bgk Posted April 5, 2009 Posted April 5, 2009 Hi Guys, I received the following via email: I'm trying to find college applicants' whose admission is being greatly affected by the economy -- for example, someone who applied early decision to a school, got accepted, and now realizes they can't afford to go there, or someone who thought they'd be able to attend a state school without difficulty, but who's being forced to go to a lower-level school because so many more top-level kids are being accepted at state schools this year. Other possibilities are working adults who applied to grad school programs but got rejected, good students who got rejected by every school they applied to, a student who got into more than a dozen colleges, etc. All in all, I'm looking for students who are being forced to change their college intentions because of the economic crisis -- and if you can help me get in touch with them I'd really appreciate it. If you are able to post something, I'm wondering if you could list my contact info solely as yoav.gonen@nypost.com. Please let me know either way, and thanks. Yoav Gonen Education Reporter New York Post So, if you're interested get in touch!
illinoisellie Posted April 6, 2009 Posted April 6, 2009 Maybe it's just me, but I really dislike reporters that try to capitalize on people who are hurting. All that " How does that make you feel?" crap is insane. Of course, I've had previous encounters with the media in a negative fashion - when I was in grade school I wrote a story about my late grandfather (whom I called G-daddy). The story won a creative writing contest at my school and at the school district level. A reporter called and wanted a copy to put in a story, so we faxed it to them. They ended up calling us back and telling us that they only wanted to write it because they thought it was about a gang/gang activity. I mean wth? Jeez. Sorry, but I had to rant about that. At least individuals in the media know that we are being affected by the economy.
commoner Posted April 7, 2009 Posted April 7, 2009 I'm not sure any one of us could actually prove that the economy is the only reason we've been rejected.
misterpat Posted April 7, 2009 Posted April 7, 2009 I'm not sure any one of us could actually prove that the economy is the only reason we've been rejected. Yeah, it would be really narcissistic to say that. It's certainly been a rough cycle, but there's no way any one can know they would have been accepted in a different year. And I feel like if you wrote an e-mail to this guy explaining that, he'd just clip out the little sentence where you acknowledge the economy and leave out all the stuff that makes you seem modest. Especially since the NY Post is such a shitty, borderline-tabloid publication.
Jitpring Posted April 8, 2009 Posted April 8, 2009 I have a general policy of shunning reporters under all circumstances. Media slime.
ElusiveMuse Posted April 8, 2009 Posted April 8, 2009 Could you imagine how participating in this could come back to bite you on the ass, if you say the wrong thing about the wrong person and it gets printed?
highered_3 Posted April 8, 2009 Posted April 8, 2009 Geez, is anyone else surprised by how harsh some of the responses to this simple request are... Not all reporters are out to get you. Actually, most aren't. Meh.
e_sac Posted April 8, 2009 Posted April 8, 2009 Not all reporters are out to get you. Actually, most aren't. Meh. While they may not all be out to get you, most capitalize on the misfortune of others. Reporters are just fear mongers and slanderers for the express purpose of creating shock headlines at the expense of the general public. From my experience, they will bring anyone's good name through the mud if they think it will advance their career. Further, there is no good way for those who they degrade to adequately respond without words being taken out of context since they have no equal forum to respond. Purely despicable.
lightyears Posted April 8, 2009 Posted April 8, 2009 Sounds like the story was already written, now he's just looking for people to validate his claims. Seems a little shady to me...
ewurgler Posted April 8, 2009 Posted April 8, 2009 While they may not all be out to get you, most capitalize on the misfortune of others. Reporters are just fear mongers and slanderers for the express purpose of creating shock headlines at the expense of the general public. From my experience, they will bring anyone's good name through the mud if they think it will advance their career. Further, there is no good way for those who they degrade to adequately respond without words being taken out of context since they have no equal forum to respond. Purely despicable. Uhhhhh, maybe on fox news. NY Post may be shady, but not all reporters are "fear mongers and slanderers." Geez guys. Read better newspapers/magazines, etc. Turn off fox and cnn.
misterpat Posted April 8, 2009 Posted April 8, 2009 Geez, is anyone else surprised by how harsh some of the responses to this simple request are... Not all reporters are out to get you. Actually, most aren't. Meh. Says the Journalism student. :wink: Seriously though, even journalists with the best intentions can make you look bad on accident. Whether it's from an honest mistake, taking something you said out of context, or trying to fit what you said into their story idea, they don't have to be "out to get you."
highered_3 Posted April 9, 2009 Posted April 9, 2009 Says the Journalism student. :wink: Seriously though, even journalists with the best intentions can make you look bad on accident. Whether it's from an honest mistake, taking something you said out of context, or trying to fit what you said into their story idea, they don't have to be "out to get you." Oh I don't disagree with that....mistakes definitely do happen, despite best intentions, you're right! But I definitely don't think those mistakes warrant the scum-of-the-earth vitriol that a some people are spewing towards reporters.
