EOTO #3 Edna Buchanan and the Miami Herald

The trailblazer I will be discussing today is the powerhouse crime reporter Edna Buchanan and her career and the Miami Herald. Edna Buchan was born in New Jersey in 1939. She was born to a working class mother and absent father. Her home life was difficult when her father left Edna and her family behind to live his life. She grew up with her mother, a working class woman who had a factory job making clothes. Edna followed her mother’s working path for a short time as a child when she was 11 and got a job working with her mother at a clothing factory. As Edna continued to grow, she took writing and journalism classes in New Jersey at Montclair State University, however she did not obtain a degree.

Edna would go on to get her first job with a local newspaper where she would work and hone her journalism skills. As Edna Buchanan’s career progressed she would go on to cover violent crime working hand in hand with the police at the Miami Herald. Throughout Edna’s career at the Miami Herald she reported on murders, homicides, and other earth shattering issues.

Edna’s signature writing style was captivating. An excerpt from the article Michigan Daily states "Edna Buchanan’s by-line on a story in the Miami Herald, especially if it was front-paged in the more leisurely Sunday paper, was soon a sign to readers that they could pour themselves a coffee, settle in a chair, and enter a world where jealousy, lust, or greed invariably led to a trail of mayhem and bodies. For Florida’s armchair thrill-seekers, Buchanan made sure the lip-smacking pleasures kicked in right at the top": “Bad things happen to the husbands of Widow Elkin.” began a 1985 story; “A 12-year-old schoolboy who had everything in the world executed his nine-year-old brother, then ambushed and shot to death.”

The captivating presence of Edna’s writings led to her longstanding commitment to journalism and crime reporting. For example, an excerpt from her novel The Corpse Had A Familiar Face stating “I cover crime for the Miami Herald…many of the corpses have familiar faces:cops and killers, politicians and prostitutes, doctors and lawyers. Some were my friends. This book is about them, about life and death in Miami-the place, the people, and the world of a police reporter in a city like no other.

Edna’s career was spent working for the Miami Beach Sun for a period of time as a main reporter. Edna worked in Miami and had a memorable career with the Miami Herald for eighteen years. She would later leave the Miami Herald to become an independent book author. Her most famous novel to date was the novel The Corpse Had A Familiar Face, as mentioned previously was later adapted into a movie which chronicled the life of Edna herself as a reporter. In summary, Edna Buchanan’s lasting career and impact and final legacy was winning the Pulitzer Prize and the George Polk Award. She was a trailblazer for women in news and crime reporting as a field of journalism. 

Shock and Awe

The film Shock and Awe was a shocking film as the name ensues. The film portrays the real life events experienced by news reporters who covered the invasion in Iraq and war veterans who went to Iraq after the terrorist attacks of 9/11 on US domestic soil looking for weapons of mass destruction. The Shock and Awe film tells the story of how the people of the US were lied to by major news outlets and subjected to false information surrounding the invasion in Iraq. The major focus of the film is the lack of transparency and lies that were told to the American people. 

Shock and Awe was a storytelling film that showed the importance of journalists telling the truth. The Knight Ridder's were the only news outlet that told the truth and gave the American people real information about the current events. The Knight Ridder's were experiencing pushback from their main news company, because they wanted to tell the truth. The film Shock and Awe highlights the importance of real life journalism, below I have attached snippets from the real life Knight Ridder journalists stating "I don't want to say [our reporting] brought me satisfaction. It didn't. Because we still invaded. The cost, in lives and money, is just astronomical and we're still paying for it. We're still paying for the consequences of this invasion," said Jonathan Landay, one of the reporters who led Knight Ridder's coverage on Iraq.

The important work that the Knight Ridder's did brought attention to the massive lying campaign that was being constructed by major news outlets all the while, small journalism corporations were telling the American people the truth and receiving backlash for it. As noted by one of the real-life Knight Ridder's by stating "That story got a lot of attention. We got angry emails from people saying we've given away the president's plans and put American lives at risk, which of course is ridiculous. I'm proud of that story," In short,the Knight Ridder's were a catalyst during the US’s decision to invade Iraq, because it kept the American people informed, and aware of what was going on during a very tumultuous time. 

EOTO #2: Terms and Concepts:The Political Column

 EOTO #2 The Political Column

The first earliest political column emerged with the first known connection to Thomas Paine. Thomas Paine laid the foundational groundwork for political columns and political commentary. However, the political columns and political commentary of the 30s and 40s was the major birth of an enterprise. The most common man in the world of political columns is Walter Lippmann and Will Rogers. 

