“Cougars Rockin’ the Vote,” a student involvement campaign put on by the Center of Civic Engagement (CCE), inspired many Washington State University (WSU) students this historical election year.
Michael J. Schwartz, a graduate student at WSU and the CCE’s statewide program coordinator, was one of four WSU graduate students who planned the new campaign and put it into action. Schwartz and his team members registered over six hundred students to vote during the “Cougars Rockin’ the Vote” campaign that ran from September 30th to November 4th. On “Election Countdown” Tuesdays information tables were set up in the Compton Union Building (CUB) informing students of how “Cougars Rockin’ the Vote” could inform them about the candidates, provide them with transportation to Pullman City Hall to vote as well as keep them updated on election results. The students were provided with food and entertainment in the CUB on election night, where they could stay updated on the election results. “It was really great to see all the students sitting in the CUB watching the election results live. I think it made them feel like the CUB is their building, as I think it should,” said Schwartz.
Patia Eaton
November 11, 2008
Page 2
WSU’s famous mascot, “Butch,” made several appearances during the campaign. “Butch” passed out voter registration forms on the Glenn Terrell Mall and helped get students engaged in the voting process and encouraged them to go to the polls. “Students were excited to vote. This election was electric,” Schwartz said. Students also had an opportunity to debate one another or watch other student debates during the “Under the Big Tent” events on October 2nd and October 30th. The debates were heated, but the passion behind the issues gave student the sense that voting is the ultimate demonstration of civic engagement, said Schwartz.
The goal of the “Cougars Rockin’ the Vote” campaign was to get students interested in the election process, registered to vote and to make sure any student who wanted to, had the opportunity to vote.
“Cougar’s Rockin’ the Vote” took approximately three months of planning and was originally the idea of Associated Students of WSU (ASWSU) Senator, Pete Semon. Schwartz estimated that $5,000 was spent on putting on the campaign. During any of the weekday events it took the CCE’s full staff, about 20 people, to help with the day’s activities.
On Election Day, as vans were pulling out of the parking lot taking students to city hall to fill out their ballots, more students would be running after the vans yelling “Stop! I need to vote!,” said Schwartz. Next year, Schwartz hopes WSU’s and ASWSU’s Presidents will attend. WSU faculty said to Schwartz, “that it was good to see a transformed sort of student activism.”
Patia Eaton
November 11, 2008
Page 3
The CCE’s mission is to “Promote civic responsibility, community knowledge, and self awareness of students through education and action,” as stated on the CCE website. The “Cougars Rockin’ the Vote” campaign made students feel passionately about their duty to vote. Schwartz said the campaign was so successful it will definitely become a tradition for CCE during upcoming election years.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Al Jazeera
1. How effective do you think the Internet will be for Al Jazeera as it attempts to reach a U.S. audience?
I think it will have minimal effects on a U.S. audience because it is my opinion that most people, even in the professional world, watch the same news stations day-after-day. Especially if big cable networks, like Time-Warner, refuse to carry this station. The popularity of getting daily news via the internet has increased, but I think with the war on terror people will be less willing to trust a station from a place they do not feel they can trust.
2. Based on your own observations, do you think that Al Jazeera English should be allowed to broadcast in the U.S.?
In my own experience watching this network (via livestation) I noticed no bias and no radical news stories. The news stories they were covering were almost all regarding current events on a global scale, especially the recent disaster in Haiti. If this was shown on TV I would have no problem watching it. I certainly see more obvious bias on stations like Fox News that Americans watch on a daily basis.
3. What, if anything, do you notice about Al Jazeera's approach to telling the news? How is it different than the U.S.-based TV news outlets that you have experienced?
U.S.-based news covers many more stories happening in the U.S.A. and I have never seen the U.S.-based news show a story about someone like Osama Bin Laden’s son’s wife with a sympathetic theme. I would also find it difficult to believe someone like this would agree to interview with a U.S. news station for fear of how they would be portrayed or targeted.
4. While on the Al Jazeera site, be sure to check out the network's published Code of Ethics. Based on your own observations, do you think they are adhering to them?
I feel that the Al Jazeera network stuck to their code of ethics. They interviewed random citizens on the street as well as political experts, etc. They also covered stories on a global scale and seemed in go about their interviews in an unbiased fashion. I did not get the sense they were pushing for the story to go one way or the other.
I think it will have minimal effects on a U.S. audience because it is my opinion that most people, even in the professional world, watch the same news stations day-after-day. Especially if big cable networks, like Time-Warner, refuse to carry this station. The popularity of getting daily news via the internet has increased, but I think with the war on terror people will be less willing to trust a station from a place they do not feel they can trust.
2. Based on your own observations, do you think that Al Jazeera English should be allowed to broadcast in the U.S.?
In my own experience watching this network (via livestation) I noticed no bias and no radical news stories. The news stories they were covering were almost all regarding current events on a global scale, especially the recent disaster in Haiti. If this was shown on TV I would have no problem watching it. I certainly see more obvious bias on stations like Fox News that Americans watch on a daily basis.
3. What, if anything, do you notice about Al Jazeera's approach to telling the news? How is it different than the U.S.-based TV news outlets that you have experienced?
