This twitter assignment was a very interesting one indeed. When Professor Anderson first mentioned Twitter in class on Thursday, I thought back to the first time I heard about it (only a month or so before). I remember thinking, "What nonsense. Such a waste of time. Who is so self absorbed or desperate for attention that they need to constantly broadcast their status?!" I did not intend to get involved in the Twitter craze. So when I was required to create an account and follow people on the website, I was not the least bit excited. However, I was a little curious to see how Twitter works and how it is different from similar status related websites such as MySpace, Facebook, and AOL Instant Messenger.
I found that this application is different in that it has the sole purpose of sending and receiving status updates. Whereas these other websites include user profiles, instant messenging, emailing, and built in applications, such as games and music. When I added the journalism professors and other people that I was assigned to follow, I was immediately intimidated. For one, these people are professional. And primarily, I would not interact with these people (within the world wide web community) of my own desire.
I created the account on Thursday. Initially, I did not read any posts that sparked my interest. Upon my return to Twitter the following day, I was still unable to connect with the posters. I just could not figure out what to comment about. And I was nervous (as I always am) about addressing someone who knows nothing of me. After visiting Twitter on Friday, I totally forgot about it until early Tuesday morning.I was asleep and having my daily early morning subconscious thoughts. And all of a sudden it occured to me that I had been assigned a blog post about my experience with Twitter.
Sadly, I went to class before posting this blog. But in class, I gained some helpful insight from one of my classmates. He found this assignment to be interesting, even enjoyable. He was really interested in what the people he was following had to say. So I figured, maybe if I was following people who talked about things that I am deeply interested in or curious about, I would have a better experience with Twitter. But for this particular assignment, I felt a little lost, confused, and disinterested.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Related Links-Final Project
These are NOT blogs. I could not find blogs relating to this topic.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Drill 8: Apr. 7
All alone in Shepard Hall's Lincoln Corridor, a young male with sharp object in hand kneeled over as he stared intently into the distance.
Presumably an architecture student, Tom used a ruler to draw straight lines on a large sheet of white paper with his sharpened pencil. He seemed to be doing a linear perspective drawing for an architecture class. Perhaps this student did not get much sleep the night before; Tom murmured a few words to himself and even started to hum. Trying to keep himself awake and focused, Tom actually started to sing - badly. Maybe he didn't notice the people walking past, because he did not lower his voice or cease to sing. However, he did continue to adjust his ruler, draw long, straight lines, erase, and repeat. To be the only architecture student present in the corridor at 8:45 a.m., Tom appeared to be especially enthusiastic and animated. Abruptly, Tom tossed his utensils into a box, placed his drawing into a portfolio, hastily but carefully packed his items into a backpack, and coolly walked toward the nearest exit of Shepard Hall.
As Tom left, two female students, Julia and Maria, walked over to a vacant bench. With crossed legs, the two ladies face each other and lean toward the center of the bench. The long dark brown hair and light skin isn't all the two share in common; both girls had a newspaper in front of them. While Julia tried to read her paper, Maria fished her cell phone out of her purse, drank some coffee and encouraged Julia to converse. Finally, after taking a another sip of coffee, Maria joined Julia in reading the paper. Both ladies read articles, circle, highlight and take notes on the newspaper while continuing to engage in chatter. However, Maria quickly lost focus and handed her phone to Julia. Maria posed for the camera and smiled sweetly as Julia snapped the pictures. Julia resumed her work and Maria did so after playing with her phone and meddling in her hair.
Soon, other student started to occupy the corridors dark wooden benches. A guy tapped his thumb and feet to a song playing in his head. A girl read a book while sniffling occasionally. Each student in the Lincoln Corridor was in his or her own little world.
Presumably an architecture student, Tom used a ruler to draw straight lines on a large sheet of white paper with his sharpened pencil. He seemed to be doing a linear perspective drawing for an architecture class. Perhaps this student did not get much sleep the night before; Tom murmured a few words to himself and even started to hum. Trying to keep himself awake and focused, Tom actually started to sing - badly. Maybe he didn't notice the people walking past, because he did not lower his voice or cease to sing. However, he did continue to adjust his ruler, draw long, straight lines, erase, and repeat. To be the only architecture student present in the corridor at 8:45 a.m., Tom appeared to be especially enthusiastic and animated. Abruptly, Tom tossed his utensils into a box, placed his drawing into a portfolio, hastily but carefully packed his items into a backpack, and coolly walked toward the nearest exit of Shepard Hall.
As Tom left, two female students, Julia and Maria, walked over to a vacant bench. With crossed legs, the two ladies face each other and lean toward the center of the bench. The long dark brown hair and light skin isn't all the two share in common; both girls had a newspaper in front of them. While Julia tried to read her paper, Maria fished her cell phone out of her purse, drank some coffee and encouraged Julia to converse. Finally, after taking a another sip of coffee, Maria joined Julia in reading the paper. Both ladies read articles, circle, highlight and take notes on the newspaper while continuing to engage in chatter. However, Maria quickly lost focus and handed her phone to Julia. Maria posed for the camera and smiled sweetly as Julia snapped the pictures. Julia resumed her work and Maria did so after playing with her phone and meddling in her hair.
