“He was a wise man who invented beer.” ~Plato

Plato’s got a good point. 

I think most Elon students will agree that beer and the drinking scene is very much a part of our culture here in the bubble.   

From this though stemmed a new thought-who actually did invent beer?

So I did some reasearch and here’s what I found.

The oldest proven records of brewing dates back to about 6,000 years ago to the Sumerians.  Lucky for them and for us, they discovered the fermentation process by chance and consequently created a drink of choice by many college kids across the nation today. This process was discovered before they even learned to make bread. 

When the Sumerian empire collapsed in the 2nd millenium B.C. the Babylonians took over the brewing process.  They mastered the skill and learned how to brew 20 different types of beer. 

One of the rules issued by Hammurabi, an important Babylonian King was a daily beer rationing.  Beer was so valuable at this time that it was used to pay workers, who would then pay for necessities with their earnings.  If only that were the case today: no one would care that gas is increasing at 16 cents a day.  We’d all either be able to afford it by selling our beer or be too drunk to notice the change!

In 1776, Thomas Jefferson signed the Declaration of Independence.  He and most of the founding founders of our nation were brewers. 

From 1920-1930 the 18th Amendment of the Constitution, Prohibition made it illegal for manufacturers to sell beer, making homebrewing a popular occurance. 

1978 was the  year brewing became legal again and brewing became more and more popular.

Today the annual per capita of beer consumption in the United States is 23.95 gallons, which puts the U.S. in 11th place against other nations in annual beer consumption.

So dont let our founding fathers down.  Keep up the good work and let the good times roll. Cheers!

The future freaks me out

Since this year is winding down and I’m looking ahead to my senior year staring me in the face, I’m beginning to get a little freaked out.  I have no idea where I’m going and it’s quite a scary and exciting thought.

This year has been a big turning point for me though.  When I came into this class I had no journalism skills whatsoever.  I was excited to get out and be a real journalist for myself, but at the same time, I had no idea what I was doing! 

All I knew was that I was in this class so I could move on to next year’s photojournalism course and get into my true passion.

What I came out with was something completely different though.  Even though it was hard at times, I really got the chance to step out of my comfort zone and see what the world of journilism is. 

I am still really unsure if I would like to persue this as a career, because I have to admit, even though we get the facts and deliver the stories for the public good and interest, journalists can be sort of obnoxious at times. 

Even so, I’m glad I was able to take part in this class and draw from it a lot of necessary skills to be successful.  If I learned one thing, it is to be passionate about whatever it is I do.  I’m interested to see what the future holds. 

giving two faced a new meaning..

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/080409-baby-video-ap.html

As seen in this picture, Lali, an Indian baby, was born with the rarest malformation in humans known as craniofacial duplication, or diprosopus.  Since I’m so interested in medicine and related topics, this news story really caught my eye. 

The interesting part about this particular case of conjoined twins is that Lali is seen in her village as a God.  Hundreds of people visit her daily to touch her feet out of respect and pay their dues to who they believe is the incarnation of a Hindu goddess.

Unfortunately for Lali, her condition very commonly is associated with other health defects, but her parents refuse a CT scan. 

Through all of my research on the deformity itself and this particular story, I find the social differences between America and this Indian village to be drastic.  Here, if a child was born with this malfunction, close medical attention would be given to the newborn.  There, worship ceremonies are performed and the health issues are pushed aside.

The most heartwrenching part of every video on this story that I have watched is the stoic look on Lali’s face.  Not once did she make a noise or even move a muscle.  She just laid there in the arms of whoever was holding her as if she was not even there. 

 

A few of my favorite articles

I realized that between tough classes and doing so much work for The Pendulum, I haven’t had time to post any of my work here! Here are just a few stories I’ve written this year that I’m especially proud of:

This is the first article I wrote this year, before I became editor. Out of all the movies reviews I’ve ever done I’ve gotten the most compliments about this one, so I thought it should be the one I shared: http://org.elon.edu/pendulum/issues/2007/08_29_07/08_29_07_%E2%80%98SUPERBAD%E2%80%99_EQUALS_SUPER_HILARIOUS.shtml

