Democracy, Journalism, and the First Amendment

                                                                               Photo Courtesy of Deliberative Democracy

            The question, “why does democracy need journalism and the First Amendment?” poses three probable answers. Before further examining the answers, however, one must define the following terms: democracy, journalism and First Amendment.

Democracy—a system of government that allows the people to represent the populous and govern the makings of our country.

Journalism—“the profitable art of engaging citizens and others in true to improve their lives and the life of their community,” acc. to Buck Ryan.

The First Amendment --“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

With the follow terms having been defined we can now examine the following answers:

1.      A democracy needs journalism and the First Amendment to create an educated populace, which in turn is the cornerstone of democracy.

2.      A democracy needs journalism and the First Amendment to act a watchdog to check against government corruption.

3.      A democracy needs journalism and the First Amendment to ensure that needed change occurs in society and oversee that it is kept vibrant and successful.

                                                                                                                                  Photo Courtesy of visitingdc.com
Continuing with the first point, if a democracy were to be without journalism or the First Amendment the future of country would be in shaky hands. It is due to journalism and the First Amendment that our democratic officials are in turn educated. In order to be a successful and thriving country, we need reliable and well educated representatives.

                                                                                                                     Photo Courtesy of irememberjfk.com

It is a journalist’s duty to dig for information, to reveal hidden secrets, and to find the stories that lie beneath the beaten path. Hence the reason one of the number one topics journalist’s cover is government and politics. Without the nosey, prying, journalist’s in our society, society would be unaware of scandals occurring within our government; take the Watergate scandal for example with journalists Woodward and Bernstein. Without the work of these two men, who knows how long it would have been before this valuable information was revealed. Hence reason number two, that a democracy needs journalism and the First Amendment to act as a watchdog to check against government corruption.

                                                                         Photo Courtesy of UBMSP

Finally, without journalism and the First Amendment, our society as we know it would come to a standstill. Both journalism and the First Amendment ensure that needed change occurs in society and that it is kept vibrant and successful. This happens because the First Amendment allows the freedom of speech and journalism then promotes the ideas of those wanting to see these changes.

In conclusion, there are multiple reasons as to why a democracy needs journalism and the First Amendment, the ones outlined above are merely just a few of many more that could be addressed in the future.


Question and Answer:
On Journalism
1. Now tell me again, what is your definiton of journalism?
A. To me, journalism is the very thing that molds and shapes our society. It is how people stay informed about the world going on around them.
2. How many different models of journalism exist today?
A. There are varoius models of journalism today, ranging from print journalism to online jounalism sites such as Twitter and Facebook.
On Democracy
1. What is your definiton of democracy?
A. Democracy is the system of government in our country that allows the people to represent the people.
2. What is the defintion between "election politics" and "public politics"?
A. Election politcs is the process by which we select people to represent our country. Public politics is the process by which people come together to make a collaborative decision.
On the First Amendment
1. What does the First Amendment say exactly?
A. It says that we the people, are allowed to express our opinions and speak our minds whether it be in groups or in what we write.
2. Are any of those protections important in your life?
A. They are extremely important in my life. As an aspiring journalist, it is this amendment that allows me to speak freely and hence do my job.
On Diversity
1. Everybody keeps talking about diversity: Why is diversity in relgion, speech, press, assembly and petition so important to a democracy?

 A. Diversity is extremely important in each of the above. It provides a well-rounded soceity which is essiential to being considered a successful society.

2. How do journalists and the First Amendment ensure that people hear diverse voices in the marketplace of ideas?

A. Journalists do so because it is in their best interest to be diverse, no one wants a closed minded reporter. The First Amendment does so because it does not place limits on who the Amendment applies to.
3. Can you speak from personal experience about how diversity, protected by the First Amendment or championed by journalists, made a difference in your life?
A. I think it has probably made a difference in everyone's life. Without diversity, protected by the First Amendment, and championed by journalists, the news we recievce today and the way in which it is covered would be entirely different.

  

           

Recovered Losses

The federal government has released news of having recovered $4.1 billion stolen from health care schemes during the 2011 fiscal year.

It was through the use of the FBI and their ability to detect hotspots, which show excessive billing in Medicare, that this money was recovered. This figure is up 58 percent from 2009. America is starting to win the battle against fraudulant schemes.

"This is an unprecedented achievement--and it represents the highest amount ever recovered in a single year," said Attorney General Eric Holder.

An Age Old Debate

    