The political column emerged during the party press era when politics came to the forefront of the news. The political column and commentary can be attributed to Thomas Paine’ “Common Sense”. “Common Sense” by Thomas Paine was the first introduction to political commentary. Thomas Paine and “Common Sense” was the open avenue of political columns and one hundred fifty five years later it led to Walter Lippmann’s creation of his political column “Today and Tomorrow”. 

Walter Lippman was an American newspaper commentator, an author who made a sixty year career in the world of political columns. 
He was influenced by philosophers, and he studied at Harvard. A little bit more about Walter Lippman is that his column, “Today and Tomorrow” launched in nineteen thirty one. The column was known to hundreds of newspapers, and it ran for decades. The political column “Today and Tomorrow” was written beginning in the year nineteen thirty one and lasting up until nineteen sixty seven. The column was run for thirty six years. 

The column focused on issues of importance in the penny press era that were a set of issues surrounding coverage into crime, local issues, natural disasters,  human interest stories, the arts, society pages, and gossip. The specific aspect of news that I want to address is the political column. The political column had two big major contributors in the world of news that I want to focus on. The first contributor I want to address is Walter Lippmann. Walter Lippmann was born in New York City in eighteen eighty nine. His news career consisted of working for the New York Tribune, The New York World, The New Republic, and Newsweek to name a few. 

 The second biggest contributor to what became known as the political column was Will Rogers. Will Rogers was born in eighteen seventy nine in Oklahoma. Will Rogers was a performer, actor, and comedian. Will Rogers contribution to the world of political columns was centered around a social commentary about politics and news. He wrote daily telegrams about politics and gave a funny commentary to such serious matters. 

He was focused on expressing his dissatisfaction to politics as a whole, and showing that neither party was really the best. Will Rogers exhibited a happy go lucky personality. In summation, the political column was influenced by many people, but the two men I chose to focus on specifically were important contributors to the news and political column in the terms of their different approaches that were used in the world of news. Will Rogers and Walter Lippman equally approached their news differently, but both were equally important and necessary.

Five Star Final:Key Post

 Five Star Final 

Penny Press Era

The Five Star Final was an interesting film. The Five Star Final movie had an interesting aspect of journalism that occurred in the Penny Press Era. The penny press era was focused on  news coverage that focused on crime, local issues, natural disasters,  human interest stories, the arts, society pages, and gossip. The Penny Press Era journalism was very prevalent in the film. The film was centered around the story of Nancy Voorhees and the crime that she committed. The story resurfaced years later when the news outlet New York Evening Gazette needed to gain traction and increase sales again, so they decided to reinvestigate and publish the story of Nancy Voorhees. The specific area the film focused on within the penny press era was crime and human interest stories. 

Yellow Journalism

The Five Star Final film also incorporated elements of yellow journalism. Yellow Journalism is defined by Britannica as “the use of lurid features and sensationalized news in newspaper publishing to attract readers and increase circulation. The phrase was coined in the 1890s to describe the tactics employed in the furious competition between two New York City newspapers, the World and the Journal”. The film heavily employed yellow journalism in the aspects of how the news used headlines of Nancy and her story. Throughout the film it kept showing elements of yellow journalism when it published both stories in regard to Nancy and the crime she committed, and later once again in the end of the film when the headline spoke of her and her husband’s suicide.  The yellow journalism in the film was a very prominent element of the story. I personally feel that the yellow journalism was captivating which is the goal. I also feel that it helped move the story along because it kept me as a viewer gripped to the story. 

Press Barons 

The major press barons in the story was Bernard Hinchecliffe and Joseph W. Randall. Both of these men were people who kept the New York Evening Gazette running. Those men were the major influences to the flow of the movie and a major influence in the overall negative outcome that affected Nancy Voorhees and her family. For instance, when Nancy encountered the headline about her story being published and the intent of the story being published harming the current life she had built. In a plea to the press barons, Nancy attempted to contact the Gazette and try to persuade them to call off her story and let her live in peace. However, in her many attempts the press barons ignored her pleas and insisted that she stop contacting the news outlet. The publishing of the story led to the detrimental life ending incident that claimed the life of Nancy and her husband.

 Ethics 

Lastly, the ethics of the gazette were non-existent in the film. For instance, when Nancy was approached about her daughter’s wedding to be featured in the gazette, it was under false pretenses. The character T Vernon Isopod portrayed himself as a priest to get information about Nancy, which was then used against her in the article. The information used against Nancy led to her untimely death and her husband’s suicide. Overall, the lack of ethics was shocking and hard to witness. In summation, the Five Star Final was an eye-opening and captivating film that captured the Penny Press Era of News very well. 