This one is also from earlier in the year. It’s a more hard news story about a speaker who was displaced from her home in Colombia: http://org.elon.edu/pendulum/issues/2007/10_03_07/10_03_07_HUMAN_RIGHTS_ACTIVIST_CUESTA_ARIAS_TO_SPEAK_ABOUT_DISPLACEMENT_IN_COLOMBIA.shtml

The next two are more recent. This one is about actor Kal Penn’s visit to Elon to campaign for Obama. As an aspiring A&E reporter who watches him on “House” every week, it was particularly exciting to get the chance to talk to him. I’m also proud of this because it was my first attempt to incorporate multimedia on the Web site: http://www.elon.edu/pendulum/Story.aspx?id=524

And finally my coverage of the Sister Hazel and Matt Nathanson concert. I’m proud of this one because I experimented a little more than usual with my lead and I added even more multimedia than I did with the Kal Penn story. Special thanks to Ashley for all her help in covering that event!: http://www.elon.edu/pendulum/Story.aspx?id=566

The importance of double checking your work

Another reporter and I worked really hard over the past week to put together a two-page “year in review” spread for A&E. On Monday night I saw the initial layout and it looked awesome! It was such a nice balance of text and pictures. But I was a little disappointed when I opened up the paper today and with one of the sections in that article, a bunch of text on the right hand side was cut off, making that part of the article difficult to read. At first I thought it might be a printing error but when I went to post the story to the Web site, I noticed that it was the same in InDesign, so it was a design mistake.

I don’t want this to come off sounding like a rant because that’s not how it’s meant, and really there are so many worse things that could have happened. But on the initial layout I saw all the text was there. Part of it stuck off to the right side framing a picture, and that’s the part that got cut off. My guess is that when whoever was doing the corrections on it was fixing something the copy editors caught, it made it a little longer and cut part of it off. I know it was late and people were tired and wanted to go home, but this could have been fixed pretty easily. The paper goes through several people to make sure things like this don’t happen, and I think a chunk of text disappearing is probably something that shouldn’t have gone unnoticed.

I’m not blaming anyone because honestly it was just a careless mistake. Everyone makes them and everyone learns from them. But with bits of text missing from line to line, it was difficult to read and some people probably just skipped over it. I think I was mostly disappointed that this error happened to this particular section because it was a rememberance of someone who died, so it was something that I especially wanted people to read. Things like this happen to everyone at every newspaper, and sometimes it’s impossible to catch everything. I just wanted to emphasize the importance of always, always double checking your work!

Project story

I thought I’d share my project story with you guys. I really enjoyed getting the chance to do something more in the hard news category since so much of my time has to be devoted to A&E. It was nice to get to do something a little different. My project story is about Elon’s response to instances of campus violence that have garnered national attention this semester, particularly the Northern Illinois University shooting, Eve Carson’s murder and the anniversary of the Virginia Tech shooting. I spent about two weeks talking to some really interesting people, and I’m pretty happy with the final product! Here it is:

ELON –On Feb. 14, a day that is supposed to be about celebrating love, a gunman opened fire on Northern Illinois University, killing five people and injuring 18 more. This incident reinforced the sinking feeling that students at Elon University got after the Virginia Tech shooting the year before.

            Just a few weeks later on March 5, a tragedy happened much closer to home for Elon students. UNC-Chapel Hill senior Eve Carson, the school’s student body president, was murdered in a random act of violence.

            A little over a month later on April 16, Elon students remembered the one-year anniversary of the Virginia Tech shooting that killed 32 people and left 23 more wounded.

            This semester has been filled with reminders that campus violence can happen anywhere at any time, a matter that Elon students and faculty alike are not taking lightly.

            “With all of the recent school violence, my initial reaction was shock,” senior Kendra Nickel said. “No matter how many times it happens, you never expect it.”

            But the Elon administration is beginning to act like they expect it to ensure their students’ safety. According to Jana Lynn Patterson, assistant vice president for student life, the administration has to think in the mindset of when a crisis will happen rather than if.

            “Ten years ago people didn’t think about safety when applying for college,” Patterson said. “Now parents ask more frequently ‘What’s the crime rate?’ ‘What will you do if this happens or this?’”

            Elon already had a master safety plan in place before the Virginia Tech shooting, but the recurring incidents of nationwide campus violence have accelerated the process of putting some of those ideas into action.

