The Night - Original Writing - 1102 Words

â€Å"May I ask what happened?† Alex asked, his hand still tightly gripping mine as I practically pulled him down the stairs. â€Å"You may not,† I replied bluntly, as we stepped out into the eerie dark morning. I breathed in the cold night’s air, and looked towards the sky. The empty darkness was separated by small specks of light; the stars. It amazed me how the stars were so far away, yet we could see them so clearly, even if they looked a billion times smaller. I took a step forwards, and shivered, curling myself up to keep warm. I breathed in slowly, and smelled nothing. I glanced over at Alex and saw him looking back at me with a curious expression on his face. His pale green eyes were open wide, clearly not still suffering from sleep loss†¦show more content†¦Underneath it in the shin length yellow grass was a graveyard of discarded rubbish, covered in filth. A doll with a broken smile and once scarlet dress now dull and old, her tormented eyes fixed on the distance, staring into nothingness. A soggy lone sock floated in a mud puddle, broken bottles and crisp packets scattered across the ground, bugs swarmed round an icky chocolate wrapper. The repugnant musk of cigarette butts and cheap alcohol clung to the graffiti covered climbing wall. It was three years ago, I said suddenly. Alex turned to me, slightly alarmed by my sudden outburst. I started three years ago. Drugs, I mean. I was just so done with everything. I had fallen into this deep hole of despair without anything to pull me up. My grades in school were dropping, I never seemed to do well enough for my parents, and I was just so overridden with sadness I could barely breathe. And somehow, the option of drugs turned my way. So I took it. I thought the drugs were lifting me out of the hole but in reality, they were lifting me up and then dropping me deeper. I looked up at him, searching his face for some sort of expression but his face was blank. I raised my view to his eyes, expecting pools of pity that I d so often see from his brother. But Alex s eyes held nothing but apt attention. I don t know what I m doing anymore, I said softly, But I need them. He squeezed my hand

Illegal Immigration Become A National Security Issue Since...

Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 the border has become less open and more secured from what it used to be prior to the terrorist attacks (CBP, 2009, p. 5). The main reason is due to illegal immigration becoming a national security issue since illegal immigration can create opportunities for terrorists to commit terrorist attacks in the homeland by importing weapons and terrorist personal to the United States via smuggling routes that illegal immigrants use when they cross the border (CBP, 2009, p. 6). However, if suddenly the border was to be made less open and more secure from what it already is, it would have both benefits and consequences within the United States. One of the benefits of making the border less open is that it would decrease the chances for contagious diseases and pests to arrive into the United States, this will be an enormous benefit because once a new contagious disease or pest enters the homeland they become very expensive and difficult to contr ol and unfortunately in some cases these diseases take the life of many Americans each year (CBP, 2009, p. 8). Another benefit of having a less open and more secure border is that it would improve the health of the American population because it would reduce the enormous amount of drugs that are imported into the United States daily, therefore this will result in less consumers and in a healthier nation (CBP, 2009, p. 10). However, one consequence of having a more secured and less open borderShow MoreRelatedIllegal Immigration And The United States1126 Words   |  5 PagesIllegal Immigration Illegal immigration, according to an online dictionary is, â€Å"an alien (non-citizen) who has entered the United States without government permission or stayed beyond the termination date of a visa† (thefreedictionary.com). This issue has been a controversial and divisive topic throughout the world. Illegal immigration is a serious threat to national security. Lack of proper immigration can cause harmful consequences, and while there is much debate over what to do with the manyRead MoreAre Babies Born on the United States Soil Be Considered Full-fledged Citizens or Not?1360 Words   |  6 PagesA big issue that surrounds the United States today is whether or not babies born on United States soil are to be considered full-fledged citizens or not, regardless of the family’s recent migration into the United States. The children born in the United States to illegal alien mothers are often referred to as anchor babies†. Under current practice, these children are Un ited States citizens at birth, simply because they were born on United States soil. They are called anchor babies because, as UnitedRead MoreImmigration Is A Foreign Policy Hot Topic1296 Words   |  6 PagesImmigration according to definitions online is â€Å"the movement of people into a destination country to which they are not native or do not possess its citizenship in order to settle or reside there, especially as permanent residents or naturalized citizens, or to take-up employment as a migrant worker or temporarily as a foreign worker.