To begin, below are the meanings of the individual words “recent” and ”events” obtained from the “Little Oxford Dictionary Thesaurus”:
-Recent --- (adj) happening in a time shortly before the present.
--- (adj) new, fresh, latest, modern, contemporary, current, up to date
-Event --- (n) something that happens; an organized social occasion; an item in a
sports programme
--- (n) occasion, affair, occurrence, happening, episode, circumstance,
phenomenon; Competition, content, fixture, game, tournament, race
From the above meanings, I define “recent events” as the latest occasions or up-to-date happenings that have been reported in the news and/or have attracted the public’s attention. I have included in my discussion a few examples of “recent events” as evidences of “the media make news and not report news”.
Last year, there were three journalists jailed over “fabricated” news: (http://www.mg.co.za/articlePage.aspx?articleid=265633&area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__africa/)
In the later paragraphs of the article, it says, “The Kenya Union of Journalists (KUJ) protested the arrests, saying they were aimed at clamping down on press freedom.” This shows that the media cooks up news as they have a mentality that they should have the right and freedom to express their opinions, neglecting the fact that they are actually reporting news with false information that can lead to misunderstandings, regarding the issue, on the readers.
An example of a recent event that I am going to refer to is that regarding “Prince William breaks up with girlfriend”. There was a report on this issue on 15 April 2007 on CNN.com.: (http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/04/14/britain.william.reut/index.html)
With reference to the report, there are quite a few assumptions made, where no justification was made by either Prince William or his girlfriend, Kate Middleton. Many of the information about the couple’s relationship were based on the Sun newspaper.
Eg. “The Sun said that their relationship had strained since William graduated from Sandhurst military ceremony attended by Middleton.”
Furthermore, as mentioned in the article, “last month the Sun published a photo of William with an 18-year old Brazilian student in a nightclub and said he had invited another girl back to his barracks for a nightcap.”
These are often misunderstandings caused by the media. They report according to what they see, which may not be true. This is an example of media making up news and not reporting news.
Another assumption, or rather personal opinion, that could mislead readers is the following from Judy Wade, royal correspondent for Hello magazine: “Maybe she realized the awful burden she would have been under. It’s a life sentence marrying a royal.” How reliable is this statement?
There are many other examples of the media ‘making news’ and not reporting news, such as the article on the “Fans cry foul over Fann’s hair” and “paternity tussle continues”, both from The Straits Times, April 4, 2007. I feel that these articles actually further increase the intensity of the issue, creating the unnecessary feelings among readers after reading the reports. This is something to be discouraged. The tone of the response given is a little too harsh, which may cause misunderstanding of what is actually being brought up.
In conclusion, I think media do sometimes tend to make news. Could it be because they find that they need to also express their views? They need to write about something “interesting” to bring life into the world? Anyway, I wouldn’t disagree that “media do not report news, They make news.”
21 April 2007
13 April 2007
“The Arena” TV Debate: Are Local Students Bad Debaters?
Recently, there was a TV debate show—“the Arena”. Local students from the top schools such as Raffles Institution (RI) and Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) debated with the United World College (UWC) and they have been defeated in the arena. The margin of victory for the UWC was impressive.one example of the score is: 94 to 6. This thus led to the issue of: Are local students bad debaters?
At one glance at the scores, it’d be rather unbelievable that the top schools in Singapore actually lost so badly to the foreign college, UWC. It’s rather shocking. However, if one has watched “The Arena”, one might be really impressed with how well the foreign students from UWC have debated in comparison to local students.
One of the guest judge at The Arena finals commented that “the UWC team had a lot of charisma—they had stronger presentation skills and their personalities shone through…it was necessary to have strong personalities. A strong personality makes it easier for people to agree with you when your point is made.”
In my opinion, I think it’s somehow related to the environment that the foreign and local students are studying in and how the students are being taught. The education system in Singapore is more restricted as compared to that of international types of education. Students in international schools are encouraged to look at different points of views and they obviously do have a more flexible thinking than local students. Local students are used to school cultures that somehow don’t show great diversity as international schools. This affects their personal development and hence their personality.
