Best Worst Ever

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Journos 5th from ‘Worst,’ and Happy to Be There

“A survey ranking journalist as the fifth-worst job to have in 2012 has been getting a lot of attention for the last few days, in case you haven’t noticed. The report, by CareerCast, says being a reporter at a newspaper, magazine or TV show is worse than waiting tables and only a tiny bit less lousy than working on an oil rig. Blame the combination of high stress and scarce career opportunities.

“You know that old joke referenced in ‘Annie Hall’ about the restaurant with the terrible food and the tiny portions? This study makes me think of that. Working as a reporter is just awful — and it’s so hard to find a place to do it!

“Inadvertently, all this survey does is highlight the truth: Being a journalist is the best. That’s all there is to it. Yes, there are too few really good jobs and too many people fighting for them. Yes, salaries start out quite low. Yes, the hours can be long and irregular. Yes, the industry is in a period of extreme disruption, with lots of old jobs being destroyed, and the new ones typically offer less security and require different skills.

“None of that changes the core fact here. For those who are cut out for it — and that’s definitely not everyone — journalism is a uniquely rewarding, wonderful career. Here are just a few of the reasons why.”

—Jeff Bercovici, media writer,
“Forget That Survey: Here’s Why Journalism Is the Best Job Ever,”
Forbes, April 16, 2012
Related URL

• Editorial Comment: On the top-10 best job list: Actuary. Mathematician. Dental Hygienist?!!!? Get your hands out of my mouth. I’ll stick with journalism, thanks anyway.

• RERUN: Singalong Did you miss yesterday’s WORDs from renowned political observer Barbra Streisand, on the need for clear-eyed reporting on the presidential campaign? Click here.

• JCOM Teaching Excellence: Congrats to the History Department, which edged out Journalism & Communication for USU’s 2012 department teaching excellence award. But that doesn't take anything away from the accomplishments of our students and faculty. Junior Emily Landeen produced this video of student feedback on the department.

News from our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café
• Weekly HNC News Roundup
• JCOM Prof, SLTrib Photographer Win Journalism Ethics Award
• Sign up now if you want to be in Hyrum’s 4th of July parade and fest, by Tara Alvey
• Aggie journalists collect 17 prizes at annual Mark of Excellence Awards, by D. Whitney Smith
• ATV News (4/12): Fraternity drinking, the BYU ‘It Gets Better’ video, Baby Animal Days . . . and more!
• Remembering the 2005 van crash victims at Ag building memorial, by Allie Jeppson
• GUEST COLUMN: Obama leads the way in kindness, civility, by Helen Cannon
• Should Mormons be vegetarians? Yes, says guest speaker, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Search warrant for dorm room leads to three arrests, by Josh Ruggles
• E-Week: potential business people should ‘be brave and get out there,’ by Becca Holliday
• Reconnecting water service in River Heights soon will be cheaper, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Logan man sentenced to life in prison for child sex abuse, by Josh Ruggles
• Lions Club egg hunt a 50-year tradition for River Heights children, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Wintery weather didn’t dampen high spirits at Baby Animal Days, by Shannon McCleve
• Up Close at the 2012 Utah Legislature: An Intern’s Perspective, by Lis Stewart

PeezPIX by Ted Pease
Catalog here


Fang the Wonder Cat died Monday, 1995-2012
Hairballs in Heaven




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Sing It, Babs!

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Hold Their Feet to the Fire

“Journalists need to stand strong and do their job, which is to challenge candidates immediately when they are purposefully misleading the public. They should not be polite or fearful of offending someone when the truth is in question. . . . .

“Without the mainstream media's commitment to holding candidates accountable, we have little chance of having a well-informed electorate on Election Day.”

—Barbra Streisand, actress,
“Where Is the Fourth Estate When You Need Them?”
Reader Supported News, Feb. 4, 2012

• Editorial Comment: That’s a tune I can sing along with.






• RERUN: Crybaby Did you miss yesterday’s WORDs from failed GOP wannabe Newt Gingrich, on why Fox isn’t fair & balanced? Click here.

• JCOM Teaching Excellence: Congrats to the History Department, which edged out Journalism & Communication for USU’s 2012 department teaching excellence award. But that doesn't take anything away from the accomplishments of our students and faculty. Junior Emily Landeen produced this video of student feedback on the department.