† However, in order to understand why immigration has become a foreign policy hot topic, we must understand the history of immigration. Since the initial settlersRead MoreIllegal Immigration : The United States Of America1197 Words   |  5 PagesJorge Romo Ms. Thompson Junior English 2nd Hour February 28, 2017 Illegal Immigration in American The United States of America is one of the greatest countries on this earth. Since the day it was founded, many men and women died while building this country into the nation it is today. But there is a problem that threatens America today and it is illegal immigration. The definition of an illegal immigrant is a foreigner who enters the U.S. without proper authorization. Especially a person who crossesRead MoreIllegal Immigration And The United States1388 Words   |  6 PagesIllegal immigration has plagued the United States since immigration laws were created, and has worsened in recent history. Since Ronald Reagan’s Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 provided amnesty for 3 million illegal aliens in exchange for increased border security, millions of people have entered the country illegally. Over the past 30 years, the illegal immigrant population of the country has more than doubled from 5 million in 1986 to over 11.5 million in 2015. It has become one of theRead MoreIllegal Immigration And The United States1664 Words   |  7 Pagesunauthorized immigrants living in the U.S. in March 2013 (Pew Research Center, 2014), and there might be even more since many of them decide not to share any personal information to these types of organizations, such as the Census. The main reason for this presumption is that they fear of being deported back to their birth countries. 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Once a certain issue becomes a concern for a significant amount of people, it becomes a component of the national agenda, which is what the public wants the government to acknowledge. Many of these problems are addressed because they negatively affect a significant amount of people (Sparknotes: How Policy Gets Made). For the past few years, one of the major issues in the United States is illegal immigration. Unlike today, a person immigratingRead MoreIllegal Immigration 1280 Words   |  6 PagesIllegal immigration has been a source of mounting concern in the United States since the 1970’s. Statistics indicate that the past ten years have witnessed an increase in the number of illegal immigrants with the number estimated to increase in the future. â€Å"The percentage of illegal immigrant population from Mexico was 59% (or 6.8 million) as of January 2013. Other countries with large amounts are El Salvador (660,000) Guatemala (52000), Hondorous (380,000) and China (280,000)† (Infoplease 1). TheRead MoreThe Issue Of Illegal Immigration1623 Words   |  7 Pagesinparticular has become very popular, illegal immigration. The primary question that is asked is, â€Å"How will you deport and limit the number of illegal immigrants in the United States?† This question got me thinking, If I were in their position what would I say in response? The following essay will illustrate the ideas on illegal immigration. Facts Immigration has always been a problem ever since we put a border between the United States and Mexico. In the beginning it really was not as big of an issue that it

Covering Health Issues Role of Newspapers

Question: Discuss the impact of regulations and technological changes on the Mass Communication Industries in the last three decades looking at the TV OR Newspaper industry? Answer: Introduction Newspapers are still far from the dead, but the language of the obituary is creeping in. The present status of the industry in the UK is strong enough to give a candid proof of a fact that this ink-on-publishing tradition is being ruthlessly suppressed by the accelerating innovations in the digital world. The newspapers, from a very long time, have been considered as the most reliable information to the readers. The industry has been establishing a sound information background of the people and has constantly been aiding in delivering the most justified form of local and international news to the ones to whom the issues are mainly concerned. The newspapers are considered to be far more effective than all the other sources of information cum entertainment as it provides a much easier way to its readers to explore about public affairs in a much more detailed and manner. The complexity of the society could be well understood only when this ink-on-publishing tradition has been well appre ciated by the readers and if along with democracy the people are provided with an immensely rich and pluralistic information environment which invigorate a sense of awareness among people (Grahama Hilla, 2009). The technology has always been an integral element to face the dynamics