Blog Post #7

Evaluative Question #2: Can we trust news media?:

I believe that we are able to trust news media in a way but all news is very bias. There is no possible way to tell a news story without being bias at all. The words you use, the way you speak, bod language, layout of the story. These all have an effect on how people read or listen the story. It makes a difference on what you think the story is about or really means. "Five years ago, Fox News Channel was launched on the idea that something was wrong with news media--that somehow, somewhere bias found its way into reporting. . . . And it's not just the way you tell a story that can get in the way of the truth. It's the stories you choose to tell" -Trace Gallagher, Fox news. http://fair.org/extra-online-articles/the-most-biased-name-in-news/. "And it's not just the way you tell a story that can get in the way of the truth. It's the stories you choose to tell."That is another point that is true. There are different forms of media that tell different stories based on the beliefs of the writers, producers etc. In the same article Fox says that they are the "only unbiased network". By saying that they are the only unbiased network is bias in and of itself.

I feel that news media is very biased but not so much so that it becomes untrue. They may stretch the truth or give different stories, but they don't change things to the point when they are no longer true and are untrustworthy. The best way to get news is to get it from multiple different sources and form your own opinion about what is true based on your information. The other problem with thinking about news media being untrustworthy and bias is that we are being biased just by thinking that. Every person is biased and looks at thinks with a biased point of view so it is all personal opinion on whether or not we can trust news media. Also, if you don't trust it, where else are you going to get your news from?

Shared Inquiry

Question #1, what is the relationship between Jack and his appearance? How does this relate to consumerism?- When Jack sees one of his coworkers at the supermarket he tells Jack that he is "a different person all together" (83) because he isn't wearing the same clothing he wears to teach. When Jack goes on his shopping trip and buys a lot of new clothing, he feels like he can hide behind the clothing he buys. The more he feels that his clothing makes others see him differently, it makes him consume more and buy more products.


Question #2, on page 92, Bee says that the airplane passengers went through the whole ordeal for nothing because there was no media coverage. Do you agree with this?- I do not agree with this. I do not think that media is the biggest thing in people's lives. This is saying that nothing matters if it isn't covered for the world to see but I do not think this is correct. When people have a big event happen in their lives, especially a disaster type situation, they will always remember it in their minds. It doesn't make a difference to the person if it is broadcast. If they do, I think that all they care about is attention.

Question #3, why do you think that Jack felt that Bee was trying to pry secret information from him?-

Question #4, what do you think Jack meant when he said death is strictly a professional matter in the classroom?- I think that Jack was saying that when death is discussed in the classroom it has to be talked about is a professional sense. You cannot put personal opinions into it. When talking about death in a classroom you need to not put your emotions into it.

Question 5, jack and Babette were both married before they met each other? How do you think they feel about each others ex's?- I do not think that Jack or Babette think about each others ex's. Throughout the book so far, Jack has not really mentioned Babette's ex's so I do not think it phases him. If he were to care and think about them, we would hear about it a lot in the book because all Jack talks about is what he is thinking.