News from our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café
• Weekly HNC News Roundup
• Aggie journalists collect 17 prizes at annual Mark of Excellence Awards, by D. Whitney Smith
• ATV News (4/12): Fraternity drinking, the BYU ‘It Gets Better’ video, Baby Animal Days . . . and more!
• Remembering the 2005 van crash victims at Ag building memorial, by Allie Jeppson
• GUEST COLUMN: Obama leads the way in kindness, civility, by Helen Cannon
• Should Mormons be vegetarians? Yes, says guest speaker, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Search warrant for dorm room leads to three arrests, by Josh Ruggles
• E-Week: potential business people should ‘be brave and get out there,’ by Becca Holliday
• Reconnecting water service in River Heights soon will be cheaper, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Logan man sentenced to life in prison for child sex abuse, by Josh Ruggles
• Lions Club egg hunt a 50-year tradition for River Heights children, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Wintery weather didn’t dampen high spirits at Baby Animal Days, by Shannon McCleve
• Up Close at the 2012 Utah Legislature: An Intern’s Perspective, by Lis Stewart

PeezPIX by Ted Pease
Catalog here


Fang the Wonder Cat died Monday, 1995-2012
Hairballs in Heaven




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Cry of Newt

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Poppa Rupert Always Liked Mitt Best

“In what some might consider an act of GOP political suicide, Newt Gingrich slammed Fox News earlier this week, saying that the cable news channel has favored Mitt Romney throughout the 2012 Republican race—and that CNN has been the more ‘fair-and-balanced’ network this cycle.

“‘I think Fox has been for Romney all the way through,’ Gingrich said during a meeting with tea party leaders in Delaware on Wednesday. . . . ‘In our experience, Callista and I both believe CNN is less biased than Fox this year. We are more likely to get neutral coverage out of CNN than we are of Fox, and we’re more likely to get distortion out of Fox. That’s just a fact.’

“The former House Speaker blasted the Roger Ailes-led network, blaming Rupert Murdoch, chairman and CEO of Fox News-owner News Corp., for the bias.

“‘I assume it’s because Murdoch at some point said, ‘I want Romney,’ and so ‘fair and balanced’ became ‘Romney,’ Gingrich said. ‘And there’s no question that Fox had a lot to do with stopping my campaign because such a high percentage of our base watches Fox.’”

—Dylan Stableford, writer,
“Newt Gingrich: ‘CNN is less biased than Fox,’”

Yahoo! News, April 13, 2012

• Editorial Comment: Do we see a CNN pundit chair in Newt’s future? With a pacifier.

• RERUN: Nut Case Did you miss yesterday’s WORDs from writer Kurt Vonnegut, on who runs for president? Click here.

• JCOM Teaching Excellence: Congrats to the History Department, which edged out Journalism & Communication for USU’s 2012 department teaching excellence award. But that doesn't take anything away from the accomplishments of our students and faculty. Junior Emily Landeen produced this video of student feedback on the department.

News from our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café
• ATV News (4/12): Fraternity drinking, the BYU ‘It Gets Better’ video, Baby Animal Days . . . and more!
• Weekly News Digest from Hard News Café
• Search warrant for dorm room leads to three arrests, by Josh Ruggles
• E-Week: potential business people should ‘be brave and get out there,’ by Becca Holliday
• Reconnecting water service in River Heights soon will be cheaper, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Logan man sentenced to life in prison for child sex abuse, by Josh Ruggles
• Lions Club egg hunt a 50-year tradition for River Heights children, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Wintery weather didn’t dampen high spirits at Baby Animal Days, by Shannon McCleve
• Up Close at the 2012 Utah Legislature: An Intern’s Perspective, by Lis Stewart
• Students proud of research, creative work at symposium showcase, by Rhett Wilkinson
• Sewer connections need more regulation, Wellsville council says, by Jimena Herrero
• USU freshman serenades Jay Leno on ‘The Tonight Show’, by Kristi Ottley
• Latest Aggie TV News from USU and Cache Valley (April 4)
• Stay tuned, Hyrum – your own radio station is in the works, by Tara Alvey
• Advice from ‘Last Lecture’: connect with others to build civil society, by Allie Jeppson

PeezPIX by Ted Pease
Catalog here


Fang the Wonder Cat died Monday, 1995-2012
Hairballs in Heaven




.

