Bullying Awareness

With the month of October being "Bullying Prevention Awareness Month", theres been a lot of talk lately about how bullying is a major trend that has been growing in the United States. This is leading many people to look for ways to try to prevent it.

In honor of the youth who have taken their lives due to bullying, October 20 is now known as Spirit Day where people can participate and wear the color purple in order to show awareness. Spirit Day was started by a young girl named Brittany McMillan who wanted to recognize all who have committed suicide because of this major issue that is a problem all over the United States.


Bullying has taken a new level and is able to reach a person in the comfort of their own home now. This new level is by the use of cyber bullying. With all these new social networks, it is now a lot easier for many to bully others as well. "I am ashamed of doing it but when I was in high school I did make fun of a couple of people. It was a lot easier to do it online too because you're not in front of the person" Jiovan De la Torre, a San Diego State University student said.

California was recently named one of the worst states to live in when trying to avoid bullying. This makes many worry about what is going on in the schools in which their children are attending. "It seems like all I hear on the news is how some child has killed themself because of the way people treated them at school. It is really sad and it makes me so scared to send my own son to school everyday" said Martha Martinez, a mother of a student at Eastlake Elementary.

With celebrities including Queen Latifah, Lady Gaga and Chris Colfer that are speaking up against bullying and the creation of days like Spirit Day, there seems to be a lot of inspiration for many to spread the word of Bullying Prevention Awareness Month. Brianne Butcher, a student at Southwestern College, has organized an event in Chula Vista to bring awareness to bullying with "Friendly Water Fight Against Bullying". This event will take place on Sunday, November 27 at 3pm. No specific location has been set yet, but she plans to let her followers know soon. There will be a donation box at the event and all proceeds will go to The Pacer Center's Teens Against Bullying.

Bullying Awareness Month

With the passing of October being "Bullying Prevention Awareness Month", theres been a lot of talk about how bullying is a major trend that has been growing in the United States, which is leading many people to look for ways to try to prevent it.

In honor of the youth who have taken their lives due to bullying, October 20 is now known as Spirit Day where people can participate and wear the color purple in order to show awareness. Spirit Day was started by a young girl named Brittany McMillan who wanted to recognize the many who have committed suicide because of this major issue that seems to be a problem all over the United States.

California was recently named one of the worst states to live in when trying to avoid bullying, which makes many worry about what is going on in the schools in which their children are attending. "It seems like all I hear on the news is how some child has killed themself because of the way people treated them at school. It is really sad and it makes me so scared to send my own son to school everyday" said Martha Martinez, a mother of a student at Eastlake Elementary.

Bullying has taken a new level and is able to reach a person in the comfort of their own home by the use of cyber bullying. With all these new social networks, it is now a lot easier for many to bully others as well. "I am ashamed of doing it but when I was in high school I did make fun of a couple of people. It was a lot easier to do it online too because you're not in front of the person" Jiovan De la Torre, a San Diego State University student said.

With days like Spirit Day and even celebrities including Queen Latifah, Lady Gaga and Chris Colfer that are speaking up against bullying, it seems to be inspiring many to spread the word of Bullying Prevention Awareness Month. Brianne Butcher, a student at Southwestern College, has organized an event in Chula Vista to bring awareness to bullying with "Friendly Water Fight Against Bullying". This event will take place on Sunday, November 27 at 3pm. No specific location has been set yet, but she plans to let her followers know soon. There will be a donation box at the event and all proceeds will go to The Pacer Center's Teens Against Bullying.

First Steps of Bullying Story

          In regards to my bullying story, I have been searching for the right people to interview. I am planning on going to the nearby Eastlake High School to get some quotes from certain staff members and students that will help me with my story regarding this issue. So far I have already planned an interview with the Cheer Advisor for the school, Robert Blas. After I receive more information from him, I will be able to try to schedule an interview with a student who has been bullied and an actual bully.
          I have also scheduled an interview with Brianne Butcher who is making a fundraiser called Friendly Water Fight Against Bullying scheduled for November 27. This fundraiser's purpose is to bring bullying awareness and raise money to donate to The Pacer's Center Teens Against Bullying.
          I am also doing my research trying to find out statistics on bullying that is happening around Chula Vista. My story is going to include these statistics, quotes from all points of view from the interviews, and some information about the fundraiser that is coming up. I also want to include that October is Domestic Abuse Awareness month and some information on Spirit Day which just past on October 20.

