Archive of ‘Work in Progress’ category

Recommendations for Deliberation

My recommendation for dealing with the problem of stress among college students is to make general education classes pass or fail. This would relieve some of the stress students have to get good grades in all of their classes. Students would still have to participate and make an effort to pass the class, it would just be less demanding if it was pass/fail. Another idea is that CAPS should host group therapy sessions and bring in students majoring in psychology that want to help others. This would allow CAPS to treat more students and having the option of talking to a psychology major would make some students feel more comfortable because they are talking to another student and not an adult. I also think that during stressful times like finals week, RAs should host more events like offering free food or ice cream as a way for students to take a break from studying and reward themselves.

Deliberation Experience

I thought the whole deliberation process was interesting. It was a nice change from sitting in class listening to a lecture or writing a paper on our own. I liked how we had group discussions where everyone had a chance to voice their personal stake in the situation and add their own input at any time. It was interesting to hear where everyone in the group stood on the situations. We built upon each others ideas to form what we thought to be the best solution to the issues discussed. The deliberations were a lot more relaxed and informal than I anticipated them to be, but I liked it because it didn’t feel like work, it was more of just a conversation between peers about important issues.

My idea for the recommendation report is that State College police should not try to end State Patty’s Day altogether, but should rather follow the same procedure they do for football weekends. The two events draw similar crowds in terms of number and both events are filled with binge drinking and the bars make the same amount of money on the two occasions. It would be more effective to stop trying to end the “holiday” but control the crowd more by putting more police on duty to stop things from getting out of hand.

My State Patty’s Day Opinion

I think that the city of State College should allow State Patty’s Day to happen naturally. This means that I believe they should not close the bars on this day. College students are going to find ways to drink regardless of what precautions are taken by police. If the profit made by the bars on football weekends is about the same as the profit made on State Patty’s Day, I don’t see why they deem this day as more of a risk than football weekends. I think that if anything, all the regulations and precautions surrounding State Patty’s Day gives students the idea that this is a major binge drinking day and that it is somewhat accepted to go crazy, because it is “tradition”. Also, by closing the bars, students will have to go to apartments or other houses to drink. I believe that this makes students more likely to drink more than they would at a bar, because they do not have to pay for each individual drink and it is harder to keep track of how many drinks you have consumed at an apartment party where they may be serving jungle juice. I believe that instead of closing the bars, the city of State College should just put more police on duty on the streets to make sure that things don’t get out of hand and that everyone is safe.

Paper 3 Outline

Tweet: “Penn State fraternities are always in the news doing something wrong”

  1. Thesis: The good things done by Penn State fraternities outweigh the bad.
  1. THON
    1. Canning trips
    2. Close relationship with THON family
    3. Fundraisers
    4. Thonvelopes
  1. Service
    1. Greek sweep
    2. Philanthropy
    3. Gift baskets around holidays
  1. Community Interaction
    1. Homecoming parade
  1. Academics
    1. Higher GPA than non-greek students
    2. Study hours
    3. Help available from older members
    4. Minimum GPA requirement
  1. Conclusion: Penn State fraternities do a lot of good for the school, community, and their members. They may occasionally be in the news for bad things, but that does not represent Greek Life at Penn State as a whole.

Paper 2 Rough Draft

Recently at University of Delaware, three strings were found hanging from a tree branch in the shape of a noose. What makes this controversial is the fact that just the day before, a peaceful “Black Lives Matter” protest took place. When the alleged nooses were discovered by a student, the news quickly spread that this was a demonstration of a hate crime. After investigation, it was found that the strings were used to hang paper lanterns for Alumni Weekend and were never taken down properly. Nj.com and the Newark Post had very different headlines and focal points in their articles on the matter. The Newark Post, a local publication in the city of Newark, Delaware, (which is where University of Delaware is located) focused on defending the fact that the strings were not nooses. Nj.com, a mainly New Jersey-oriented website, makes no mention of the fact that the strings were actually used for paper lanterns and refers to them as nooses. These differences are established through the title, word choice, and evidence presented in the articles.

The headlines of the articles immediately present two very different views on the story. Nj.com presents the reader with an attention-grabbing, controversial title that reads, “Nooses found after ‘Black Lives Matter’ rally in Delaware, reports say”. The Newark Post, knowing that the majority of its readers are local residents, poses a more relaxed, reassuring title. It reads, “UD: Alleged nooses were remnants of lantern display.” Because New Jersey residents may not be familiar with University of Delaware or have any interest in what goes on there, the author knew he needed a strong headline that would invoke interest and emotion in a large number of people, regardless of location. The author accomplishes this by using the word “noose” and leaving out “alleged” and also by mentioning the recent Black Lives Matter rally. This enables the reader to make the connection that the nooses were a hate crime against African Americans. Contrarily, the Newark Post title attempts to downplay the issue by assuring the readers that the strings were not nooses. This is accomplished by using the word “alleged” in front of “nooses”—instantly informing the reader that it was a misunderstanding. It makes no mention of the Black Lives Matter rally, inferring that there was no connection between the two occurrences. The Newark Post hopes to uphold a good reputation for the town in which it is based and wants to satisfy its readers—this is why its title differs so greatly from nj.com’s.