            “Unfortunately the institutions where [the shootings] happened had little or no control over the events that took place,” said Chuck Gantos, director of campus safety and police. “It was just an unfortunate circumstance in their area.”

            While universities do not have control over such tragedies, they can make their best efforts to keep their campus as safe as possible. According to Patterson, more threats at Elon come from people outside of campus. As a result, Elon will steadily become a more closed campus.

            Some new safety procedures were put into effect this year, like the E-Alert system, sirens and the addition of two more security officers and two more dispatchers.

Just a few of the new security plans for next year include adding video cameras to the parking lots, placing a perimeter fence around Danieley Center, gating the Oaks and Moseley parking lots and adding two more lighted crosswalks.

            Elon also has a formalized threat assessment team that meets every week and sends people to crisis seminars to learn how to deal with all kinds of crises, from school shootings to medical epidemics.

            After the Virginia Tech shooting, the Northern Illinois shooting and Eve Carson’s murder, Elon focused not only on students’ physical safety but their mental and emotional well-being.

            Another counseling position was added at Ellington Health and Counseling Center, and a counselor is always on call 24 hours a day.

            “If you look at large state institutions, their wait time is sometimes two or three weeks to get someone in,” Patterson said. “The longest wait we have is probably two days. And if it’s an emergency our staff will just stay here late until they’ve seen somebody.”

            In addition to the counseling services available at Ellington Center, Richard McBride, university chaplain and director of church relations, an assistant chaplain and four campus ministers work full time in the Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life. All of them saw students who needed to talk through their emotional responses after each of the three tragedies.

            “Everyone wants to have some kind of way to understand in a space where there is safety for expressing confusion or deep sorrow, grief, whatever they’re feeling,” McBride said.

            After the Virginia Tech shooting, a chapel service was devoted to the tragedy, and the Truitt Center also participated in a gathering of friends, where the community could come together and talk about their loss and fears.

            McBride said that tragedies like these can’t be explained rationally, and cited Elon students sending paper cranes to Virginia Tech as a way of coping and a gesture of peace.

            “What else can you do but offer up symbolic expression of solidarity and hope for healing,” McBride said.

            In all cases, Elon tried to offer immediate support to students and faculty who were affected and find out who was connected to the victims.

            “The world, as big and complex as it is, can become very, very small because we all know someone or have a connection usually with these types of events that are so tragic and senseless,” said Rex Waters, associate dean of students.

            As news of the Virginia Tech shooting, the Northern Illinois shooting and Eve Carson’s murder reached Elon, students and faculty across campus were affected.

            Waters had a personal connection to two of the three tragedies: His daughter goes to Virginia Tech and his twin sons at UNC-Chapel Hill knew Eve Carson.

            “I immediately called and texted everybody I knew to see what was going on and if they were safe,” junior Catherine Culyba said of her friends at Virginia Tech. “It might have taken a call or two but I was able to reach all of them.”

            Palatine, Ill., native Nickel found out that her friends at Northern Illinois University were alright through Facebook, where everyone posted messages to let people know they were fine.

            “Eve Carson’s death definitely registered the most with me because my brother and a lot of friends from high school go to UNC,” senior Rob Saunders said. “I never met Eve but hearing my brother talk about how sad the campus was and the type of person she was definitely made it more devastating.”

            Students and faculty agree that Elon has made strides in terms of safety measures and counseling options as a result of these nationwide cases of campus violence, but that the next step is beyond Elon’s control.

            “I think Elon is doing the best it can safety-wise,” Nickel said. “I think state and national gun laws need to change. That’s the next step. These clearly mentally ill people legally purchased guns, and that’s a big problem.”

            As Waters pointed out, it’s impossible to ever really be prepared for a tragedy like the Virginia Tech shooting, the Northern Illinois shooting and Eve Carson’s murder. But as this year winds down and plans are being made for the 2008-2009 year, Elon will continue to do what it can to ensure the physical and emotional well-being of its students and faculty.

###

           

 

Cambodia Story

This story was extremely difficult for me to write.  There was so much information, and so many people involved that it was hard to narrow it down.  I chose to focus on the most intersting story, but worry that the others involved will feel left out.  I know that is not a goal of journalism, it is strictly my job to report however it is still difficult when you see them on campus.  I hope all goes well!