In conclusion, I do not think that local students are bad debaters. They do have the capability to be good debaters. And we cannot purely judge their ability by the scores. It can be improved by having more exposures to foreign students like those from UWC. I believe that with more exposure and interactions with the students from international schools and the chance to experience school cultures like that of international schools, our local students can develop stronger personalities. With that, their confidence level will rise and their potential would be unleashed.
At one glance at the scores, it’d be rather unbelievable that the top schools in Singapore actually lost so badly to the foreign college, UWC. It’s rather shocking. However, if one has watched “The Arena”, one might be really impressed with how well the foreign students from UWC have debated in comparison to local students.
One of the guest judge at The Arena finals commented that “the UWC team had a lot of charisma—they had stronger presentation skills and their personalities shone through…it was necessary to have strong personalities. A strong personality makes it easier for people to agree with you when your point is made.”
In my opinion, I think it’s somehow related to the environment that the foreign and local students are studying in and how the students are being taught. The education system in Singapore is more restricted as compared to that of international types of education. Students in international schools are encouraged to look at different points of views and they obviously do have a more flexible thinking than local students. Local students are used to school cultures that somehow don’t show great diversity as international schools. This affects their personal development and hence their personality.
In conclusion, I do not think that local students are bad debaters. They do have the capability to be good debaters. And we cannot purely judge their ability by the scores. It can be improved by having more exposures to foreign students like those from UWC. I believe that with more exposure and interactions with the students from international schools and the chance to experience school cultures like that of international schools, our local students can develop stronger personalities. With that, their confidence level will rise and their potential would be unleashed.
12 April 2007
"Youtube has no ethics, it's been created for the sole purpose of entertainment and money." Do you agree?
Many different kinds of videos have been uploaded onto Youtube. There are videos that are solely for entertainment, videos for enrichment, videos for seeking health advices etc. Youtube is easily accessible and downloading of software of any kind is not necessary when we want to view any videos. It's free, and it's convenient. Since its launch, Youtube has attracted a wide range of viewers.
There are videos on Youtube that provides parents with advices and tips on how to deal with medical issues. for example,instructive video clips are uploaded by professionals(eg.doctors) to: aid parents in helpoing their autistic child; explain treatments,that are difficult to be described,visually. This method to raise awareness and better understanding in people on the various health issues actually has pros and cons (i.e. misleading) despite the good intentions to help viewers.
There are also video clips that allow viewers to catch their idol's mtv clips or the tv drama series or any other shows that they might have missed. And this appeals to a large number of young viewers. This is when Youtube is used for provision of entertainment and earn money. Advertisers are in favour of being on youtube, thus showing it's popularity and this meant that Youtube is making alot of money since Google is willing to pay a high price.
Youtube also seems to be an alternative for people to post sensitive videos such as those regarding politicians and religion. I feel that Youtube should be on an alert to ensure that such posts on sensitive issues should be banned so as to not stir-up any unhappiness among the different communities. hence,such video clips should not be encouraged or even allowed.
In conclusion, I don't think that Youtube has totally no ethics and is set up solely for money and entertainment. They still do act against people who violates the law. However, they should still be more sensitive and strict on the kinds of video clips uploaded and avoid issues that are offensive(eg. religiously/politically). And only accurate information should be posted so as not to mislead people,especially on health issues.
There are videos on Youtube that provides parents with advices and tips on how to deal with medical issues. for example,instructive video clips are uploaded by professionals(eg.doctors) to: aid parents in helpoing their autistic child; explain treatments,that are difficult to be described,visually. This method to raise awareness and better understanding in people on the various health issues actually has pros and cons (i.e. misleading) despite the good intentions to help viewers.
There are also video clips that allow viewers to catch their idol's mtv clips or the tv drama series or any other shows that they might have missed. And this appeals to a large number of young viewers. This is when Youtube is used for provision of entertainment and earn money. Advertisers are in favour of being on youtube, thus showing it's popularity and this meant that Youtube is making alot of money since Google is willing to pay a high price.
Youtube also seems to be an alternative for people to post sensitive videos such as those regarding politicians and religion. I feel that Youtube should be on an alert to ensure that such posts on sensitive issues should be banned so as to not stir-up any unhappiness among the different communities. hence,such video clips should not be encouraged or even allowed.
