JOUR 3101

By Maia Irvin On Monday, the Commission on Presidential Debates announced that the final presidential debate will include a new rule to help maintain order during the debate this Thursday, according to news sources.  AP News reported that the debate's new rule states each nominee's microphone will be muted while the opposing nominee makes their opening statement for each segment. There will not be any muting during the remainder of each discussion, AP News reported.  The commission established this rule in order to maintain order because the first debate that took place last month was filled with interruptions, according to USAToday .  "This move is meant to prevent a repeat of the inaugural debate three weeks ago when the two candidates, but mostly Trump, interrupted each other repeatedly," AP News reported.  Trump's campaign called the commission biased against him after this rule was announced, USAToday reported. He accused the commission of giving Biden an ad

By Maia Irvin   Preparation for any type of report is important, but it's key for reports on debates. A reporter needs to be knowledgeable of the topics scheduled to be discussed and of the general behaviors of the participants.  For the presidential debate this Thursday, I would start my preparation by looking up what topics the debate commission announced. After I found out what topics are scheduled to be discussed, I would conduct research on all six of the topics.  Once I knew the content scheduled to be discussed, I would research each candidate's stance on each topic. This would allow me to prepare for answers that I would expect each candidate to provide to questions.  After that, I would note everything that I know about the personalities and behaviors that the candidates typically exhibit. This way, if something unexpected happens or is said, I will not be surprised.  During the debate, I would plan to record the audio on my phone, take notes on my laptop and mark time

By Maia Irvin  On October 16, new coronavirus cases in the U.S. rose higher than they have since July with a pronounced surge in Midwest states, according to news sources.  NPR reported on Monday that the U.S. is climbing toward a new peak in cases that could be worse than the peak from this summer. On October 16, the U.S. reported almost 70,000 new cases in one day, which is a 30% increase from the two previous weeks, NPR reported.  Rates in cases are increasing across 29 states and territories, National Geographic reported. Most of those states are from the Midwest and Great Plains, according to NPR.  NPR reported North Dakota and South Dakota have rates of new infections per capita that surpass all other states. According to The Washington Post , this trend could be correlated to the Sturgis motorcycle gathering from mid-September.  About 500,000 people attended the gathering in South Dakota, and some experts believe it contributed to the new outbreak, the Post reported. More than

By Maia Irvin  The New York Times podcast, The Daily, posted an episode on October 14 in which the host Michael Barbaro interviewed Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent of the Times. We talked and watched a video in class about the fact that Barbaro is a journalist who is renowned for his interviewing skills, and after listening to this short podcast, I would have to agree.  This episode was not about anything extremely controversial or emotional that Barbaro really dug into, but the interviewing skills he used were still evident.  What I noticed right away was the fact that Barbaro did not talk much during the entirety of the episode. He asked his questions and then let his guest speak for most of the time, which is good because it gave Baker the space to elaborate on his answers.  I also noticed that Barbaro continuously signaled that he was listening by making sounds of affirmation like "mhmm" and "right" throughout the episode. It is important to sho

By Maia Irvin  California's Attorney General sent the California GOP a cease-and-desist letter on Tuesday after the GOP acknowledged it placed about 50 unofficial ballot drop boxes in California.  On Monday, the GOP admitted that it set up and advertised unauthorized drop boxes throughout Los Angelos, Fresno and Orange counties, according to The New York Times .  The GOP has until Thursday to give the secretary of state's office the names, addresses and birth dates of people who have used the boxes, according to the letter that California's secretary of state and attorney general sent, The Washington Post reported.  The Post reported that the GOP defended these boxes were legal under a 2016 law that legalized "ballot harvesting," which allows someone to turn in a ballot for another person. California Secretary of State, Alex Padilla, said on Sunday that the boxes are not legal under this law, according to the Post. "Operating unofficial ballot drop boxes...i