The two articles are written in very different tones, both invoking different feelings in the reader. Starting with the very first sentence in the nj.com article, the author sets a very serious and professional tone. The sentence reads, “Authorities have initiated an investigation after nooses hanging on a tree at the University of Delaware were spotted after a “Black Lives Matter” rally Tuesday night.” By mentioning the Black Lives Matter rally, the author is connecting and forming a relationship between the “nooses” and the rally. The Newark Post article takes a more relaxed, defensive, and informal tone. The first sentence reads, “Three so-called “nooses” that created an uproar on the University of Delaware campus were nothing more than remnants of a lantern display…” By using phrases like “so-called” and “nothing more than”, the author downplays the situation and makes the whole misunderstanding seem ridiculous. Another interesting difference in the articles is found in the mention of how the University handled the situation. The nj.com simply reads, “The university also alerted students of the incident, which remains under investigation.” The Newark Post article reads, “UD officials quickly released a statement condemning the ‘racist display’” and then goes on to include what the official statement said. The Newark Post is more concerned about preserving the University’s reputation because it represents the state as a whole—which is why the article goes into such detail about how the situation was handled. Nj.com, and presumably most of its viewers, is not concerned about the reputation of the University; therefore, the author saw no need to go into detail about how it was handled. The Newark Post author used words like “quickly” and “condemning” to express the concern of University officials. The word choice of both of the articles gives the reader different feelings and viewpoints on the situation.

The two articles present different evidence on the situation and produce two different understandings of the occurrences. The nj.com article fails to mention the fact that the alleged nooses were actually found to be strings used to hang paper lanterns from trees. It does, however, make a very convincing argument that these strings were actually nooses in response to the Black Lives Matter rally. The Newark Post article presents a lot of solid evidence— including time-stamped photos, witnesses who saw these strings before the rally even occurred, and en explanation from the student responsible for taking down the lanterns—to prove its argument. The evidence the authors of these articles chose to present makes a big impact on the overall understanding of the situation for the reader.

Paper 2 Ideas

One idea for Paper 2 compares the headlines of a recent event that took place in my hometown—Newark, Delaware—this week. Some University of Delaware students had a peaceful “Black Lives Matter” protest on Monday, September 21. On Tuesday afternoon, a student noticed strings tied around a tree resembling a noose and saw it as a hate crime done in response to the Black Lives Matter protest. The university acknowledged this issue and released an alert but then later retracted it after finding evidence that the string was part of a paper lantern decoration from Alumni Weekend that was not taken down properly. Nj.com posted an article on the incident with the headline “Nooses found after ‘Black Lives Matter’ rally in Delaware, reports say.” Newark Post Online also released an article on the same story with the headline “UD: Alleged nooses were remnants of lantern display.” I find the differences in these two headlines slanted in two different directions. The New Jersey article refers to the strings as nooses, which makes for a more interesting and controversial story while the Newark Post (which is the town in which the University is located) focuses more on the fact that the strings were not nooses. The Newark Post wants their town to have a good reputation so they focus on the positive viewpoint, ignoring the fact that maybe this actually was a hate crime. The Newark Post gives all the facts and evidence on how these were not nooses, while the New Jersey article makes no mention of the paper lanterns.

Another idea for Paper 2 compares two headlines on a recent tax break on marijuana sales in Colorado. When legislatures found that tax revenue from marijuana surpassed their expectations for 2014, they voted to get rid of the marijuana tax for one day as a celebration. The taxes were reinstated the next day as usual. BBC posted an article on the subject headlined, “Colorado declares tax holiday for marijuana sales.” The New York Times posted an article on the same day with the headline, “Day Without Marijuana Tax Draws Mixed Reactions in Colorado.” I found the differences in these two headlines interesting. The BBC headline makes the tax break sound like a joyful occasion, comparing it to a holiday and making it sound like marijuana is commonly accepted. It also does not mention how long the tax break lasted. The New York Times post points out that not everyone is supporting of marijuana use and the article provides insight on other peoples opinions of the tax break. The headline also makes it clear to the reader that it was only a one-day tax break.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2015/09/nooses_found_after_black_lives_matter_rally_in_del.html http://www.newarkpostonline.com/news/article_f15ffced-8dce-5ca8-a1ca-4ef9fce2f3de.html http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-34272291 http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/17/us/day-without-marijuana-tax-draws-mixed-reactions-in-colorado.html?_r=0

WIP Ad Ideas

An advertising method that I deem to be rhetorically compelling is the “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” slogan. Las Vegas has always been known as the place to go if you want to gamble, but the Las Vegas tourism department wanted to be known for its many other appeals as well. They started using this slogan in commercials and other advertisements and it quickly caught on. This slogan appeals to basically everyone aged 21 and older because everyone wants to get away for a while and have fun without having to worry about the consequences or their reputation. It is a simple and easy to remember phrase that has a lot of appeal and is rhetorically compelling.                medium_7187030846

 

The Mac vs PC advertising campaign is also very rhetorically compelling. It uses a middle-aged man dressed professionally to represent PCs and a younger man dressed casually to represent Mac computers. The differences between the two men symbolize the differences in the two computers; PCs are slow and considered old and outdated while Macs are new, up to date and easy to use. The dialogue used in the advertisements almost suggests that people who use PCs are dumber than Mac users because Justin Long (the man representing Macs) is constantly critiquing John Hodgman (the man representing PCs) on his computer skills.

Getamac