Nut Case

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Quadrennial Sport

“There is a tragic flaw in our precious Constitution, and I don’t know what can be done to fix it. This is it: Only nut cases want to be president.”

—Kurt Vonnegut (1922-2007), writer,
“Cold Turkey,” In These Times, May 10, 2004

• Editorial Comment: Great for spectators, though, like the running of the Bull.



• RERUN: Community Did you miss yesterday’s WORDs from former Minneapolis Star & Tribune editor Charles Bailey, about newspapers’ gatekeeper responsibility? Click here.

• HELP WANTED: New Faculty for Fall 2012! The JCOM Department at Utah State is taking applications for a multimedia instructor, teaching our new required multimedia class and assisting with the Aggie TV newscast classes. For full position description, click here.

• JCOM Teaching Excellence: The History Department edged out Journalism & Communication for USU’s 2012 department teaching excellence award, but that doesn't take anything away from the acomplishments of our students and faculty. Junior Emily Landeen produced this video of student feedback on the department.

News from our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café
• Weekly News Digest from Hard News Café
• Reconnecting water service in River Heights soon will be cheaper, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Logan man sentenced to life in prison for child sex abuse, by Josh Ruggles
• Lions Club egg hunt a 50-year tradition for River Heights children, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Wintery weather didn’t dampen high spirits at Baby Animal Days, by Shannon McCleve
• Up Close at the 2012 Utah Legislature: An Intern’s Perspective, by Lis Stewart
• Students proud of research, creative work at symposium showcase, by Rhett Wilkinson
• Sewer connections need more regulation, Wellsville council says, by Jimena Herrero
• USU freshman serenades Jay Leno on ‘The Tonight Show’, by Kristi Ottley
• Latest Aggie TV News from USU and Cache Valley (April 4)
• Stay tuned, Hyrum – your own radio station is in the works, by Tara Alvey
• Advice from ‘Last Lecture’: connect with others to build civil society, by Allie Jeppson
• ‘Wolf Wars’ big question: How many wolves will society tolerate?, by Jimena Herrero
• JCOM SCHOLARSHIPS DEADLINE TODAY: JCOM Scholarships for 2012-13.

PeezPIX by Ted Pease
Catalog here


Fang the Wonder Cat died Monday, 1995-2012
Hairballs in Heaven




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Know Thyself

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The Gatekeepers

“It is our responsibility—those of us who have been given the temporary status as gatekeepers of information—to make sure that the place where we live can find out what it needs to know about itself.”

—Charles W. Bailey,
on stepping down as editor
of the Minneapolis Star and Tribune, 1983
(Thanks to alert WORDster Peter Watson)

• Editorial Comment: But what if we don’t really want to know about ourselves?



• RERUN: UnDeadlines Did you miss yesterday’s WORDs about newspaper interest among the dead, from Spanish filmmaker Luis Buñuel? Click here.

• Relocation: The JCOM faculty have gotten rid of most of the clutter as we settle into swanky new offices in the new Ag Building on the USU Quad.

• HELP WANTED: New Faculty for Fall 2012! The JCOM Department at Utah State is taking applications for a multimedia instructor, teaching our new required multimedia class and assisting with the Aggie TV newscast classes. For full position description, click here.

• JCOM Teaching Excellence: The Journalism & Communication Department is one of three finalists for USU’s 2012 department teaching excellence award. Junior Emily Landeen produced this video of student feedback on the department.

News from our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café
• Weekly News Digest from Hard News Café
• Logan man sentenced to life in prison for child sex abuse, by Josh Ruggles
• Lions Club egg hunt a 50-year tradition for River Heights children, by Sean O’Sullivan
• Wintery weather didn’t dampen high spirits at Baby Animal Days, by Shannon McCleve
• Up Close at the 2012 Utah Legislature: An Intern’s Perspective, by Lis Stewart
• Students proud of research, creative work at symposium showcase, by Rhett Wilkinson
• Sewer connections need more regulation, Wellsville council says, by Jimena Herrero
• USU freshman serenades Jay Leno on ‘The Tonight Show’, by Kristi Ottley
• Latest Aggie TV News from USU and Cache Valley (April 4)
• Stay tuned, Hyrum – your own radio station is in the works, by Tara Alvey
• Advice from ‘Last Lecture’: connect with others to build civil society, by Allie Jeppson
• ‘Wolf Wars’ big question: How many wolves will society tolerate?, by Jimena Herrero
• JCOM SCHOLARSHIPS DEADLINE TODAY: JCOM Scholarships for 2012-13.