Occupy San Diego Still Standing

After originally starting as Occupy Wall Street in New York City, the protestors of Occupy San Diego are still standing strong in front of the Civic Center in downtown after a good couple of weeks of fighting for their demands.

Occupy Wall Street started as one group of protestors wanting their demands to be met by the city of New York concerning unemployment and the nation’s economical stand point, but soon moved quickly across the globe and now stands as far as Europe and Asia.

Occupy San Diego has already had a large group of an estimated 1500 protestors march down Market Street and then occupy the space in front of the Civic center which is right in the middle of San Diego City Hall.

The police did step in and take down tents from the protestors on October 14 and have notified them to not put them back up, but it seems that it has not shaken them up and they still refuse to leave.

“I feel that the protestors are ruining the beauty of downtown” said Jaime Ricodi, a 34 year-old bank teller.

It is unclear if the City of San Diego is planning on making changes for the future, but Caroline Ledesma, the San Diego Mayor’s Assistant feels that our nations economic stand point will bounce back in time. “Personally, I think the protests are just supporting the freedom of speech. All in all, we live in a great country with a lot of opportunity. Our economic future will definitely come back up.

Economic Lead

With the economy being the number one topic in our nation, people are looking around for answers on what is going on and what our future is set to look like. This is where Ben Bernanke, the Chairman of The Federal Reserve comes in.

The economy is at an all time low, the unemployment rate is at an all time high, and according to Ben Bernanke, it may take another four to five years for the unemployment rate to get back to normal. Recently the U.S. has lost around 8 and a half million jobs which is resulting in many outbursts and protests through out the nation. Like many, Bernanke wishes he had seen this crisis coming but now he says, "We can only address issues if we think about it now."

Occupy San Diego

Many different groups full of protestors were spread through out the heart of downtown San Diego in front of the Civic Theatre late Thursday afternoon to make sure their statement was heard in the name of Occupy San Diego.

After many meetings that occurred at the Children's Park discussing what is happening in Wall Street and the economical struggle that the nation is going through, an estimated amount of 1500 people marched through Market Street which eventually lead up to the stay in front of the civic center.

Winston Tecolote, a 35 year-old gardener, explained how he had been staying and making the Civic Center his home since last Saturday afternoon. "I don't know how much longer I will be here and this whole protest will last but I guess we all will just have to wait and see. All I know is that a lot of people are really pissed off."

A dance competition called World of Dance is scheduled to be presented at the Civic Theatre Saturday, October 15. Many were starting to prepare for Friday morning because word was spreading that the police was going to take action and start taking down tents because of the showcase.

"It will be a sad sad thing if the police try to push us away from what is now our home. We are all here to be heard and to educate others on this world wide problem. I have not had any sleep in the past 33 hours because I am determined to teach others about finance and the monitary policy" said Michael Rodriguez, a 23 year-old entrepreneur.

Many had the need to educate the people of downtown San Diego because they felt that the media is not doing their job. Michael Rodriguez explained how the only media attention they had gotten in he past few days was because of someone had tried to jump off of a three story building. "The media is controlled by the government. They don't care about what we have to say."

"What is going on with Wall Street and our economy is affecting so many people. It put my Mom out of a job and who knows what the future holds for the youth, but our voices need to be heard and whether the police take down our tents or not, we all need to stay strong and stand our ground." 

The Internet

          There are so many sites on the Internet filled with valuable information as well as non-valuable information. While a lot of people use the Internet for social networking, many now use it to find out their daily news.
          Topics like the weather, is something that most people use the internet in order to find out. The use of the Internet is fast and easy. If someone would want to know what the weather is going to be like for the day, they would be able to hop on and find out at whatever time they like. Not only do they get to find out their local weather, but if one was to go on vacation, the Internet is the perfect place to find out what the weather will be like for wherever they are going. People don't have to wait for their local news to be on anymore.
          It seems like now in days everyone is moving in such a fast pace and the Internet is the most convenient place to get information. The Internet is now able to tag along with everyone with the invention of smart phones. Phone apps come in handy for many as well. People are able to download apps that give them specific information for whatever it is they may be in search for.
          In "Internet a tope source of local info: Pew report," an article written by Suzzane Choney, a survey is used to back up her information on how the Internet is the main source for many news topics. Something that is very agreeable from her article was the fact that many use social networking sites in order to find out breaking news. Once one person finds something out, many others will soon know as soon as that person hits the "update status" button. News on the Internet travels very fast.
          The television and newspapers are still put to good use. Some do not resort to the Internet as their source of information, but when you look at numbers, the majority does.