By Maia Irvin  I think that Hannah Beech did a good job interviewing the subjects of The New York Times article about two of the child soldiers from the Myanmar civil war and where they are now.  One of the biggest things that stood out to me as I read the story was how much imagery Beech incorporated into her writing as she was interviewing different members of this family. Right at the beginning of the story she wrote, "Johnny Htoo lay on a concrete floor. His eyes stared at nothing in particular." Even at the very start of the piece, Beech already had me visualizing what she observed while interviewing Johnny Htoo and his family.  The article then goes into the history of Htoo and his twin brother and their roles in the war. Beech also does a really good job of incorporating relevant and interesting information and quotes from her sources and subjects she interviewed.  Throughout the story, she continues to describe her observations of the subjects, especially towards the

By Maia Irvin  On Sunday, a woman at a grocery store in Braddock, Pennsylvania attacked Pennsylvania's second lady, Gisele Barreto Fetterman, with racial slurs, according to news sources.  State troopers usually accompany Fetterman when she leaves her home, but she decided to make a quick, unaccompanied trip to the Aldi's store near her home on Sunday, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer .  The Inquirer reported that a woman at the store recognized Fetterman, who was born in Brazil, and yelled racial slurs at her. The woman repeatedly called her the n-word, Fetterman said, reported the Inquirer. "There's that n-word that Fetterman married. You don't belong here," the woman said to Fetterman, according to The Washington Post . As Fetterman was leaving, the woman went to her car, and the confrontation continued in the parking lot, according to Fetterman's Twitter . Fetterman filmed the confrontation and posted the video on her Twitter Sunday night.   &quo

By Maia Irvin  New Zealand reopened for the second time on Wednesday morning after a strict lockdown in Auckland, news sources reported.  The New York Times reported that New Zealand lifted the last of its strict restrictions on Auckland after 10 days without new cases linked to the cluster of cases that surfaced in August.  Unrestricted gatherings and public transit trips without social distancing or masks are now allowed, the Times reported.  According to the Times, New Zealand's strategy "is aimed at eradicating the virus with a swift science-based policy." There is a 95% probability that New Zealand has eliminated local transmission of the virus, according to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, the Times reported.  New Zealand's border remains closed except to citizens and permanent residents, according to the Times.  Meanwhile in the US, 25 states reported a rise in COVID-19 cases, CNN reported. At least 12 states reported more than 1,000 new cases on Monday, accord

By Maia Irvin On Monday evening, President Donald Trump left Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after spending three nights there being treated for COVID-19, multiple news sources reported.  According to The Washington Post , Trump returned to the White House after being discharged. He went to the medical center on Friday after testing positive for COVID-19, the Post reported.  When Trump arrived at the White House Monday evening, he ascended a flight of stairs, faced Marine One and removed his mask before saluting the departing helicopter, according to The New York Times . He did not put his mask back on before walking into the White House, the Times reported.  "Feeling really good! Don't be afraid of Covid. Don't let it dominate your life," Trump said in a tweet earlier Monday, the Post reported. Many critics felt his tweet downplayed the effects the virus has had on millions of Americans, according to the Times. Sean Conley, Trump's physician, said th

By Maia Irvin  When it comes to reporting breaking news stories, I think that one of the most important things to keep in mind is that you do not have much time to prepare. In some situations, you can conduct some instant research, but for the most part, journalists reporting breaking news have to gather the information for the story at the scene.  For breaking news stories, it is also important to make sure that you have all of the essential information from the story. This means making sure that you can answer the 5 Ws of the story.  Regarding sources of information for breaking news stories, specifically crime reports, most information will come from three sources. These resources are police officials and their reports, the victims and the witnesses.  I think that it is also important to note that good reporting with these types of sources requires you to complete your own reporting to double-check facts and not just report on what you find in a police report.  One last thing that I

By Maia Irvin  New York City, which holds the nation's largest public school system, completed the reopening of all public schools Thursday morning, reported news sources.  Abc7NY reported that middle and high schoolers returned to in-person instruction for the first time in 7 months. According to The New York Times , students will be learning on a hybrid model with in-person instruction taking place 1 to 3 days per week.  There are new health measures for students including wearing a face mask and keeping hand sanitizer in their bags, according to the Times.  NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio said, "We did something that other cities in this country could only dream of," according to acb7NY. This is the first large district in the U.S. to reopen all public schools for in-person instruction, the Times reported. Abc7NY also reported that the teacher's union said there are not enough teachers to fully staff all of the schools. Due to this shortage, some students are in class, b