of the evolving world and its demands. But as the technological reforms have dominated the society in the few decades, it has posed a great challenge not only at the level of production and delivery of information but also the industrial level. With the incorporation of myriads of technological reformations, the newspaper has eventually started losing its grip over its readers as the readership habits are under a great change as the consumers are turning their interests towards the free internet services for a variety of information and news related to current topics (Stephens, 2010). History of Newspapers When defined in its simplest form, then a Newspaper is a publication that occurs frequently and regularly and carries information about a wide variety of current events. The Newspapers began to circulate around the 17th century and the first newspaper was printed in England in 1641. However, till that time, the word Newspaper was not so prevalent. The first successful daily newspaper in Britain was printed and circulated in 1702. In Britain, the first Sunday newspaper, the British Gazette and Sunday Monitor were published in 1780. The Daily Universal Register (published in1785) was renamed as The Times in 1788. It was in the year 1814 that the newspaper industry was revolutionized with the introduction of the Steam-power press and The Times was the first newspaper, incorporating this innovative technique in its printing using a rotator printing press with the printing face wrapped around a cylinder for the first time (AJR Team, 2008). The Observer, The Daily Telegraph and The Guardia n were respectively founded in the year 1791, 1855 and 1821. It was in the late 19th Century that made the newspaper industry far more common among the people. During this period, the Government began to charge Stamp Duty on the printing of the newspaper which further made them more expensive. The year 1855 was marked a yet another important year in the history of newspaper, as the stamp duty, that was imposed in the previous years, was abolished to make this easiest way of publishing information, more cheaper than always. In 1962, the Sunday Times became the first newspaper to publish a color supplement of the newspaper on weekends. At the beginning of the 20th Century, most of the work related to newspaper printing and publishing, had been carried out in the Fleet Street and subsequently it became the center of the British Newspaper printing. However, with the end of this century, most of the newspaper owners began to move away from this center. The 20th Century was marked by the introduction of Computers and hence the obsolete labor intensive techniques were replaced by the new and innovative Information technology tactics. To address the issues of the press and to invite innovative suggestions from the participants, a Press Complaint Commission was created in 1990. The Newspaper industry adopted a new innovative idea to attract the commuters by introducing its first free newspaper named Metro in 1999 (Kirchhoff, 2010). Existing newspaper Business Model The newspaper industry is characterized by a high sunk cost as a great investment is needed in implementing a printing press, ink and paper and of course in hiring and retaining the labor. This high sunk cost is supplemented by a low marginal cost and therefore this gives a chance for the market entry barriers to expand and curb the entry of the press in the potential market segments. The existing business model of this industry works on a strategy that is designed to operate in the two-sided market (Norris, 2000). Under this model, the industry is involved in selling news to the readers and simultaneously in selling advertising space to the advertisers. Although, the concentration of newspaper publishers is ongoing with time, yet the newspaper publishers are having an immense problem in sustaining their business as a standalone, individual business. Revenue Structure In the decade, from the year 1997 to 2007, the firms involved in the newspaper publishing industry increased to around 9,000. This was accompanied by an average declination in the number of employees with a steep rate of around 15.9%. Looking at the current statistics, in 2013 the newspaper market was expected to generate revenue of $169.9 billion, which was around 2.2% less as compared to the revenue generated in 2012. The conventional newspaper business is considered till now as the primary contributor to the income of the newspaper industry, contributing up to 78% of the total revenue. The UK newspaper publishing market has a medium level of market share concentration. This fact is further strengthened by a statistic that reveals that only the top four players in the industry has accounted for around 54.1% of the industry revenue in the year 2014-2015. These major companies, ruling the newspaper industry at present includes News Corporation, Daily Mail, Johnston Press and Telegrap h Media Group (Izquierdo-Castillo, 2013). The economic turmoil, the country is facing at the present, predicts that theres a bleak future for the newspaper industry and