Twitter Tips

          Since Twitter is becoming one of the most used social networking sites, it would be recommended to actually learn how to use it properly, especially as a journalist. The article, "10 ways journalists can use Twitter before, during and after reporting a story" written by Mallary Jean Tenore is very beneficial to any journalist that it trying to start up on the Twitter game.
        
           Giving your audience a behind the scenes look is a big aspect in letting your readers really know you as a journalist and as a person in general. If your audience knows you on somewhat of a more personal level, they are going to want to end up reading your hard news articles or your quick to the point tweets. Of course people like to follow journalists and news stations specifically for news updates but giving them a behind the scenes look can be just as interesting to your audience.

          Retweet, retweet, retweet. This is a huge aspect in Twitter. You want your stories to go out into the world way farther than your general audience. In order for this to happen you need others to retweet your stories. E-mailing your story to others you may know is a great way to be heard. If whomever you e-mail really enjoys your story, they might happen to tweet about it on their own page which broadens your audience.

          Knowing the right people to follow is a huge aspect in where you can find your news stories. So many people and businesses use Twitter and other social networks, which makes it very easy for journalists to find new stories to write about. A journalist does need to be careful though and verify his or her sources. People want to know the truth, not what may be the truth. Tenore makes a very good point when she explained that if you are not too sure about a certain story then you should tell your audiences that you are still working on the story and will give updates on whatever you do find out.

          Many new and upcoming journalists are barely figuring out what Twitter is and how to use it. This article by Mallary Jean Tenore is beyond helpful.

A Writer Who Inspires

With the many people graduating and receiving degrees in the journalism field, it seems like there is so much competition for careers in order to be a successful journalist. Sometimes in order to keep your head up and keep going, one would need to be inspired.

Jim Trotter, a Senior Writer from Sports Illustrated has gone through a long road to get where he is at today. After getting a degree in broadcast journalism from Howard University he began to realize that a career specifically in broadcast journalism isn't exactly a safe. "I'm really big on security. If your contract is up or there is a change of program managers and they don't like you then you're out of a job." He eventually wrote for the Union Tribune. After writing there for 18 years, he went on to write for Sports Illustrated and has been there ever since.


It still surprises him that he is writing for the number one sports magazine in the U.S. "I never thought I would be good enough for Sports Illustrated." Being a Senior Writer, he is able to travel to many different states in order to cover stories for the NFL. He is very busy during football season not only because of Sports Illustrated but also because he is a corrospandant with ESPN.


Mr. Trotter has been told before that he was never going to make it in writing but he pushed on and has made a name for himself. He has much advice for future journalists especially because he feels that the new age is entering at a interesting and challenging time.


Jim Trotter may be that one writer to inspire future journalists.

Gay Pride Article

          After reading "Gay pride parade a diverse display" written by Jeff McDonald, it was not too clear to me if his article was in fact fair. At first I thought the article could be fair because it included information about four different parties of the parade. McDonald talked about the gays who participated in the parade, citizens who were there just to watch and enjoy, police officials who were watching over the event, and also protesters who were against homosexuality. Including all those different parties seemed pretty fair to me.

Once i reread it and really tried breaking the story down, I started to realize some unfairness going on at the very begining, which I quickly passed through the first time I read it. In McDonald's second paragraph he talks about how most of the people who walked in the parade wore regular clothing like T-shirts, shorts, jeans and sun dresses, yet he seemed surprised to see that. He made it seem like if the gay people who walked in the parade were not supposed to dress like that. With something like that written in the newspaper, I am sure someone could of been offended.

The way the story was written, it did not seem like the writer was trying to be unfair, but it did so happen that his statement ended up being so.

