Leads Exercises #2

A U.S. plane flying out of Chicago smashed into the ground outside of Pittsburgh yesterday, killing all of the 131 passengers onboard in one of the worst airplane disasters this country has seen in the past three years. The crash occurred during landing, but not much else is known about what caused the accident.

Leads Exercises #1

Lead #1 : A local couple who suffered injuries in a car accident in March won $150,000 in damages in Butte County Court today.

Lead #2 :  Forecasters say that another snow storm is expected to hit the Sierras today as a part of a larger series of storms that will be passing through the area in the days to come.

Lead #3 : Three firefighters were injured in their attempt to squelch a fire that erupted in a six-story building at 204 Union Ave today. All of the 41 families who inhabited the building were successfully evacuated, police said. 

News Worthy Article

One of the most important and newsworthy pieces of news to surface this week was addressed in Mike Zapler and Frank Davies' article, "Judge gives OK to furlough state workers", that was published on last Friday, the 30th of January. The article explained how a Sacramento judge gave Governor Schwarzenegger the green light to go ahead and cut two workdays out of state employee's work schedules, and is important and newsworthy because it includes five out of the seven main news values mentioned in our textbook. 

The topic covered in the article concerns a measure that was approved of recently, which illustrates that it is timely. It will also have a discernible impact on not only the hundreds of thousands of state employees directly affected by the measure but also on the general public who won't be able to access government facilities like the DMV on the affected days. The fact that Arnold Schwarzenegger is the man behind the change also makes this story more grabbing since people are more apt to be interested in hearing about what he is up to rather than the goings on of a less recognizable politician. Because the topic also concerns a current and popular topic being addressed in the media these days (the economic crisis) and will be affecting the main audience of the Mercury News, Californians, it is without doubt that it deserved its spot on the front page of yesterdays newspaper. What about this story doesn't make it front page worthy?

*Link to this article : http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_11581816  

First Post!

Hey!

My name's Kate. I'm a second-year Sophomore here at San Jose State majoring in Spanish because I wanted an excuse to study abroad in Spain and force myself to take a year of French, a major requirement. I'm also minoring in Magazine Journalism (a minor that although not placed in the SJSU Course Catalog I am presuming to still exist) and thus have found myself here in this class due to requirement reasons.

Don't get me wrong though, I expect to have a lot of fun with this class! I chose to minor in Magazine Journalism because I like to research things and write about them; no one ever believes me when I say that, but it's true!

Anyway I also expect to not forget that I am taking this class, as I will be continuously writing "Remember Jour 61" on my hand for the rest of the semester in hopes that it will save me in the case that I forget!

When it comes to the media I am most interested in magazines (I can read them for HOURS), the A&E Section of the Mercury News (I am a regular Dear Abby and Food Section reader) and food television ('Ace of Cakes' and 'Iron Chef' are some of my personal favorites). 

Anyway I look forward to this class!