Blog Post #11: 4th EOTO - Barbara Walters

 Overview

Barbara Walters’ early childhood consisted of a wealthy lifestyle as her dad was a nightclub owner up until her 20’s when her father had to sell their assets to pay off debt according to this article. She alternately lived in Miami, Boston, and New York City. All throughout her youth she was exposed to celebrities and show business which contributed to her comfortability with household names in her journalism career. Recognized as one of the first women to spearhead broadcast journalism, Walters pioneered a different aspect of journalism — televising interview features on A-Listers. She is most attributed by her relaxed but probing interviewing style while digging deep into the questions that the public really wanted to know. Before her, women on televised news were seen as a pretty face that stuck to the light subjects with no real substance.

The Today Show

Starting off at The Today Show as a producer and writer for women’s topics, Walters made her way in front of the camera as a replacement for the “Today Girl” which handled straightforward and light news segments as well as the weather according to this article. She became a permanent “Today Girl” where she became popular and gained notoriety as an on air personality. At the time, the women’s movement was still ongoing but not at its height. News report was still primarily male dominated and because of her gender, her position and significance was heavily overlooked. This was especially seen when the main anchor stepped down and was replaced by Frank McGee, a misogynist reporter who resented Walter’s position as she became an unofficial co-host. Approved by the executive producer, McGee set a rule stating that during interviews she was not to ask any questions until he asked 3 of his own. All throughout McGee’s employment, he made double the salary of Walters. It wasn’t until his death that she moved on to ABC where they officially named her as the co-host in 1976 which was groundbreaking as she was the first female to co-host as primary anchor for the evening news. She set the pace for women in news, as she moved away from only women related topics and ventured out to a broader spectrum that covered hard news and interviews.

20/20

On 20/20, Walter’s interviews took off as she conducted human interest stories on celebrities and dug deep into political scandal packages. From presidents and political figures to popstars and movie actors Walters interviews highlighted many different aspects of the upper class. 

Most Notable Interviews

Fidel Castro (1977):  Walters interviewed Cuban president Fidel Castro as they traveled the Bay of Pigs and the Sierra Maestra mountains where he lived with a small group of guerilla fighters. Throughout the trip, they covered a wide variety of issues including international affairs, domestic matters, and personal topics according to this article.

“The word ‘charismatic’ was made for him. You would have liked him, I would have liked him. Then you had to stop and say, ‘Just a minute. This is a man who does not believe in freedom of the press…does not believe in democracy as we know democracy, had political prisoners.'” — Barbara Walters

Monica Lewinsky (1999): Walters conducted an interview with a former White House intern Monica Lewinsky, who had a sexual affair with President Bill Clinton wich led to his impeachment. She broke her silence on the scandal and revealed personal details regarding the incriminating dress, her infatuation with the president, and the betrayal of the unknown recorded tapes. They also touched upon slut shaming and the dynamic of having an affair with a powerful man according to this transcript. It was one of the most watched interviews with 70 million viewers watching.

“I know I will never have an affair with a married man again. What I've come to see is that it happened because I didn't have enough feelings of self-worth. I didn't feel that I was worthy of being number one to a man.” — Monica Lewinsky

            Other significant interviews with 20/20 included; Muhammad Ali, Jay Leno, Whoopi Goldberg, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Christopher Reeve, President Hugo Chavez, President Bashar al-Assad, Oprah Winfrey, Justin Bieber, Micheal Jackson, and Vladimir Putin.

The View

             As one of the creators of The View, she constructed the daytime show to have a panel of women with "different generations, backgrounds, and views” according to Walters. The show focuses on society, political, and entertainment news as the co-hosts features a variety of different careers including lawyer, entertainer, broadcast journalist, and other television personalities. It provides intelligent debate and comedic relief regarding all things happening in the world. Though the show has recently been a hotspot for controversy regarding questionable comments by Whoppi Goldberg.Walters retired from being a co-host on in 2014 before the show changed directions. Many people have been turned off by the daytime show as it has steered many political narratives according to this article.

Blog Post #10: Collateral Murder

 The horrific massacre done by our U.S. military, was a visual I won’t ever forget in this WikiLeaks video. It’s ironic that the video posted more than a decade ago has a little more than 1 million views but a Tik Tok video can reach 5 million views in 2 days. All our lives, we’re raised to be patriotic to our country as we have firework shows every 4th of July, we recite the pledge of allegiance every day in grade school, and we fly the American flag on our front lawn. I think we find ourselves overlooking wrongdoings by the government when it’s not directly affecting us but to see a first hand account erases a lot of that blind loyalty. Being a soldier is perceived as one of the most heroic positions because they lay down their lives. Nowhere in that definition of being a soldier do we take into consideration the lives they take. We’re taught to believe that the people we kill during war is for the greater good but innocence isn’t black and white. The whole ordeal reminds me of this famous quote by Voltaire.