PeezPIX by Ted Pease
Catalog here







.

Aging Readership

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The Zombie Audience

“Frankly, despite my horror of the press, I’s love to rise from the grave every ten years or so and go buy a few newspapers.”

—Luis Buñuel (1900-1983),
Spanish movie director

• Editorial Comment: This could save newspapers! Maybe a special rate for those on undeadlines?


• RERUN: RIP Did you miss yesterday’s WORDs on the death of formidable newsman Mike Wallace? Click here.

• Relocation: The JCOM faculty have gotten rid of most of the clutter as we settle into swanky new offices in the new Ag Building on the USU Quad.

• HELP WANTED: New Faculty for Fall 2012! The JCOM Department at Utah State is taking applications for a multimedia instructor, teaching our new required multimedia class and assisting with the Aggie TV newscast classes. For full position description, click here.

• JCOM Teaching Excellence: The Journalism & Communication Department is one of three finalists for USU’s 2012 department teaching excellence award. Junior Emily Landeen produced this video of student feedback on the department.

News from our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café
• Weekly News Digest from Hard News Café
• Up Close at the 2012 Utah Legislature: An Intern’s Perspective, by Lis Stewart
• Students proud of research, creative work at symposium showcase, by Rhett Wilkinson
• Easter egg hunt is a popular Lions Club project in Hyde Park, by Shannon McCleve
• Sewer connections need more regulation, Wellsville council says, by Jimena Herrero
• USU freshman serenades Jay Leno on ‘The Tonight Show’, by Kristi Ottley
• Latest Aggie TV News from USU and Cache Valley (April 4)
• Stay tuned, Hyrum – your own radio station is in the works, by Tara Alvey
• Advice from ‘Last Lecture’: connect with others to build civil society, by Allie Jeppson
• ‘Wolf Wars’ big question: How many wolves will society tolerate?, by Jimena Herrero
• Summer session at USU, when the air is warm and learnin’ is easy, by Kristi Ottley
• 1st District Drug Court: Second chance to get clean and sober, by Tara Alvey
• JCOM SCHOLARSHIPS DEADLINE TODAY: JCOM Scholarships for 2012-13.

PeezPIX by Ted Pease
Catalog here







.

Mike Wallace Was Here

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Mike Wallace, Super Hero, 1918-2012

“It’s hard to believe, but when Wallace was born in 1918 there wasn’t even a radio in most American homes, much less a TV. As a youth, Wallace said, he was ‘an overachiever. I worked pretty hard. Played a hell of a fiddle.’

“At the University of Michigan, where his parents hoped he’d become a doctor or lawyer, he got hooked instead on radio. And by 1941, Mike was the announcer on ‘The Green Hornet."” . . .

“It was 65 years from Mike’s first appearance on camera—a World War II film for the Navy—to his last television appearance, a ‘60 Minutes’ interview with Roger Clemens, the baseball star trying to fight off accusations of steroid use.

“65 years!

“It’s strange, but for such a tough guy, Mike’s all-time favorite interview was the one with another legend, pianist Vladimir Horowitz. The two of them, forces of nature both: Sly, manic, egos rampant. For Mike—a red, white and blue kind of guy—Horowitz played ‘The Stars and Stripes Forever.”

“It almost brought tears to the toughest guy on television.

“‘It’s astonishing what you learn and feel and see along the way,’ Wallace said. ‘That’s why a reporter’s job, as you know, is such a joy.’”

—Morley Safer, newsman and longtime Wallace colleague,
“Remembering Mike Wallace, 1918-2012,”
CBS News Sunday, April 5, 2012
Image: Bebeto Matthews/Associated Press

• Editorial Comment: Green Hornet, hunh? Evil-doers everywhere are breathing easier today. RIP, bulldog.

More on Mike Wallace
• The Associated Press obit: “NEW YORK (AP) — ‘Mike Wallace is here to see you.’”
• The “60 Minutes” obit
• Video: Best of Mike on “60 Minutes”
• NPR’s Scott Simon with Wallace on tough interviewing, 2005
• New York Times obit
• Video: “Last Word: Mike Wallace,” New York Times
• In Memoriam, ABC News video
• Wallace Reaction.

• RERUN: O’ Canada! Did you miss yesterday’s WORDs from Bill Maher about offensive speech? Click here.