the industry is definitely going to decrease its value in the coming years as the sales and advertising expenditure are going to decline. Talking about the recent year, 2015, the year had been a brutal one for the industry as the print advertising in the country fell by 112 m which was nearly equivalent to half Fleet Streets Profit and even with the combined wage bills of the leading newspaper in the UK, including, the Times, Sunday Times and the Daily Telegraph (Dodge, 2006). Cost Structure As already mentioned in the earlier section, that the maximum investments in a newspaper industry are needed in implementing and operating the printing press and in manufacturing and buying the ink and the paper, hence it is proven that the in a typical operation, the maximum portion of the investments is utilized at the industrial level. Of the total cost, around 25- 35% is utilized in buying and manufacturing the paper and implementing the printing press. Around 30- 40% is used in distribution and 18- 25% is utilized in editing. The left over 10- 15% is utilized in meeting the administrative and marketing expenditures (Nworah, 2012). The Circulation sales and billing together with fleets of trucks and delivery employees throwing the papers from door to door accounts only to the 10% of the total costs. However, this percent is a part of the distribution section only. Talking about the significant incomes of the industry, so, the major sources of the income are distribution services and the free advertising papers in the average company (Lilistrucchi, 2005). Current Status of Newspaper Industry Impact of Technology The earliest newspapers were simply hand written documents posted in public. With the invention of the printing press by Johannes Guttenberg in 1440s, a revolution in the print culture began. Advancements in electronics led to another revolution in which the newspapers are printed and published. Technological reformations, including the invention of computers and its associated softwares equipped the newspaper industry with an ability to produce a relatively larger number of newspapers in a very short time. The software technology, named as Desktop Publishing, added another remarkable reformation in the printing techniques (Salman, et al., 2011). With the introduction of this technological software, the industry began to publish the newspaper layout in a more innovative and appealing manner. Talking about peculiar softwares, then Adobe Page Maker, Quark express and Microsoft Publishers are some of the leading softwares that have made the printing and publishing work easy and interest ing. Another interesting advancement in technology is the introduction of digital photography with includes use of a wide range of digital cameras. The inclusion of photos with the information has always given a better understanding to the readers. The digital photography has aided the industry with an increased speed of newspaper printing by directly including the clicked photos from the camera to the page to be printed. The above mentioned softwares have accompanied in this work a lot. The internet has proven a crucial element that has a both positive and a negative impact on the growth of this sector. A number of newspapers have turned towards the internet exposure to increase their popularity and expenditure (Fan, 2012). As this element has been accepted globally by a number of users, hence the newspaper industry has started using it as a medium to reach the remotely placed readers and even to target the new potential target market segments. The internet is not only regarded as a medium of quick information, but side by side is a pivotal element that could be effectively used in business and advertising and has proven a boon for the newspaper industry. The Electronic Ink technique effectively amalgamates the essentials of electronic and internet to deliver quick services to the readers by improving the speed of distribution and cutting the major costs of printing. While most of the newspaper publishers consider internet technology as a boon to the industry, the o thers recognize as a major challenge to the industry, which has an enough capacity to give a potent threat to the popularity of printed newspapers. According to Reid Goldsborough, The relative cost of including internet in place of printing press is quite low and hence has effectively taken over the old-media institution. This has not only threatened the popularity of printed news, but has also left a majority of labors unemployed (Ifra, 2006). Impact of regulation In the year 2013, the government of UK published a Royal Charter accessing its control over the newspaper industry. This formal document consists of a number of recommendations that were regarded as lame and unworkable by the newspaper society. Hence, the members of the society stood together in against of the governments proposal and curbed the idea (Rosenstiel Jurkowitz, 2012). The regulation of newspaper, being a sensitive issue to handle, holds a critical importance in the newspaper industry. But, when the regulation is exercised through external