highered_3 Posted April 9, 2009 Posted April 9, 2009 While they may not all be out to get you, most capitalize on the misfortune of others. Reporters are just fear mongers and slanderers for the express purpose of creating shock headlines at the expense of the general public. From my experience, they will bring anyone's good name through the mud if they think it will advance their career. Further, there is no good way for those who they degrade to adequately respond without words being taken out of context since they have no equal forum to respond. Purely despicable. So now I'm kind of curious...do you read any newspapers, magazines or online media sites, or listen to radio news or watch TV news at all? That isn't asked in a snarky way at all, I'm actually just wondering what publications/news outlets you consider decent -- if you consider any decent enough to follow, that is.
asdfunny Posted April 9, 2009 Posted April 9, 2009 some bias reporting right there,only finding the students who suffer..lol
CopperBoom Posted April 10, 2009 Posted April 10, 2009 Wow, too much negativity.... Poor reporter. She/he is just trying to do his/her job, and found a creative way to reach her/his target. That is about it. sorry my two cents.
misterpat Posted April 10, 2009 Posted April 10, 2009 Wow, how much more negativity can you guys bring? Poor reporter. She/he is just trying to do his/her job, and found a creative way to reach her/his target. If you are paranoid that this is going to hurt you in the end, then don't get involved. BTW: You can always keep your identity confidential when you talk to a reporter or dealing with media. Considering that the Journalism is a sick proficiency and majority of the newspapers are in serious danger, I would hope that one could be a bit more considered and respectful to the proficiency itself. sorry my two cents. I haven't even begun to bring it, sista.
Minnesotan Posted April 11, 2009 Posted April 11, 2009 I'm not sure I understand the broken English above, but the other responders are correct. If not for the news media, we would not have experienced the horrible economic panic we've had to endure in the U.S.! Sure, Clinton signed a bad law into action, but we could have fixed the problem without forcing the executive to approve even crazier schemes. Poor Obama is grasping at straws, all because the newspapers said "Boo!" and everyone became afraid of spending. These vultures blow everything out of proportion and cause mass hysteria among the general public for the sole benefit of their sales figures. Drama sells papers.
orangepotato Posted April 13, 2009 Posted April 13, 2009 Sounds like the story was already written, now he's just looking for people to validate his claims. Seems a little shady to me... Seconded. I don't object to reporters finding information on bulletin boards (though it does seem a little...lazy), but it would have been less contrived if he/she had said, "I'm looking to talk to college/graduate school students about the role of the economy in their applications," or something along those lines. The budding scientist in me just screams biased sample!
cerise Posted April 14, 2009 Posted April 14, 2009 Seriously? In a group this highly educated, people are still spewing out blanket generalizations like this? There a good reporters, mediocre reporters, and bad reporters. Ditto for newspapers, TV news shows, and the rest of it. So yeah, the bad stuff is out there-- but that doesn't negate the fact that there are thousands of reporters working under stressful and dangerous conditions so that we can go about our lives feeling like we know what's happening in the world. It's a valuable service, and those who provide it should be supported rather than demonized. If you're concerned about sensationalism, I'd counter by saying that most people never even read past a headline. It's a bit unfair to blame the media for not being able to get the full picture out quickly enough for our collectively shortened attention spans. Also, to those mentioning biased reporting: she's not doing a research report. She's looking for specific examples that match with the specific angle she's pursuing for this human-interest story.
misterpat Posted April 14, 2009 Posted April 14, 2009 Seriously? Seriously. In a group this highly educated, people are still spewing out blanket generalizations like this? I hate it when people say this. Like educated people are incapable of acting ignorant (not to say we were being ignorant, but that is obviously cerise's opinion). Which, ironically, is a blanket generalization itself. There a good reporters, mediocre reporters, and bad reporters. Ditto for newspapers, TV news shows, and the rest of it. So yeah, the bad stuff is out there-- but that doesn't negate the fact that there are thousands of reporters working under stressful and dangerous conditions so that we can go about our lives feeling like we know what's happening in the world. It's a valuable service, and those who provide it should be supported rather than demonized. NY Post falls under "Bad Newspapers." And I would think that deciding what your story is about before you have even done the research is a check in the "Bad Reporter" column. But hey, I'm not a journalist. If you're concerned about sensationalism, I'd counter by saying that most people never even read past a headline. It's a bit unfair to blame the media for not being able to get the full picture out quickly enough for our collectively shortened attention spans. As you have already noted, we are not most people. But I'm not even sure what post you are repsonding to. What matters is that none of us can prove that we didn't get into a certain school because of the economy; I don't know about anyone else, but I sure didn't get a letter that said: "Dear Applicant, Your application was really promising, but it's a fucking recession! Sorry, brah! Love, Harvard" So, none of us can really prove the recession was what kept us out. This befuddles the reporter's story-idea. The reporter wants a story about the economy contributing to human misery, because that's what is hot right now. "Sensationalism" might be a tad hyperbolic, but it's not too far off. A better idea might have been to contact some Professors who serve on Admissions Comitees. They could actually provide information like, "we only took 15 students instead of 25 this year." But he instead came to us, opening the door for some idiot to make the mistake of commenting and saying "Yeah, in another year I probably would have gotten in. It's totally unfair." This idiot would likely regret making such a self-serving comment when he finally read it in print, but then it's too late. No evil-intentions were necessary to make this guy look bad. So while we may have said a lot of negative things about journalists, I would assume that most of us know that all journalists aren't the scum of the earth. You aren't teaching anybody a lesson. You just look sanctimonious. We are free to joke around as we please.