Current 9/11 Media Coverage

The 10th anniversary of the tragedies of September 11th, 2011 is coming up this Sunday. It seems like everyday for the past two weeks I have turned on the television to find some sort of coverage on the story. With every channel all talking about the same thing, I would think that I would get annoyed and just want to turn the television off, but that is not the case.

I feel that the media is doing a great job and showing the right amount of coverage on 9/11. They are not only remembering and showing clips of what happened on that certain date but they are also sharing new information that has not been out before. They are also interviewing many people ranging from ones who were there when it happened, ones who were affected because of the lose of a loved one, and even children who were too young to understand but now realize what has happened. The media is sharing such a wide variety of news stories regarding one incident in a way that is uniting our country together again like the incident did 10 years ago.

Change of Media Coverage for 9/11

          When the terrorism attacks of 9/11 happened, I was only nine years of age. I didn't really understand what had happened and why everyone was panicking. As I have grown older, I have come to learn more and more about what happened that day and why it was such a big deal.

When I was younger, I never watched the news. Like any child, I thought it was boring and did not understand much. After watching the "Reliable Sources" video on the change of media coverage through out the years, I got a chance to see the type of coverage that was displayed during a time when I didn't understand.

When this tragic event happened, Kelli Arena a former CNN correspondent, explained how the news coverage was "All terror all the time." With the 10th Anniversary coming up this weekend, it seems like there has been nothing but 9/11 coverage on every news station. Not only has there been a remembrance on what happened 10 years ago, but there is even coverage on the fact that there are terrorist attack threats for this weekend. The video also explained how it took about 5 years for the terrorism coverage to slow down. I feel that is understandable. People probably were still scared and on their toes. I know I would have been if I knew more and was a bit older.

Now that we have more ways of receiving information like Twitter and other social networks, I feel that it may be easier for younger children to understand what happened on 9/11. Instead of watching the news, which most nine-year-olds probably don't watch, they are able to hop onto the Internet and see all the different coverage portrayed everywhere. The Internet is becoming very beneficial and is making it easier for not only adults but children as well to come together in this time of great remembrance.

All About Me

          My name is Jacquelyn Quezada. I also go by Jackie. I was born January 16th, 1992 in San Diego, California. I have lived in Chula Vista all of my life and love it very much. My parents are divorced and I am the youngest of four children. I went to St. Rose of Lima, a Catholic elementary and middle school. I only attended St. Rose until 6th grade and eventually left to Eastlake Middle School. I later attended Eastlake High School and played volleyball as a freshman. I have always loved the sport but when I tried out my sophomore year, I did not make the team. I stopped trying out after that. I always had a lot of school spirit and was a part of the pep club. I was an average student when it came to academics but I always tried my best. My senior year of high school, I joined a hip hop dance team called Intrace. I think being a part of the dance team was probably the highlight of my senior year. Even though I consider myself a shy person, I loved performing in front of people.
          When I began Southwestern Community College I was unsure on what my major was going to be or what I was even interested in. I told myself I was probably going to major in Child Development until I became a nanny for a 3 year old and a 6 year old. I quickly changed my mind. I guess I am not too much of a kid person. As a part of my general education, I had to take a Communications class. I took an Oral Communication class in the Fall of 2010. I was dreading going to that class because like I said earlier, I am a shy person and I felt that I was going to struggle with my speeches. I ended up loving the class. To my surprise, I enjoyed doing speeches. Thats when I realized I was going to become a Communications major. When I started looking into the different types of Communication majors, I figured out that I wanted to learn more about Public Relations. In order to fulfill my goal in becoming a Public Relations major, I need to take Journalism 151. So far I am enjoying the class and I am excited to see how the rest of the semester is going to turn out.

Fake a Funeral

I have heard of people scamming others in so many different ways, but never have I heard of anyone trying to fake needing money for a funeral for a pretend baby until recently.

I know people now in days are desperate for money because of the horrible economy, but how low can a persons morals get. So many good hearted people are willing to donate money to charities and to people who are truly in need of it. It is really upsetting to see them get scammed and have no idea. The sad thing is, there are probably so many situations like this one happening all over the country. Times are hard and people are going to do whatever they can to get the easy way out of their problems.

It is always nice to see that many citizens are willing to give and donate their money for people who are truly in need of it. I just hope good karma still goes to the people who got scammed in this situation.