EOTO Women in Journalism: Ann Smith Franklin

Ann Smith Franklin was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1696. Ann Smith Franklin married James Franklin on February 4th, 1723 at 26. She and James had five kids. James Franklin was Benjamin Franklin’s brother. Her husband James Franklin and her brother in law Benjamin Franklin started the New England Courant in 1721. A little while after the newspaper was established James was sent to jail for scandalous libel. The paper lasted in the press for about six years.The impact of Ann Smith Franklin was important to women and her work in journalism in the early 1700’s. 

As Ann Smith’s journalistic career began to progress, she and her husband moved to the colony of Rhode Island and established the first printing press around the year 1735. Her husband James Franklin had an Almanac called Poor Robins Act and after her husband James Franklin died on February 4th, 1735 later that year from a long standing battle with illness, Ann decided to revive the Almanac and she renamed it the Rhode Island Almanac. Her reviving the Almanac would lead her to become known as the first female editor and writer in the US. Ann continued to run the press in Rhode Island. 

Some of her duties running the press were printing and editing. Ann’s children worked with her in the printing and journalism business. Her daughters would help with the printing work and her son became her business partner. Together Ann and her children would launch the NewPort Mercury newspaper after James death. The NewPort Mercury newspaper began in 1758 and lasted until its final issue in the 21st century in the year 2018. 

The NewPort Mercury Newspaper was in print for 260 years. The NewPort Mercury was run under the advice of Ann Smith Franklin until she passed. The NewPort Mercury and all of its associates The NewPort Daily News, and NewPort Life Magazine were purchased in 2017, and all publications ceased in the following year in 2018. 

The newspaper covered a plethora of issues during its time in print. Ann continued to run the printing press with her three children that survived her and her husband until she passed away in 1763. Ann Smith Franklin was the first woman to be inducted in the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame. She and her husband James Franklin were both inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame in 1998. 

In summation Ann Smith Franklin was a titan in her respective field of writing and reporting in the early 1700’s. She was a beacon of history for up and coming women in the field of journalism and she was very important to the colony of Rhode Island in her time and for women in journalism and beyond. Ann Smith Franklin laid the foundation for women in journalism and she was a pioneer for journalism and for women who have an interest in telling stories. Ann Smith Franklin will be remembered as a changing force and powerhouse for women in journalism. 

Note:Claude AI was used to summarize my sources and give an overview of the first few major women in journalism. 

Me in 500 words

 

Photo:Brandon Lenoir

My internship supervisor and I with my fellow intern at a fundraiser dinner

From Regular College Student to Campaign Intern

By:Kyra Clark

I want to be impactful and memorable in life and no one can tell me I can’t be .

Why? 

You might ask, because I want to be a voice for the voiceless. 

I want to become an advocate for those who don’t have a way to express themselves 

It all started when I took civics my sophomore year of high school, and I’ve been interested in civil rights and politics ever since.

Only when I took a leap of faith, did it help me gain my confidence and footing in the world of politics and I landed my first internship in campaigns

I got my most insightful and groundbreaking internship with the current mayor of High Point. 

You might also be asking yourself how it feels to be a campaign intern? 

It’s amazing, I am truly glad I took a leap of faith and achieved such a great milestone 

I’m not kidding when I say getting this internship has been one of the greatest experiences of my life.

I have been with the campaign for seven months now and I truly have a greater understanding and acceptance for the world of politics.

I now understand the greater impact I want to have in the world of politics and be a voice of change.

 I want to be a voice of change in an evolving world and throughout my time in my internship it has taught me that if you want to see change, you need to be the one to create it.

Campaign dinner with Mayor Cyril Jefferson

Photo:Brandon Lenoir

Being a young woman living my life and working on this campaign has taught me that I can accomplish anything I set my mind to.

 

I have always dreamt of being someone people can look up to and working with these amazing men and women as a campaign intern has taught me that with hard work and dedication you can achieve your wildest dreams.

I guess my biggest takeaway here is don’t let anyone tell you who you’re allowed to be.

You are allowed to grow, change, and be the best version of yourself that you choose to be. 

I am learning that I am changing everyday for the betterment of myself and it’s all thanks to this campaign that I am so grateful to be a part of, 

every moment in life leads to a greater purpose and achievement and I’m just getting started achieving everything I want to accomplish.

In the end, this is just the start of my journey in politics and a future of achievements that will lead to something bigger than myself. 

This is one of many experiences I will have in life. 

I want to be seen as someone who never shied away from a challenge, I want to be known for leaving an impact in everything that I do and this campaign was the start of that journey. 

Lastly, I want to be remembered by those around me as someone who was impactful, kind, and made the best out of everything.

 

Campaign event with my fellow interns and supervisor

Photo:Kyra Clark