U.S.-based news covers many more stories happening in the U.S.A. and I have never seen the U.S.-based news show a story about someone like Osama Bin Laden’s son’s wife with a sympathetic theme. I would also find it difficult to believe someone like this would agree to interview with a U.S. news station for fear of how they would be portrayed or targeted.
4. While on the Al Jazeera site, be sure to check out the network's published Code of Ethics. Based on your own observations, do you think they are adhering to them?
I feel that the Al Jazeera network stuck to their code of ethics. They interviewed random citizens on the street as well as political experts, etc. They also covered stories on a global scale and seemed in go about their interviews in an unbiased fashion. I did not get the sense they were pushing for the story to go one way or the other.
Monday, November 3, 2008
In-class Research Exercise
Uniform Crime Report:
The Uniform Crime Report shows four reported hate crimes in Pullman, during 2006. All of these four hate crimes fell under the motivation bias category of Sexual Orientation.
The only city with more hate crimes in this category during 2006, is Spokane, Washington. The statistics in this specific table showed the reports of 42 cities in Washington.
The categories of motivatoin bias are race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity and disability. The category of race had significantly higher numbers than each of the other categories, sexual orientation is second highest.
Pullman's popuation in 2006 was 25,696. Spokane's population in 2006 was 200,200.
http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/hc2006/table13wa.html
In 2007, Pullman reported only one of 39 reported hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation bias in 42 Washington cities. The 4 other hate crimes reported in Pullman in 2007 all fell under the bias motivation category of race.
Seattle reported the most hate crimes under the category of race bias motivation at fourteen and for sexual orientation bias motivation with eleven crimes of this nature in 2007.
Seattle's population in 2007 was 585,118. Pullman's popuation in 2007 was 25,408.
http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/hc2007/table_13wa.htm
Follow the Money:
In 2008 Governor candidates Christine Gregoire and Dino Rossi each received over seven million dollars in donations. Republican candidate Dino Rossi topped the list at $7,587,579 and Democratic candidate Christine Gregoire was a close second at $7,408,120.
The largest contributing industry to Dino Rossi's campaign is healthcare professionals, which gave a total of $15,330. The largest contributing industry to Christine Gregoire's campaign is lawyers and lobbyists, who gave a total of $55,110. Gregoire also received significantly more than Rossi from healthcare professionals who donated a total of $36,055 to her campaign.
In 2008 the democratic party received $374,137 from the Forestry & Forest Products industry. The republican party received $872,236 from the Forestry & Forest Products industry in 2008.
The republican party received the most donations from the lobbyists and public relations industry in 2008 at $2,423,512.
http://www.followthemoney.org/
Google's Patent Search:
Digital Video Recorder
http://www.google.com/patents?id=N7h1AAAAEBAJ&dq=%22digital+video+recorder%22+application
Social Networking
http://www.google.com/patents?id=VXyPAAAAEBAJ&dq=%22Social+Networking%22+application
Automobile
http://www.google.com/patents?id=Kh9TAAAAEBAJ&dq=%22automobile%22+application
The Uniform Crime Report shows four reported hate crimes in Pullman, during 2006. All of these four hate crimes fell under the motivation bias category of Sexual Orientation.
The only city with more hate crimes in this category during 2006, is Spokane, Washington. The statistics in this specific table showed the reports of 42 cities in Washington.
The categories of motivatoin bias are race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity and disability. The category of race had significantly higher numbers than each of the other categories, sexual orientation is second highest.
Pullman's popuation in 2006 was 25,696. Spokane's population in 2006 was 200,200.
http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/hc2006/table13wa.html
In 2007, Pullman reported only one of 39 reported hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation bias in 42 Washington cities. The 4 other hate crimes reported in Pullman in 2007 all fell under the bias motivation category of race.
Seattle reported the most hate crimes under the category of race bias motivation at fourteen and for sexual orientation bias motivation with eleven crimes of this nature in 2007.
Seattle's population in 2007 was 585,118. Pullman's popuation in 2007 was 25,408.
http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/hc2007/table_13wa.htm
Follow the Money:
In 2008 Governor candidates Christine Gregoire and Dino Rossi each received over seven million dollars in donations. Republican candidate Dino Rossi topped the list at $7,587,579 and Democratic candidate Christine Gregoire was a close second at $7,408,120.
The largest contributing industry to Dino Rossi's campaign is healthcare professionals, which gave a total of $15,330. The largest contributing industry to Christine Gregoire's campaign is lawyers and lobbyists, who gave a total of $55,110. Gregoire also received significantly more than Rossi from healthcare professionals who donated a total of $36,055 to her campaign.
In 2008 the democratic party received $374,137 from the Forestry & Forest Products industry. The republican party received $872,236 from the Forestry & Forest Products industry in 2008.
The republican party received the most donations from the lobbyists and public relations industry in 2008 at $2,423,512.
http://www.followthemoney.org/
Google's Patent Search:
Digital Video Recorder
http://www.google.com/patents?id=N7h1AAAAEBAJ&dq=%22digital+video+recorder%22+application
Social Networking
http://www.google.com/patents?id=VXyPAAAAEBAJ&dq=%22Social+Networking%22+application
Automobile
http://www.google.com/patents?id=Kh9TAAAAEBAJ&dq=%22automobile%22+application
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