___________________________________________

Land Mines, Sex Trafficking and Service Learning

ELON – As a native of Ohio, Victoria Davis feels she has always had a strong connection to the Asian community.  She was considered a minority at her high school, and found herself constantly wanting to learn more about the culture and history that consumed the lives of her peers.

Unfortunately, these courses were not offered by her high school, and the only information she could get her hands on were her father’s slideshows from the Vietnam Conflict.  Davis’ dad was a captain of the U.S. Air Force while she was growing up.

She remembers back to her childhood and said, “while he was stationed in Thailand, he heard the warnings the US military gave the pilots–never land in Cambodia, because you will be shot on sight.”

His stories only fueled her fascination with this mysterious Asian lifestyle.  This fascination quickly turned to a desire to change and educate when Davis arrived at Elon.  Finally classes were offered that filled in the gaps of her education, and finally she had a chance to understand her friends from home.  However, this was not enough.  Davis wanted to do something, to make an impact on a culture so very much in need.

Davis will finally get the chance to make her difference as she travels to Cambodia from May 22 to June 4 of this year.  Accompanied by two faculty members and seven other students, Davis will not only be fulfilling a lifetime dream but creating a lasting impact on the Elon community as she commences a relationship with Southeast Asia for future studies and service learning.

As the driving force behind this trip, Davis is excited to see things actually happen.  Two years ago she presented the idea to faculty member Kathleen Edwards, and created a team consisting of Sarah Babcock and B.J. Williams, who are both juniors at Elon.  Together these students have been planning Elon’s first excursion to Southeast Asia, with hopes of making it a lasting program.

“Elon has excellent programs to all parts of the world, however there is little representation for Southeast Asia on campus, either in study abroad opportunities or service trips,” said Davis.

Cambodia has been caught in a state of terror since the 1970’s and the Vietnam War.  After a military regime, Khmer Rouge took over they planted millions of land mines across the country, most of which have yet to be disabled.  Cambodia currently has the highest number of landmines as well as amputees in the entire world.  However, great efforts are being made to put an end to these horrible statistics.

Assistant Director of Service Learning Kathleen Edwards will be one of the faculty advisors traveling to Cambodia this spring.  Edwards, who has been to Cambodia in the past is most excited to just be back in this beautiful country that has stolen her heart.

“I don’t want people to think of Cambodia only in terms of what it does not have or what it needs, because really it is about what it is giving us and how we partner with these assets that really matters,” Edwards said.

The most compelling aspect of this project is where it can go in the future.  The main goal is not to go to Cambodia and build 10 houses in one week, like many other service learning projects do.  Rather, it is the hopes of all involved to spread awareness and make the Elon community involved and aware.

“This is a different way of looking at service, said Edwards.  A lot of times we look at service as being the act of service within the country, but what we need to look at is the awareness aspects of civic engagement.  We need to focus on building relationships and trust for future trips.”

Student leader, Sarah Babcock has planned the majority of the trip and had the daunting task of dealing with communication issues, as well as last minute changes in plans.

“We are trying to make this trip bigger, Babcock explained.  Bigger in the sense that not a lot of people know where Cambodia is, much less what is going on there.  We are just trying to make people aware.”

However, actually spreading awareness at Elon seems to be the most challenging thing thus far.  History Professor James Brown has experienced this quite frequently at Elon, and feels that will be the greatest challenge presented to the students.

“There are so many people doing so many things, and very active things that it is getting harder and harder to get your message out,” Brown said.

In an effort to spread awareness, Dr. Sophal Ear will be speaking at Elon University on April 1 to discuss his experience as a Cambodian refugee.

Sweat, blood and tears truly have gone into the planning of this trip, yet the hard part hardly over.  For Davis, a lifetime dream will be coming true, and for the Elon community a new dream is breaking through the clouds.

Project Story – Rising Food Prices

Food prices are going through the roof.  As a college student, who prefers organic food this is becoming a problem for my bank account.  Every trip to the store astonishes me, as the price for simple commodities like milk rises astronomically.  That is why I chose to do my project story on rising organic food prices, compared to regular prices and the effect on Elon students as well as local organic farmers.  I created a web page to post the story on, as well as a slide show of the images and a graphic.

