biomass engineering,” said Manuel Garcia-Perez, WSU assistant professor of biological systems engineering. “No single career was offered in biomass engineering just a few years ago. The fact that we are creating an army of people to build a biomass economy now is incredible.”
That army of people is seen in bioprocessing laboratories across the Pullman campus. Graduate students pace between fermentors and high performance centrifuges that look like large washing machines as they work to find the next generation of biofuels.
Algae emerged as a possible savior for America’s energy problems during the summer of 2008 when oil prices topped $100 per barrel. Fears about corn-based biodiesel products displacing valuable farmland increased food costs, helping propel Algae into the spotlight.
Algae’s quick growth rate and high energy content make it appealing to researchers. According to the Department of Energy, algae may be able to produce 100 times more oil per acre than other biodiesel crops, including corn and soybeans.
WSU students and faculty involved in biomass engineering are working to modify the fatty acid composition of plant oils to act as substitutes for petroleum products, John Browse, professor of molecular plant sciences, said.
The amount of attention and funding for biomass engineering has increased in recent years. Last month, Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash, announced that a $2 million appropriation for WSU biofuels projects would be included in a Senate funding bill. The appropriation is intended to spur development in algae fuels and create a partnership between WSU and Seattle-based research group Target Growth Inc.
“This funding will support cutting-edge research that will create jobs and continue to position Washington state as a leader in the clean energy economy,” Murray said in an Oct. 15 press release. “It provides a shot in the arm for Washington state biofuels research, and will help our country move toward cleaner and more efficient energy use.”
Funding is also streaming into algae-fuel research from private donors like Bill Gates and Boeing. In 2007, $32 million in venture capital was pumped into businesses working on algae fuel, and that sum increased to $184 million worldwide in 2008, according to Cleantech Network.
"Industry is coming to us," said Shulin Chen, a WSU biological engineering professor working on algae fuels.
"We have new ideas in all the areas that we're working on," he said. "They're promising, but we can't say it's economical at this point."
Harvesting large quantities of algae, extracting the fatty acids and integrating biofuels into the current energy infrastructure have created problems for researches. About 3.9 billion tons of biomass would be required every year to replace the petroleum resources people use, Norman Lewis, director of WSU's Institute of Biological Chemistry, said.
“We can’t afford to build a new infrastructure,” Garcia-Perez said. “We have to create an infrastructure that is compatible with the current system.”
It is an emerging industry, but unless oil prices return to $100 per barrel for an extended period of time, algae fuels will remain a difficult sell, he added.
Until a shift occurs, WSU biofuel researchers said they will look for new alternatives and offer students “a global vision” of biomass engineering.
“America needs an army of people,” Garcia-Perez said. “Capital will come, but you need the people.”
Sources
Manuel Garcia-Perez-(509)335-7758 (in person interview)
Shulin Chen -(509)335-3743
John Browse- (509)335-2293
Norman Lewis-(509)335-2682
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Math Fun Times
1. $7,885
2. 83 percent
3. Mean salary?$ 67,500 Median salary? $40,000
4. It is a one percent difference, but a 20 percent change. It depends on the difference between percentage increase and percent increase.
5. a. 25 percent
b. 33 percent
6. Last year, your property tax bill was $1,152. This year, it rose to $1,275. What’s the percent increase? 11%
7. What’s the mean price? $790,600
What’s the median?$207,000
8. 3
9. Pullman:73.2 per 10,000 people; Spokane: 25 per 10,000 people
They are more likely to be assaulted in Pullman.
10. $150,000
2. 83 percent
3. Mean salary?$ 67,500 Median salary? $40,000
4. It is a one percent difference, but a 20 percent change. It depends on the difference between percentage increase and percent increase.
5. a. 25 percent
b. 33 percent
6. Last year, your property tax bill was $1,152. This year, it rose to $1,275. What’s the percent increase? 11%
7. What’s the mean price? $790,600
What’s the median?$207,000
8. 3
9. Pullman:73.2 per 10,000 people; Spokane: 25 per 10,000 people
They are more likely to be assaulted in Pullman.
10. $150,000
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