In conclusion, I don't think that Youtube has totally no ethics and is set up solely for money and entertainment. They still do act against people who violates the law. However, they should still be more sensitive and strict on the kinds of video clips uploaded and avoid issues that are offensive(eg. religiously/politically). And only accurate information should be posted so as not to mislead people,especially on health issues.
01 April 2007
"Teenage Years Are the Best Of One's Life." Would you agree with this view?
"Teenage Years are the Best of One's Life." I think perhaps most teenagers would immediately disagree with this view at first sight. So do i. Being a teenager myself, i feel that teenage life is stressful due to the workload from school, especially when we progress from one level of our education to another. It's Tough.
Personally, i would disagree with that view because i feel that teenage life should be vibrant,full of excitement and joy.But it isn't exactly so. Everyday, there's homework homework and more homework. All the time that we have are devoted to school and schoolwork. Furthermore,amidst all these,we may also face emotional stress from various sources,especially when we are growing up. Stressed when we can't meet the deadline of work,when we do not do well academically;troubled when we encounter problems in human relationships,when we feel that we are lousy as compared to our peers in terms of looks,studies or capability etc...
When problems arise and if one feels that nobody cares about him/her,emotional changes can become impactful. They may make teenagers feel dejected and unwanted,as if it's the end of the world. That's when silly thoughts of suicide,self-torture sets in.rg.recent 'trend' of teens cutting themselves.
From all these,it somehow shows that teenage life isn't as wonderful as we think it is.
However,I do agree that teenage years are the best of our life.why?because as much as we might yearn to grow up quickly,we'd hear our parents or adults around us "advising" us to enjoy the rest of our teenage life to the fullest.I believe what they say is true. Only when we eventually step into the society to work then we would realise that these thoughts about how bitter life is at teenage years are just nothing much compared to when we really have to start working to earn a living.that's where we have to really be responsible for our actions and decisions as we never know what might happen as a result of a mistake we make. Stress as an adult will not be just because of work,but also because of your family,finance,social ties etc.Then,we have to really be independent and not rely on other people. As a matter of fact,it's complicated in the world today.
In conclusion,I would agree that "teenage years are the best of one's life". This usually strikes us when we come to realise what we are currently facing are just peanuts! Since we cannot stop the time or turn back the clock,we should make our teenage years the best years of our life and be prepared for more challenges in the near future when we really enter adulthood! :)
Personally, i would disagree with that view because i feel that teenage life should be vibrant,full of excitement and joy.But it isn't exactly so. Everyday, there's homework homework and more homework. All the time that we have are devoted to school and schoolwork. Furthermore,amidst all these,we may also face emotional stress from various sources,especially when we are growing up. Stressed when we can't meet the deadline of work,when we do not do well academically;troubled when we encounter problems in human relationships,when we feel that we are lousy as compared to our peers in terms of looks,studies or capability etc...
When problems arise and if one feels that nobody cares about him/her,emotional changes can become impactful. They may make teenagers feel dejected and unwanted,as if it's the end of the world. That's when silly thoughts of suicide,self-torture sets in.rg.recent 'trend' of teens cutting themselves.
From all these,it somehow shows that teenage life isn't as wonderful as we think it is.
However,I do agree that teenage years are the best of our life.why?because as much as we might yearn to grow up quickly,we'd hear our parents or adults around us "advising" us to enjoy the rest of our teenage life to the fullest.I believe what they say is true. Only when we eventually step into the society to work then we would realise that these thoughts about how bitter life is at teenage years are just nothing much compared to when we really have to start working to earn a living.that's where we have to really be responsible for our actions and decisions as we never know what might happen as a result of a mistake we make. Stress as an adult will not be just because of work,but also because of your family,finance,social ties etc.Then,we have to really be independent and not rely on other people. As a matter of fact,it's complicated in the world today.
In conclusion,I would agree that "teenage years are the best of one's life". This usually strikes us when we come to realise what we are currently facing are just peanuts! Since we cannot stop the time or turn back the clock,we should make our teenage years the best years of our life and be prepared for more challenges in the near future when we really enter adulthood! :)
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