ELON – Shoppers know that organic foods cost a premium.  But, rising food costs are leaving many consumers nationwide questioning their choice to be pesticide free.
A recent survey among Elon University students shows that this may not be the case.  More than 50 percent of students polled reported that their shopping habits have remained the same, despite rising food costs.  Additionally, a large percentage of the student population prefers organic food and produce over non-organic.
Elon University junior Angela Griffey thinks that buying organic food is a great way to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
“I buy organic fruits, vegetables, milk, eggs and poultry every time I go grocery shopping.  It is such a simple way to guarantee better health, even if it is more expensive,” said Griffey.
Timberwood Organics’ owner Ray Christopher also feels that rising food prices are not a problem for the organic industry.  He feels is customer base is strong enough that people will still pay for the quality of food they are receiving.
“The organic food industry is huge right now, it is booming.  People are willing to pay more money if it means better health,” Christopher said.
Rising fuel costs though may hurt Christopher’s business.  Timberwood Organics is located in the Piedmont Triad Area.  The food is grown on the farm and then personally delivered to the clients enrolled in the Community Supported Agriculture program.  CSA is a growing trend that allows consumers to buy a share of a harvest before the season begins.  However, as fuel prices rise so do Christopher’s costs and concerns.
“If anything is going to hurt our business it is going to be fuel prices.  We have to deliver every bit of food to our customers’ homes, and over time that is going to kill us,” Christopher said.
Fuel costs are one of many reasons why food, and specifically organic food prices have been rising so sharply for the past few months.
“We are a small business, so the effects of the oil crisis are a lot greater on us,” said Christopher.
At the local Harris Teeter, a gallon of organic milk is $5.49 while non-organic milk is only $3.79.  A dozen of organic eggs is $4.49 and non-organic are only $1.99.  For many students, buying organic is not an option.
Thomas Barr, a sophomore at Elon is on a tight budget, meaning organic foods are out of the picture.
“A gallon of milk is expensive enough even if it is not organic,” said Barr.  “I do not have enough extra money to just throw around on a new trend.”

Reality Journalist 2008 – Roger Cohen

When I think of Reality Journalists, I think of those who go above and beyond.  I think of those who have stepped outside of the box, dug deep and really done it with grace and dedication.  Therefore, that is why I think Roger Cohen should be Reality Journalist 2008.  Cohen has the amazing ability to make his reader know every detail and possible description, right down to the smell.  His words flow so eloquently, that is is hard to believe it is a person writing it.  As a columnist for both the New York Times and the International Herald Tribue, Cohen is an accomplished man.  He is known for his political columns, and wit.  In one article, he compares two societies with something as asinine as a shoe shine.

“There’s something about having someone applying polish to a blithe client’s boots that comforts American notions of free enterprise, make-a-buck opportunism, and the survival of the fittest.”

Again, his words are like magic.  Cohen is an educated man, as are many writers.  However according to Cohen, it is curiosity that will get you the farthest and that is not something you can learn at any university.  Digging around, even when you are not supposed to, entering forbidden lands; that is what makes a great journalist and reporter.  As an employee of a media system, as well as a citizen it is your duty to uncover the truth by any means possible.  Cohen is committed to the elements of journalism, and his citizens.

As a writer myself, I strive to write more like Cohen, be more descriptive and more eloquent with my words.  We are often told in class to pay attention to detail.  The importance of this is clearly seen in Cohen’s work, and I can not wait to get out there and report my next story, right down to the smell.

First Video Project – Internship

I recently had my first individual video assignment for my internship at the Burlington Times News.  I was assigned to cover a baseball game at Cummings High School in Burlington, NC.  At first I was very nervous to go out alone.  I do not have much experience with shooting video, nor to I really understand the game of baseball.  Before I went out, I watched all of the baseball videos that were on the web site and they really helped me understand what the final product would look like.  My boss was not in the office, so when I returned I had to stay and edit to video by myself.  It was certainly a challenge but I enjoyed it a lot.  I often think that you learn my by being thrown intro situations, as I was with this assignment.  I look forward to bigger projects, and not just sports because there is a lot that can be uncovered with a video camera.  As we often hear in class, you should take your video camera with you everywhere you go.  I am beginning to think that is exactly what I will do this summer.

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1155236417/bclid1155303119/bctid1509417750