agencies then it gives undue advantages to the politicians to have an unacceptable degree of interference in the working of the press. Self Regulation has become a solution to all the evolving issues of regulation and its ill effects. The Press Complaint Commission (PCC), being an element of self regulation, works efficiently to provide a central benefit of combining the highest standards of ethical reporting with a free press. The stat utory controls and privacy controls only works to undermine the freedom of the press. These regulations are only used by the rich and the powerful to who ultimately involves courts to exert their pressure on the freedom of speech of the publishers. The regulation exerted by the external agencies is sometimes misused by corrupts to obstruct the reporters to publish articles that are concerned with the public interests (Africanus Diedong, 2013). Hence, with unworkable regulations, this medium of reliable information becomes a mere puppet in the hands of the rich and powerful. Future of the newspaper industry Newspaper in the todays era is not dying, they are committing suicide. The declining phase of the newspaper industry is suggesting that the Internet and other powerful information source are together responsible in destroying the ink-on-paper publishing. Philip Meyer has studied the newspaper industry for almost three decades and has suggested that if the current readership trend continues in the future, then it will be the year 2044 when the reader will get to read the last printed newspaper. In his latest book, titled The Vanishing Newspaper: Saving Journalism in the Information Age, he has candidly said that the declining number of the readers is really a bad sign for the newspaper industry and if the trend continues then the industry will have to face a great turmoil in the future. The major point of concern for the industry is relatively quite shocking as the researchers say that the todays young generation wont grow into future readers (McClymer, 2010). A present research has u nveiled that the time spent by the adults, under the age of 30, in reading daily newspapers has dropped to only 16% which is yet another concern for the industry. The declining phase of the industry has created an urge to find an alternative business model. Although the process of searching a new business model requires continuous efforts with several layers of reporting and a number of research instruments, yet once an effective model is generated then the industry can recover back to its older popularity era. There are a number of suggestions regarding the new business model for the newspaper industry. One such model, being a bit experimental and innovative in nature, has suggested a concept of Crowdfunding. In this model, the readers could make the payments to a journalist so that he can write a particular story or cover a peculiar beat (Liew, 2016). The readers donation being an innovative concept will not only raise an alternate source of funding for the industry, but also promises to increase the involvement of the local public in the working in the industry and hence make them more closer towards the print culture. The fund given by the people can support a journalist on an individual level or can even directly aid the industry on a whole. The representative journalists, gathering information on the basis of the financial aid provided by the people, can later be presented to the newspapers as the fresh talent or can work for other media outlets. Another innovative model that the industry could follow to overcome this declining phase is the Customization of Papers. With this idea, the technology would be used in printing customized pages incorporated and illustrated with lots of ads for the readers or just printing hyper-local editions of their papers in regions where the newspapers are greatly acknowledged. The industry adopting any of the new business models should also adopt a system of self regulation in its working. The self regulation being free from any sort of legal problems and political interference, grants the industry with a supreme power to express the views, but also a set of rules that keep the edito rs highly committed to the highest possible ethical standards (Leurdijk, et al., 2012). Conclusion In the midst of the crippling value of newspapers and declining numbers of the readers, it is quite pivotal that the industry adopt a number of measures to attain its position back in the society. Newspaper, being like a guiding light to the igniting minds of the young generation and the most affirmative source of reliable information for the ones who cannot afford the other exorbitant sources, has got a lot of potential to get back to its readers. Although, technology has revolutionized the printing and publishing sector both in quality and speed, yet it is posing a major threat to the future of this industry. The regulation to the press is only tolerable when it is up to the words, but when the government and other external agencies began to regulate the ideas of the publishers then the existence of democracy is being questioned. Hence, both technology and regulation should only be incorporated when they are proving as a beneficial asset to the industry. Bibliography Africanus, D. Diedong, L., 2013. Covering Health Issues: The Role of Newspapers in Ghana. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, June, 3(12), pp. 1-6. AJR Team, 2008. The Elite Newspaper of the Future. Philip Merrill college of Journalism, October/November. Dodge, J., 2006. Electronic Ink puts indelible stamp on newspapers. Electronic Ink puts indelible stamp on newspapers, 13 December. Fan, Y., 2012. Ownership Consolidation and Product Characteristics: A Study of the U.S. Daily Newspaper Market, s.l.: DailyNewspaper. Grahama, G. Hilla, J., 2009. The regional newspaper industry value chain in the digital age. The regional newspaper industry, Volume 22, p. 165183. Ifra, D., 2006. Business Models of Newspaper Publishing Companies, s.l.: ifra. Izquierdo-Castillo, J., 2013. Between Decline and a New Online Business Model: The Case of the Spanish Newspaper Industry. Journal of Media Business Studies, March.10(01). Kirchhoff, S., 2010. The U.S. Newspaper Industry in Transition , s.l.: CRS. Leurdijk, A., Slot, M. ONieuwenhuis, 2012. The Newspaper Publishing Industry, s.l.: InstituteforProspectiveTechnologicalStudies. Liew, C. K., 2016. Print Newspaper versus Online News Media: A Quantitative Study on Young Generation Preference. s.l.:Academia . Lilistrucchi, L., 2005. The impact of internet on the market for daily newspapers in Italy, s.l.: European University Institute. McClymer, D. J., 2010. Newspapers in Revolutionary Era America The Problems of Patriot and Loyalist Printers. The Changing Role of Printers and Newspapers in the Era of the Revolution. Norris, P., 2000. The Decline of Newspapers?. In: A Virtuous Circle: Political Communications in Post-Industrial. s.l.:Cambridge University Press, pp. 1-27. Nworah, U., 2012. The Impact of the Internet on Journalism Practice in Nigeria. ChickenBones: A Journal, 06 June. Rosenstiel, T. Jurkowitz, M., 2012. The Search for a New Business Model, s.l.: Pew Research Center. Salman, A., Ibrahim, F. Mustaffa, N., 2011. The Impact of New Media on Traditional Mainstream Mass Media. The Innovation Journal: The Public Sector Innovation Journal, 16(03), pp. 1-11. Stephens, M., 2010. History of Newspapers. History of Television.

Class Communication In Multicultural America Essay Example For Students

Class Communication In Multicultural America Essay Class Communication In Multicultural America Essay According to the article, Class Communication in Multicultural America, the increase of racial diversity as well as the rise of new technologies, influenced the media. These no longer target their message to a broad mass, as it was the case since the 1950s, but tend to rather tailor it for specific publics, which are defined in terms of social class, gender, and race. Hence, audiences are segmented, or divided, using these criteria, to provide them with more personal information. By the same token, advertisers are now being sold those niches by newspaper or cable channels, for example. Magazines, newspapers, radio, or television have therefore adapted their communication to this new tendency. They are trying to reach racial and cultural minorities that are growing and represent an interesting market. These media are mainly paid through advertising and corporations are aiming for these subgroups in order to generate profit. Thus, advertisers are no longer being sold space or time to channel their message, but rather the number of persons in a given niche, as well as the characteristics linked to their class. According to the author, this process could be dangerous, in the sense that early media use to provide mass audiences with the same content, which created a common culture. Whereas now, with the rise of specific media, the public is divided in terms of the information they are given. Although it might be profitable to minorities, since they are being addressed directly, the author suggests that it could as well reinforce existing differences within society. The fact remains that dividing people by class, for instance, and then assume that all of them respond to the same characteristics, is a way of stereotyping them. This type of segmentation lacks in differentiating between the members of a given minority whom might not share the same language or culture, as it can be the case for the Asian one. In my opinion, and as said in the article, segmentation truly results from financial decision, made in order to reach audiences that could generate profit. However, the author writes that media specially targeted for minorities might prevent them from learning or accessing the mainstream culture. It seems to me that people from Latinos minorities, for example, are very attached to their culture and their language and are therefore great consumers of Spanish programs or magazines. Nevertheless, most of them are bilingual and being targeted by specific messages do not necessarily prevent them from understanding or knowing about the mainstream culture. Bibliography: .