Case Study 3

For this assignment we were to review the same news story from 3 different international sources. I chose to cover the release of secret emails detailing Osama Bin Laden's burial at sea.

My sources were as follows:

1. Aljazeera - Secret details of Bin Laden burial revealed

2. New York Daily News - Internal emails offer details on Osama Bin Laden's Burial

3. Daily Mail - Revealed: Military emails show that NO U.S. sailors witnessed Osama Bin Laden's secret burial at sea

The Associated Press were able to successfully invoke the Freedom of Information Act to obtain e-mails about the burial of Osama Bin Laden. These e-mails detailed the delivery of Bin Laden's body as well as the process of the burial such as the fact that they followed Islamic burial practices in preparing his body.

One thing that all three articles pointed out was the fact that while the Obama administration has made the promise to be transparent and open with the public, this is has been one of the most secretive operations in recent history. No photographs or video have been released and even the burial was done secretly. The articles all point out that while it was done on a Navy ship, no naval/military personal that were not high ranking were in attendance or knew about it. The Daily News article even pointed out that the Pentagon has said they have no records of DNA results, a death certificate, or autopsy report.

The differences are few and far between. Stylistically they were all very similar and I felt they seemed fairly balanced and free of much political or social bias, but I did notice that the article from the NY Daily News focused a bit more on the actual capture and killing of Bin Laden, even going so far as ending the article with a fairly graphic quip about his death - "Their target ducked into his bedroom, where SEALs chased and plugged him with one shot to the chest and one to the head." It seems like a fairly strange way to end the article but maybe because it is American, and specifically it is from New York, they know that their demographic likely has a much more personal connection with the story.

As far as where the stories were located, it was fairly easy to find them. For Al Jazeera I simply clicked on the "Americas" link and it was one of the top stories. For NY Daily News, it was listed under News and World. For Daily Mail it was under News and Headlines. So all were fairly visible, but on Al Jazeera it was the easiest to find.

Ultimately I found myself surprised by how similar each of the articles were. I imagine this is due to the fact that the information was (from what I gathered) originally released by the Associated Press and so these journalists were all working from the same source material. I found the Daily Mail article to be slightly more interesting due to the extra photos and a few extra facts given and the Daily News article to the be the least due to the unnecessary inclusion of graphic details about Bin Laden's death, but ultimately they were all pretty similar and reflected the same information.

Alone Together

1.I do on occasion go on mini technology breaks where I will go a few days without getting on my computer or watching television, but rarely do I go more than a few hours without checking my phone, so I wasn't sure how this would work. I decided to do my four hours this morning when I was running errands. I had a doctor's appointment to go to which I knew would leave me with a lot of downtime, a trip to the pharmacy, and a few other things. I usually spend a lot of my time during these times answering e-mails, texting, playing games, and whatever else I can to occupy myself while waiting. Instead I just hung out and waited. And wasn't sure quite what to do with myself. Luckily I had things to do and I wasn't just sitting around at home.

2. Other than being a bit bored and wishing I could answer some e-mails and return a phone call or two I didn't have much of an issue going four hours without technology. If I had thought ahead a bit more then I would have brought a book with me. Regardless, I was just fine. The time I spent without my phone or iPad left me with little to do other than people watch and that is what I did. I noted quite a few people doing what I normally do - playing with their phones. Kids at the doctor's office playing games instead of talking to their parents, adults texting or surfing the internet rather than talking to each other, etc. It is so normal these days that you don't really notice how much time people spend interacting with their phones or tablets rather than each other.

Video Project

For my video project I spent some time at the dog park with my puppy, Radar. He is a pretty awesome little dude and has an incredible amount of energy. I chose the dog park because it is a great place to not only get your dog some exercise, but also to meet people. Every time I go there I end up having interesting conversations and making connections with people who I would possibly never otherwise meet. The music is by an awesome musician by the name of Frank Turner. I thought it was an excellent choice because it is fun, upbeat, and the lyrics go well with the idea of being forever young and enjoying life - just like radar.