Soon, other student started to occupy the corridors dark wooden benches. A guy tapped his thumb and feet to a song playing in his head. A girl read a book while sniffling occasionally. Each student in the Lincoln Corridor was in his or her own little world.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Drill 7: Mar. 26
People to Interview:
Performers
- b-boys
- dj's
Event Planners
-WCCR staff members
Actual Audience
-people who are attending the event
Potential Audience
-students
-professors
Things I Want to Observe:
-Quality of sound and lighting
-Is there a considerable crowd?
-What ethnicities/age groups/genders are represented?
-How excited is the audience?
-Is the audience paying attention to the performances?
-Are the performers good?
-Do the performers seem to be enjoying themselves?
-How many performers are present?
-Does the event seem to be well organized?
-Does the event start on time?
-What is the general mood of the WCCR staff?
Performers
- b-boys
- dj's
Event Planners
-WCCR staff members
Actual Audience
-people who are attending the event
Potential Audience
-students
-professors
Things I Want to Observe:
-Quality of sound and lighting
-Is there a considerable crowd?
-What ethnicities/age groups/genders are represented?
-How excited is the audience?
-Is the audience paying attention to the performances?
-Are the performers good?
-Do the performers seem to be enjoying themselves?
-How many performers are present?
-Does the event seem to be well organized?
-Does the event start on time?
-What is the general mood of the WCCR staff?
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Interview
In Harlem on 8th Avenue and 155th Street, Sabrina finds her residence to be quite convenient. "I'm close to everything," she says smiling, including CCNY where she studies, subway stations, and the rest of Manhattan. Even though Sabrina loves the proximity of her block to the rest of New York City, she does not always feel safe. Even though on her block she is a Bangladeshi among a majority of Blacks and Latinos, she doesn't really feel uncomfortable because of the difference in race. The guns, violence, and perverts, along with the dirty sidewalks and building are what really irk Sabrina about living in this area. Even though Sabrina has gone to many parties around her block, she mostly hangs out with friends in Queens and Midtown. Before living in Harlem, Sabrina, her mom, and her little brother lived on Manhattan's Lower East Side. And now, her mom is looking for another apartment, in either Queens or the Bronx, to move her two children into.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Drill 6: March 24
On April 30, 2009, CCNY's student radio station is hosting its first DJ/B-Boy Battle. Some of the station's DJs as well as b-boys and dance crews with ties to CCNY will be featured in the event.
This story has a great amount of impact on the student community at CCNY. Most students enjoy dance and music. On any given day, one can walk around the campus of the City College of New York and find that a large number of students have iPods and mp3 players plugged into their ears. And there are a number of student dance clubs at CCNY as well - salsa and mambo, belly dancing, hip-hop, and breakdancing are some.
Also, this story is current; dance competitions are in vogue. A number of television shows, including "So You Think You Can Dance," "Randy Jackson Presents: America's Next Dance Crew," and "Dancing With the Stars," testify to the currency of dance competitions.
This particular story also has potential conflicts. The most obvious is the conflict between the B-Boys and DJs that will battling. Also, there could be conflict in questioning the sustainability of this event. Will enough people come to support the DJ/B-boy battle? Will the student radio station raise enough money to cover the expenses of this event? Will the people who come to this event actually want to attend another event like this next year?
It is quite obvious that I could write commentary on this event. However, I am also capable of critical analysis and interviewing performers, hosts, and the crowd in order to write an objective report of the DJ/B-Boy Battle. Coverage of this event is vital both in measuring its success and in determing whether the battle should become an annual event. Also, dance and music resonate well with a considerable portion of the student population at CCNY; and popular interests deserve to be reported on.
This story has a great amount of impact on the student community at CCNY. Most students enjoy dance and music. On any given day, one can walk around the campus of the City College of New York and find that a large number of students have iPods and mp3 players plugged into their ears. And there are a number of student dance clubs at CCNY as well - salsa and mambo, belly dancing, hip-hop, and breakdancing are some.
Also, this story is current; dance competitions are in vogue. A number of television shows, including "So You Think You Can Dance," "Randy Jackson Presents: America's Next Dance Crew," and "Dancing With the Stars," testify to the currency of dance competitions.
This particular story also has potential conflicts. The most obvious is the conflict between the B-Boys and DJs that will battling. Also, there could be conflict in questioning the sustainability of this event. Will enough people come to support the DJ/B-boy battle? Will the student radio station raise enough money to cover the expenses of this event? Will the people who come to this event actually want to attend another event like this next year?
It is quite obvious that I could write commentary on this event. However, I am also capable of critical analysis and interviewing performers, hosts, and the crowd in order to write an objective report of the DJ/B-Boy Battle. Coverage of this event is vital both in measuring its success and in determing whether the battle should become an annual event. Also, dance and music resonate well with a considerable portion of the student population at CCNY; and popular interests deserve to be reported on.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Drill 5: Mar. 10
On April 30, 2009, CCNY's student radio station is hosting its first DJ/B-Boy Battle. Some of the station's DJs as well as b-boys and dance crews with ties to CCNY will be featured in the event. And so far, the station has secured a performance from Status Quo, the last dance crew left to compete against the JabbaWockeez on America's Best Dance Crew. It is quite obvious that I could write commentary on this event. However, I am also capable of critical analysis and interviewing performers, hosts, and the crowd in order to write an objective report of the DJ/B-Boy Battle. Coverage of this event is vital both in measuring its success and in determing whether the battle should become an annual event. Also, the event resonates with a considerable portion of the student population at CCNY; and popular interests deserve to be reported on.
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