Forwarding in Blogs

Rewriting is the way of academic thesis. In rewriting, scholars use both countering and forwarding to explain their opinion on a subject. Harris’ explanation of countering seemed very similar to forwarding. In countering, a writer will “view a text not as wrong but as incomplete.” I myself have used countering in academic writing without even knowing it. I usually quote someone and then add to the explanation using my own words. Countering is very similar to forwarding in the sense that you are using another person’s writing to get your point across.

                Techcrunch.com uses this tool (countering) in every blog post. In my last post I explained how TechCrunch uses hyperlinks to quote authors. In their last post about Social Networking, the author, Jay Jamison, starts a sentence off with green text (a hyperlink you can click on to read more about the subject) and then writes his own opinions on the matter while trying to sum up what the quoted author was trying to explain. He also adds new thoughts and expands the quoted author’s views. 

Forwarding and Rewriting

Blog 6… “Forwarding”

2/18/12

                After reading the chapter about Harris’ explanation of conversation, debate, and academic writing, the title of his book made more sense to me. When we are writing an essay, we use quotes from credited authors to explain a point in no better way. We then back that quote up with our own thoughts and opinions on the subject. Harris explains that when you quote an author you are “recirculating his/her writing, highlighting parts of his text for the consideration of others. You are “rewriting”.

                Blogs and other numerous sites such as Social networks use this type of writing quite often. I will see friends post links on Facebook to a certain news article, with their opinions in writing above the link. Bloggers “rewrite” news articles in their own style. Bloggers may look up a news story on various websites or newspapers to get the full story and multiple viewpoints. They then write their blog on the same subject, sometimes quoting other sources or posting links so readers can find where the blogger got their information from.

                Techcrunch.com has numerous examples of “forwarding” or “rewriting”. Throughout their newest post, about Social Networking, there is black and green text. Green texts throughout the article have hyperlinks attached to the words. The first paragraph states “With the pending public offering of Facebook anticipated to be the largest tech IPO in history, it’s an interesting time to think about where we go from here.” The reader is able to click on the green text to go to another website that the blogger read before he wrote his piece. This is the perfect example of forwarding in writing.

NYT vs. TechCrunch

The New York Times and the blog I have been following, Techcrunch.com, are somewhat different. Techcrunch.com is a website which posts stories about innovation in technology. The New York Times also has a technology column that you can read. When you click on the Technology link and load a new webpage, you notice that the New York Time’s layout is bland. The webpage has few pictures, and if any, they are very small. The text is small and feels cluttered. They are obviously trying to make the web page looks like a newspaper, and I don’t like it. Techcrunch.com, on the other hand, is sleek, easy to navigate, and has different pages for different types of technology. There are big pictures or a video to assist the text which is written by people who have had years of experience in the field and technology has become their passion. To find stories and headlines you simply scroll down the page and it keeps loading new stories, like Facebook’s News Feed. Sometimes I prefer watching a video instead of reading a news story, and pictures catch my attention. Techcrunch is currently where I go to hear about innovation in technology.

P.S. The New York Time’s outline hurts my eyes.

Blog 4: Don't fear the Sphere

Jeff Jarvis’ explanation of how the news is prepared and presented to us was spot on (even though some of his charts were confusing). From personal experience, I have realized that a news story is a report on a certain subject which is new to my knowledge and interest. On rare occasions, when I pick up a newspaper, I have found myself reading a section or article that pertains to my interest. I tend to read about innovation in technology, politics, sports, or anything that catches my eye. When I read the news on the internet, I pretty much do the same thing. I’ll also read news stories on blogs and Facebook. Facebook is an interesting source of news because you can share a news story with however many friends you have instantly. I first learned that Osama Bin Laden was killed by browsing the News Feed on Facebook, and then turned on the T.V. to get the full story. More and more people are starting to use the internet as a source for their news rather than the newspaper. Jarvis explains that a story in the newspaper is a finished product. The internet is changing the way news is prepared. In the last paragraph of Jeff Jarvis’ explanation, he writes “So to keep talking about newspapers as if they were news is far too limiting to the discussion. It’s bigger now. It’s more complex. It moves over time. It’s more about process than product.” Sources for news can now be instant, unedited, and less bias through blogs and Facebook, but the press isn’t going anywhere.

The Blog I'm Following

I've decided to start reading techcrunch.com's blog. URL: http://technorati.com/blogs/www.techcrunch.com - I choose this blog because technology innovation is one of my favorite things to read or hear about.

Blog 2: News Sources Used by my Peers

Before I started reading any of our classmate’s blogs, I knew the main source of the news would be from the Internet. Websites that my fellow students visited for current events were BBC, the New York Times, MSN, and CNN. Classmates visited BBC if they wanted to read about politics and current events around the world. The New York Times was read to keep up with sports and current events in the United States. Some students did mention occasionally reading a newspaper or watching the news on T.V. The result from this survey is evidence that the Internet is not decreasing a person’s literacy. First of all, in order to use the internet, you have to have at least a sixth grade reading level. The websites which my classmates visited may have varied in reading levels. MSN may require less literacy skills than the New York Times, but hey, at least you’re reading something. These websites contain millions of characters of text and is available to you instantly and free, unless you feel like subscribing so you can read even more stories. Thompson and Clive would both agree that the internet is a major source of literacy through news articles and videos of current event coverage streaming online. Reading the news online also saves trees! You don’t have to buy a bulky newspaper. Also, if you have bad eyesight you can zoom in and out of a webpage to accommodate your eyes.

(Unit 2) Blog 1: News Sources

                I get my news from the internet. Msn.com is the home page of my Google Chrome browser. When I open the internet I am barraged by a picture reel of news stories which I can click on to read more about. Most of the time the web page I go to after clicking a picture has the story both in text and video. The videos are usually two to five minutes long and have less information than the text around it. The story in text is reported just like that of a newspaper. Stories that msn.com covers ranges from politics to Hollywood. Sometimes when I’m at home I’ll pick up the daily newspaper on my dining table if the cover story is interesting. Also, when I’m home I’ll watch the news on T.V when eating breakfast or lunch. I also watch the news around ten or eleven at night if I’m trying to go to sleep early. T.V stations that I watch include KIRO 4 News and BBC. I go to BBC if I I’m feeling like watching World News or politics. If I want to watch the news on local stories I’ll watch KIRO. KIRO is the local station in Seattle. Sometimes when I’m in the car I’ll listen to KIRO on the radio. My mom always used to listen to the Dori Monson Show on 97.3 KIRO FM. I sometimes catch myself listening to him when I’m in the car by myself. The guy behind the mic is pretty funny always has a respectable view and opinion on interesting subjects. Of all the sources I use for current events, I use the internet the most for news stories.