e_sac Posted April 14, 2009 Posted April 14, 2009 If you're concerned about sensationalism, I'd counter by saying that most people never even read past a headline. It's a bit unfair to blame the media for not being able to get the full picture out quickly enough for our collectively shortened attention spans. You're right, journalists in America truly do try to capture the imaginations of readers with headlines. For instance: Don't worry, I realize that this is just a bad headline taken out of context, and by using this, I'm doing the same things as some reporters do and taking one bad sample as representative of the whole profession. I know not all reporters are bad; I was just using this to break the ice a little. While I may have initially been a little harsh with all reporters, there certainly are enough who, by their own design or accidentally, propagate the bad name made for the profession as a whole. Maybe papers in the northern Ohio are particularly bad, but I have certainly had sufficient experiences and read enough articles in enough papers, (most local, some national, and a lot online) to justify my position as stated earlier. While I realize that the newspaper editors can't do it all, I think it is their responsibility just as much as the individual reporter's responsibility to make sure that people aren't publicly slandered for the sake of career advancement (here I refer to a smaller number of reporters and papers in particular). If you can tell, I may have a personal grudge based on the personal experience of one of my best friends from back home. If you really want to know about it wickedcurves, let me know and I can PM you the specifics. In any event, maybe it wasn't the journalist's true desire to take any lines out of context (I don't believe it was), but trying to sensationalize the plight of grad students in hard economic times is something that should be done with hard investigations of admissions numbers, not through the opinion of grad students who may still hold a grudge against a school, blaming it on the economy without knowing why they were rejected. In any event, that's my two cents.
tkm256 Posted April 15, 2009 Posted April 15, 2009 I'm trying to find college applicants' whose admission is being greatly affected by the economy -- for example, someone who applied early decision to a school, got accepted, and now realizes they can't afford to go there, or someone who thought they'd be able to attend a state school without difficulty, but who's being forced to go to a lower-level school because so many more top-level kids are being accepted at state schools this year. Other possibilities are working adults who applied to grad school programs but got rejected, good students who got rejected by every school they applied to, a student who got into more than a dozen colleges, etc. Now, I have nothing against reporters, but I do take issue with bad reasoning. The only example of a college applicant whose admission was greatly affected by the economy is the very first--everything else is completely unrelated. Even in the best of times there will be "good students who got rejected by every school they applied to," or "a student who got into more than a dozen colleges" (which I actually can't see the connection to the insinuated human interest OR economy angle). Some of the scenarios are just funny: are the Mr. Moneybag Jr.s of the world suddenly flocking to Big State U's campuses and leaving the halls of Hahvahd empty but for the crickets and tumbleweeds? Are 'working adults who applied to grad school programs' crying on their keyboards as they type emo posts about how that was their dream school? I think (and hope) not. If the reporter wants sob stories, he/she should dig up the ones about students forced to accept offers before funding information is available, having to defer a year to work and gain in-state tuition to afford graduate school, or undergraduates not qualifying for federal aid this year because their parents had lucrative jobs up until a month ago--not "I got rejeeeected!" whine-fests.
e_sac Posted April 15, 2009 Posted April 15, 2009 If the reporter wants sob stories, he/she should dig up the ones about students forced to accept offers before funding information is available, having to defer a year to work and gain in-state tuition to afford graduate school, or undergraduates not qualifying for federal aid this year because their parents had lucrative jobs up until a month ago--not "I got rejeeeected!" whine-fests. Well stated tkm256.
CopperBoom Posted April 15, 2009 Posted April 15, 2009 Why don't you all become reporters? You seem to know so much about how to be a good reporter, since you all have been criticizing heavily. Criticism does require extensive knowledge about a subject. Very embarrassing... Your examples are all pulled from the media itself, so this should be a clue as to how little you all know about being a reporter or media or journalism. May be you should re-think what you are really criticizing: The media or the reporters? I am very suprised to see so many ignorant people trying to become educators. You should have an open mind, may be at least an inch open.
Recommended Posts