            “It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets.” ― Voltaire

One of the most unsettling aspects of the video was the way they spoke about killing these men. Much like a videogame that young boys play where they shoot carelessly through a controller at digital people on the screen while spouting vulgar obscenities. The only difference between these two groups was that those American soldiers were actually taking lives. Along the lines of “Got those suckers” thrown together with demeaning curses, the whole ordeal was much like a hunter killing its prey. There’s no justification for running over the bodies as if they were driving over a speed bump. Not only did they take the lives of those men but they also ended up shooting children. They had a clear vision of the window of the car where two children sat and still they shot at the vehicle with no remorse or compassion. In America we pursue justice at its highest tier when there are school shootings and children die, though it seems that the life of a child in a foreign land is not as important.

Blog Post #9: Movie Review - Good Night & Good Luck

Good Night & Good Luck provides a depiction of what it was like to work in the journalism field in the 1950’s where the fundamentals of freedom of speech was restricted to the majority’s voice. Living in a Red Scare era, the narrative was anti–communist beliefs and anything slightly against those values was criminal according to this article. Within the movie, U.S. Senator Joseph R. McCarthy spearheaded the House Un-American Activities Committee whose sole purpose was to investigate and sniff out communists in federal positions and even the film industry. Allegiance and loyalty was everything at that time and the slightest rumor related to communists can have you snubbed at the drop of a hat. This is what was happening in the Hollywood environment as movie executives kept records of suspected communists and would blacklist them from other jobs. Though this was the goal that McCarthy wanted as his outlook was similar to a dictator. We see this as the U.S. Air Force officer Milo Radulovich loses his job as he refuses to disown his family who McCartney suspects are communist. Later he is reinstated after an investigation proves no communist ties. Much like a smear campaign, McCarthy uses half-truths and rumors to ruin any person who questions his methods. He attempted to do that with journalist Edward R. Murrow after he fronted a news story questioning McCarthy’s investigation of Murrow.

This makes me reflect on what it must have been like to be a journalist at the time as alternative beliefs were not only unwelcomed but could lead to further repercussions. I think that we are already censored but during the Red Scare suppression was at an all time high. On some level I think that political parties agree to disagree and have to accept that people have different viewpoints but during war and communism there was only one belief and anything besides that was absolutely treacherous. In this movie we see a tug-a-war with the press in the middle of obeying the government’s narrative and serving the public with the truth of the matter.

Blog Post #8: Press & War

Overview

There’s always been a toxic relationship between the media and the government during war. On one side of the coin, the government attempts to put up a facade of clean hands to the public while the press will always do their best to uncover wrongdoings. On the otherside of the coin, the press can publish half-truths or rumors as factual to steer the public to pro or anti war objectives and the government has to deal with the repercussions. There can be manipulation on both sides but the bottom line is that the public is always being manipulated in one way or another. Wars are a great distraction to what's going on behind the scenes.

Vietnam War

One of the biggest contoverial events that took place regarding the press’s role and the episode of war has to do with the Vietnam war that occured back in the 70’s. According to the government their reasoning for the war was to stop the spread of communism and avoid the domino affect which is the belief that if one country is overtaken by communism then the same can happen to other countries. Though this assertion was called into question by the media and college students who spearheaded the antiwar movement. They believed that the government’s main motive was obscured and not as pure due to the questionable incident known as the Gulf of Tonkin Incident where North Vietnames torpedo boats allegedly attacked U.S destroyer vessels according to this article. The Vietnam war was also broadcasted to the public as it was the “first war on televion.” Many journalists were able to be present during the war as the military provided transportation to newspeopple which worked to their benefit as they got to be alongside soldiers in the battlefield and get their stories first-hand. This led to a massive amount of coverage on the war, although many journalists did pass away in the war as well. From their the film could be flown and edited which gave the public a very quick turnaround time regarding war content. This was the first time the public saw the casualties and brutality of war upclose and personal. There was such resistance to the military as many were forced into the draft and there seemed to be no victory as many deaths occurred for a questionable cause.

Saigon Execution

        A photo broadcasted on NBC News was one of the most influential moments that the media covered which put a spotlight on the savagery happening in the war in 1968. The photo showed the exectution of a prisoner, Nguyễn Văn Lém, in a moment as the South Vietnamese police chief Nguyễn Ngọc Loan held a gun at point blank range to his head before firing a bullet into the handcuffed man according to this article. This was front page in every media outlet and led to even more backlash and negativity towards the Vietnam conflict.

