Six Apart Helps Struggling Journalists

Our economy is stuggling; companies are going out of business; people are losing their jobs. As President elect Obama introduced his economic team in Chicago, the media start-up Six Apart is planning to give an opportunity to bloggers and journalists who have been recently laid-off. According to the NY Times, Anil Dash, vice-president at Six Apart, originally announced on November 14th that he would give a one-year subscription($150 value) to about 30 journalists who have recently been laid-off. 

Six Apart is different from other free blogging sites because it offers advanced blogging, HTML software, and adverstising programs that ensure a more productive blogging experience.

Even with Six Apart forced to make their own staff cuts, they are trying to help struggling journalists and bloggers, something that major media conglomerates are not at all interested with doing. The field of journalism needs more programs like this that give people the chance to keep wrting, reporting, and blogging.

Jamaica Will Spend $11 Million On Resort Areas

According to USA Today, Jamaica will spend $11 million to prepare for the tourism season. Their tourism minister says that six of the island’s parishes will undergo restoration, including Kingston, Negril, and St. Ann.  The article says that an estimated 1.3 million people will visit Jamaica from this January to August, 2009, which is a 6% increase from this same time last year.

Although Jamaica is beautiful, travelers cannot explore all of its natural beauty. Outside of the beaches and the resort areas, there is nothing for tourists to explore, and hotels often discourage guests from leaving the property. I had a wonderful time when visiting Jamaica last August, but at times, I wished that I could leave the resort. Hopefully, this $11 million renovation will fix that problem and make Jamaica a safer place for tourists.

Multimedia Presentations

New York Times

The New York Times is not known for being a flashy newspaper, but their website is totally different. You can still read all the great stories that the Times is known for, while also having access to tons of multimedia that is not available in the print edition.

In this slide-show/timeline, the health of past presidential and vice-presidential nominees is discussed. It dates from the upcoming 2008 election to the 1972 election.

 

ESPN

Since ESPN is a TV network, ESPN.com is great for multimedia content. Highlights and analysis are always available on the homepage. Also, there is an ESPN PodCenter, which allows you to listen to various shows in podcast form.

 

Slate Magazine

Slateis an online magazine, so their work usually is more multimedia-based than the average journalistic website. This interactive mapshows the location of Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Michelle Obama, John McCain, Sarah Palin, and Cindy McCain over the next two weeks that lead up to the election.

49ers back to their losing ways

  I am a San Francisco 49ers fan; so when just about every pregame show on the planet talks about them excelling as a team, it makes me a little bit nervous.  From watching the ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown on ESPN, you would think that Joe Montana or Steve Young has returned as our quarterback.  In reality though, the 29 year old journeyman JT O’Sullivan is our QB.  If you are just a casual fan and you are asking yourself, ”Who is JT O’Sullivan?” don’t worry, you’re not alone.    

After winning in week 3 against the Lions, and improving their record to 2-1, I was sure that we were on our way to the playoffs in the joke of a division called the NFC West.  But after being dismantled by the New Orleans Saints this past Sunday, my attitude changed just a little bit. Sure, we are still tied for first place in our division, and sure, the teams we are competing against are the Cardinals, Seahawks, and Rams, but there is no need of having an optimistic view of the 9ers’ chances.  I am only setting myself up for major disappointment. 

I have been let down several times over my lifetime by my 9ers. During the 90’s, we were beaten by the Cowboys or Packers almost every year. Then, Steve Young retired and Jerry Rice was traded.  After that, I went through a few painful years until Jeff Garcia emerged into a Pro Bowl quarterback.  However, since Garcia and Terrell Owens were let go, we have become one of the laughing stocks of the league. When we became one of the worst teams, I found myself rooting for us to get the number one pick for the second year in a row, only for us to win the last two games of the season and end up with the sixth pick. 

So hopefully now that we lost yesterday, and JT O’Sullivan looked like, well, “JT O’Sullivan” NFL analysts will go back to talking about the decline of our franchise instead of our chances of making the playoffs.

Flour in High Demand

There is enough crime in Albany that the average theft may not even make the news. However, when two men were caught stealing more than 150 bags of flour, it was sure to make headlines. The two men may have stolen up to $5000 from Horizon Milling, located in the Port of Albany.

Until Saturday, I had never even heard of such a crime. It is normal to hear of a bank, convenient store, or jewelry store getting robbed, but it is not normal to hear of a mill, bakery, or pizza place getting robbed; that may change soon.

If you haven’t noticed, your favorite bakery or pizza place probably has considerably raised their prices over the last few years. That is because the price of flour has more than tripled over the past two years. In 2006, the price of flour averaged $14. That same amount of flour costs over $50 today.

If the price of flour continues to rise, the term “give me all the dough” may be perceived completely different during a robbery.

 

Link to Original Times Union article

Muslim Tradition Turns Deadly

     There are many rituals and traditions in the Muslim religion that are sometimes questioned.  Zakat, a period of Ramadan in which wealthy Muslims are expected to give money to those who are less fortunate, is the latest Muslim tradition under scrutiny after 21 people were killed in a stampede Sunday in Indonesia. 

    During the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims are expected to fast from dawn until sunset, but besides the self restraint that is learned from fasting, generosity is also important. The generosity part is known as the Zakat. Wealthy families are usually expected to give small donations to poor Muslims. The donations are usually an amount that would equal about $4 here in the U.S. 

    It is a great thing that sharing wealth is a part of the Islamic religion, but at some point, restrictions must be placed on Zakat. First, there was no security on hand.  The local government claimed they had no prior knowledge of the handouts taking place, but there should at least be a plan in place.  This area is highly populated with Muslims, and it is common knowledge that, during Ramadan, large groups often gather looking for handouts.  There were 10,000 people that participated in the gathering on Sunday in Indonesia, making it hard to believe that the local government had no knowledge of what went on.  If the country takes religion so seriously, then there should be a better plan in place for the next time something like it happens.

    Another note of the stampedes is that almost all of the people involved were either women or children.  he Islamic religion often oppress women, and this is no different.  Women are forced to beg for these handouts because they are not allowed to participate in a lot of paying jobs.

   The Muslim religion has been built on these traditions, but it is clear that Zakat is in need of change.  Not only does it humiliate their women, but it is apparently deadly as well.

 

    Link to Original NY Times article

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/16/world/asia/16indo.html?_r=1&ref=world&oref=slogin

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