     The death penalty is a controversial punishment for crime throughout the world. Countries such as China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea and the United States still permit the death penalty as proper punishment. However, 137 countries have abolished the death penalty, yet 20,000 prisoners are on death row across the world. (“The death penalty,” 2000)
     The death penalty should be eradicated from the American Society because it is both morally and legally wrong and it does not serve as a deterrent to crime.
     Using the death penalty as punishment for crime is morally wrong. What gives one human the right to take the life of another? Helen Prejean, a well-known Roman Catholic religious sister, explained it well when saying “The fundamental purpose of all punishment is to preserve and enhance the common good. We must never lose sight of this purpose by disregarding the effects of resorting to violent death as means of dealing with crime.” (“North Dakota catholic,” 1995) As humans who are we to decide what crime is to be punishable by death, much less to carry out the action?
     Helen Prejean explains too, “The death penalty costs too much. Allowing our government to kill citizens compromises the deepest moral values upon which this country was conceived: the inviolable dignity of human persons.” (“North Dakota catholic,” 1995) America was built upon Judeo-Christian principles; the earliest use of this term dates back to 1829. According to an article from Jewish World Review by Dennis Prager, Juedo-Christian principles are the belief”…that America must answer morally to this God, not to the mortal venal, governments of the world.” (Dennis, 2004)
     By participating in the death penalty, people are denying and going against the very principles on which our country was built upon. It is morally wrong for humans to kill other humans no matter the circumstances, whether they are a criminal, or an innocent person.
     Using the death penalty as punishment for crime is legally wrong as well. It is stated in the Declaration of Independence, that “….We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness….” (ushistory.org, 2012) The Declaration of Independence is one of the most historical and influential documents that our country is built upon. Therefore acting and making decisions that contradict and go against these very guidelines is wrong and essentially illegal.
     The death penalty is too considered cruel and unusual punishment by a vast majority of people as well as our founding fathers who composed the Bill of Rights. It is under the Eighth Amendment in the Bill of Rights that one can make the argument that the death penalty is illegal. It reads as follows, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” (Roland, 2000) Due to the fact that “punishment” is considered a legal infliction of suffering, for it to be a violation of the Eight Amendment, it in turn must be “cruel.” As for the death penalty being considered “unusual” this definition does not fit merely because of its long usage in history. However, this does not take away from the fact that it indeed is cruel punishment and essentially, but not technically, legally wrong. Our country was built upon the documents of founding fathers and to this day, it is what our society is modeled after, therefore how is it just to use the death penalty as punishment when it clearly violates one of our amendments? If government officials and American citizens are allowed to violate this amendment, why is it that we follow the others?
     Furthermore, the death penalty does not act as a deterrent to crime. Those who commit a heinous crime such as murder, do not think about the consequences of their actions at the time, and are more focused on completing the task at hand.  It seems hopeless to expect that any form of punishment will deter crime- for those that are committing a crime have their minds set and are willing to do whatever deemed  necessary. Grant McClellan, a well-known author on the case of the death penalty illustrates that:

 “In 1958 the 10 states that had the fewest murders-fewer than two a year per 100,000 population-were New Hampshire, Iowa, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Wisconsin, Rhode Island, Utah, North Dakota, and Washington. Four of these 10 states had abolished the death penalty. The 10 states, which had the most murders from eight to fourteen killings per 100,000 population were Nevada, Alabama, Georgia, Arkansas, and Virginia- all of them enforce the death penalty. The fact is that fear of the death penalty has never served to reduce the crime rate.” (p. 40) 

     The claim that the death penalty acts as a deterrent is further denied through evidence brought about by the American Civil Liberties Union. “A punishment can be an effective deterrent only if it is consistently and promptly employed. Capital punishment cannot be administered to meet these conditions.” (Bedeau, 1992) I absolutely agree with the quote above, capital punishment is a long process and is administered inconsistently. Most criminals too act in the heat of the moment and do not stop to consider the consequences, therefore the claim of deterrence further proves to be false.
     To reiterate, the death penalty should be eradicated from the American Society because it is both morally and legally wrong and it does not serve as a deterrent to crime.


-The post above is a piece I wrote for freshman communications class this. Individually we were required to choose a controversial topic and try to persuade our classmates to feel the same. I would love to know everyone's opinion on the issue. Feel free to post your comments below.

It's a Hipster Nation

Hipster. It's a term most of us have put into our vocabulary recently. However, do any of us really know what it means?

The term has been around for ages, it was first used in the 1940's, renounced in the 1980's and once again here in 2012. According to Google's dictionary, it is a person who follows the latest trends and fashions. The definition has gradually evolved from the above to defining a person who values independent thinking, creativity, intelligence, and appreciates the little things in life like art and indie-rock music.

What does the term hipster mean to me? I see it as someone who is up on the latest fashion, and who, like the rest of us, strives to be just a little bit different from the rest of the crowd. Specifically, I see this description of a person as someone who will put anything together when it comes to dressing themselves-any vareity of print or color. Someone who wears skinny jeans, flower printed shoes, and has side swept bangs.

There are multiple different style terms floating around these days, ranging from hipster to urban chic. We all have our own sense of style-what's yours?

Take Every Chance-Drop Every Fear

In life, take every chance. Drop every fear. This I believe is an important quote to live by.

We only have one life to live and I believe it is what you make of it. We all came into this world the same way and I don't believe in luck. If you want something in life, you have to make it happen. No one gets anywhere in this world sitting around waiting, and as teenagers now is the time to act. As we're young, now is the time to make mistakes and live without regrets. The world is at our fingertips and we have the power to make as much out of it as we want.

In my life, I took a risk moving to college. I come from a very small town and although everyone in my family went to college it was still a big risk for me to come. As i have never been away from home and moving from a small town with a population of just over five hundred to a city as large as Lexington, was frightening. However, it was one I knew I had to take in order to gain as much out of this life as possible.
As I mentioned before, in life, you have to take every chance and drop every fear. This life is yours. When are you going to realize that you can do whatever you want?

- I wrote the above paragraphs for a "This I believe Speech" for my communications class at school. We had to choose a quote that was important to us-and this quote is exactly that. It too was the inspiration for the name of my blog.