• Relocation: The JCOM faculty have gotten rid of most of the clutter as we settle into swanky new offices in the new Ag Building on the USU Quad.

• HELP WANTED: New Faculty for Fall 2012! The JCOM Department at Utah State is taking applications for a multimedia instructor, teaching our new required multimedia class and assisting with the Aggie TV newscast classes. For full position description, click here.

• JCOM Teaching Excellence: The Journalism & Communication Department is one of three finalists for USU’s 2012 department teaching excellence award. Junior Emily Landeen produced this video of student feedback on the department. Click on image of Utah Statesman editor Catherine Bennett (right).


News from our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café
• Weekly News Digest from Hard News Café
• Up Close at the 2012 Utah Legislature: An Intern’s Perspective, by Lis Stewart
• Students proud of research, creative work at symposium showcase, by Rhett Wilkinson
• Easter egg hunt is a popular Lions Club project in Hyde Park, by Shannon McCleve
• Sewer connections need more regulation, Wellsville council says, by Jimena Herrero
• USU freshman serenades Jay Leno on ‘The Tonight Show’, by Kristi Ottley
• Latest Aggie TV News from USU and Cache Valley (April 4)
• Stay tuned, Hyrum – your own radio station is in the works, by Tara Alvey
• Advice from ‘Last Lecture’: connect with others to build civil society, by Allie Jeppson
• ‘Wolf Wars’ big question: How many wolves will society tolerate?, by Jimena Herrero
• Summer session at USU, when the air is warm and learnin’ is easy, by Kristi Ottley
• 1st District Drug Court: Second chance to get clean and sober, by Tara Alvey
• JCOM SCHOLARSHIPS DEADLINE TODAY: JCOM Scholarships for 2012-13.

PeezPIX by Ted Pease
Catalog here







.

O’ Canada!

.
Polite Is the New Offensive

“I don’t want to live in a country where no one ever says anything that offends anyone. That’s why we have Canada.”

—Bill Maher, comic & TV host
Thanks to alert WORDster Phil Meyer

• Editorial Comment: Damn the civil discourse—full %^&*(!*&^%!!!! ahead.

• Burma: Did you miss yesterday’s WORDs from Agnes Callamard from the international Article 19 organization, which promotes free expression worldwide? Click here.

• Recommended Reading: “Men in Black,” by Maureen Dowd, The New York Times

• Relocation: The JCOM faculty are now baffled by stacks of boxes as we complete our move from the venerable old Animal Science Building to swanky new offices in the new Ag Building on the USU Quad.

• HELP WANTED: New Faculty for Fall 2012! The JCOM Department at Utah State is taking applications for a multimedia instructor, teaching our new required multimedia class and assisting with the Aggie TV newscast classes. For full position description, click here.

• JCOM Teaching Excellence: The Journalism & Communication Department is one of three finalists for USU’s 2012 department teaching excellence award. Junior Emily Landeen produced this video of student feedback on the department. Click on image of Utah Statesman editor Catherine Bennett (right).


News from our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café
• BREAKING NEWS: USU freshman goes on Leno Show with ‘Special Talent’
• Latest Aggie TV News from USU and Cache Valley (April 4)
• ‘Wolf Wars’ big question: How many wolves will society tolerate?, by Jimena Herrero
• Summer session at USU, when the air is warm and learnin’ is easy, by Kristi Ottley
• Soil conditioning plant approved by Richmond planning commission, by Chris Lee
• 1st District Drug Court: Second chance to get clean and sober, by Tara Alvey
• Recycled milkjugs, tinfoil, candy wrappers make fashion statement, by Kristi Ottley
• Ski season’s not over yet—Try a hike up and ski down Green Canyon, by Evan Thacker, Aggie BluePrint
• Hard News Café Weekly News Roundup (April 2)
• Corey Cozzens sweeps top 3 awards at Spice on Ice competition, by Steve Kent
• Cherry Peak ski area permit upheld by Board of Adjustments, by Josh Ruggles
• The Brady Jardine Story, on KUTV2’ Talkin’ Sports, by ATV Sports’ Bailey McMurdie
• SCHOLARSHIP DEADLINE EXTENDED to APRIL 9: JCOM Scholarships for 2012-13.

PeezPIX by Ted Pease
Catalog here






Spring’s coming....HA!





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