 My Lai Massacre

           My Lai which was a small village in Quang Ngai was believed to be a major communist territory and occupied by Vietnam Guerillas. An American military group, the Charlie Company, consisting of more than 100 men were directed to search-and-destroy the village. All the residents of the village were children, women, and elderly men. Only a handful of weapons were found but the villagers were still rounded up and executed. It was a violent massacre as huts were burned down, women shielding their children were shot, kids running away were gunned down, and many females were viciously raped. It wasn’t until  Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson, an Army helicopter pilot on a seperate mission, saw what was happening from above and threatened to shoot fire at the soliers that the Charlie Company stopped their attack. According to this article, the casualties consisted of 182 women, 17 of them pregnant, and 173 children, including 56 infants. The report of the incident was sent out to multiple higher up executives in the U.S.Government, including the president, with no response. Not until the story was given to an investigative journalist, Seymour Hersh, was the incident uncovered to the public. It let to an investigation where only 14 of 100 or more men involved were charged. 13 of those men were aqquited for all of their charges. The only person who did time was the chief commander who ordered his men to murder the village. Charged with 20 years in prison, he only had to serve 10 of those years. American soldiers had commited one of the most attrocious war crime and only one man was convicted for the death of more than 300 innocent lives with a measly decade served as justice. Trust and patriotism plummeted as the end of the war had no success to be proud of.

Analysis

        As the most broadcasted war, the journalistic roles played a massive impact in unveiling the dark side of the war effort. Prior to this point, the public took the government’s word at face value as there was no other option to believe. Though when coverage emerged, it painted a rather gruesome vision that citizens had never been faced with. The harsh reality of soldiers laying down their lives in a foreign country, commanded by faceless superiors was exposed. Both incidents shed light on two different aspects of war. The Saigon Execution summed the reality of war in a single photo. The My Lai Massacre serves to display the secrets the government tries to stay hidden and the job of journalists to investigate coverups.

Blog Post #7: 3rd EOTO Review

 Whistleblowers

A whistleblower is someone who exposes an organization’s illiegal activity and corruption. They are usually a member within that organization in which they would be able to obtain information or evidence that is incriminating. These organizations are usually government related or high-tier companies who are at most risk of scandal. An example is Jeffrey Wingand who was fired as a big executive for a cigarette company when he became the whistleblower for the Big Tobacco industry. After doing a tell-all with 60 Minutes, he revealed that Brown & Williamson tobacco company was purposely blending their cigarettes chemical with a higher concentration of nicotine and other addictive and cancerous chemicals according to this article. He uncovered that the company ignored the research that proved the added chemicals that they used to enhance flavor caused cancer. 

Smear Campaigns

A tactic of ruining a person or organization’s reputation by calling into question their character and extracurricular activities. By use of rumors, half-truths, or exaggeration to discredit someone. This is primarily seen in politics when a party or candidate wishes to create scandal or drama for their opponent in an effort to create doubt in their supporters. Although it call be seen with big figures in society, it can also be a simple custody battle with an average person. An example of this was when Julian Assange was accused of sexual assault in Sweden as a way to create doubt in the journalist’s character and divert the media and public to those allegations rather than the corruption that he uncovered according to this article.

Paparazzi

They are usually free-lance photographers who devote their time to taking pictures of celebrities, politician, and any other big figure throughout their day to sell to media outlets. Paparazzi are usually portrayed to be bothersome and aggravating to famous people as they often breach privacy or trespass property. A notorious paparazzi case was when Princess Dianna was daily and constantly harassed. She was adored by the public which meant that the paparazzi followed her and stalked her every move in an effort to get an photos of her in which tabloids would pay an upwards of $500,000 for according to this article. The paparazzi allegedly chased her car through a tunnel and in her quest to get away from them she got into a a car crash that killed her.

Blog Post #6: 3rd EOTO - Halftone

Background

Halftone printing was invented in the late 19th century, when newspaper companies began to experiment with photographic screens in order to include photographs within their newspapers. The exact inventor of the process isnt accredited to a specific experimenter as many different people attempted a multitude of printing processes. Though William Henry Fox Talbot was the first to patent the system of using of textile screens in 1852, there are other main contributors recognized for their development of halftone according to this article.

Process

To produce halftone illustratiom, photos were first made into negatives which is where a transparent strip shows the lightest areas of a photo as the darkest areas and vice versa. The negative is then exposed through a screen which has a certain dot per inch count imbedded in it. For newspaper it was usually between 60 to 80 dot per inch. Once exposed, it would then be reflected on a photosensitive metallic plate where it would produce dots spread apart to represent the light areas and closely condolences dots to show dark areas. The metallic plate would have a very thin layer of ink to stamp out the half tone illustration according to this video. Although half tone uses black ink, the small to big range of dots creates an illusion of a gradient range of grey to black to the naked eye. This is the most basic process of halftone that was used in newspapers, though there are a variety of other halftone process that reconstruct the dot formation to convey different art forms. Some use multiple dotted layers of ink to enhance complexity in a picture and others have unique dot shapes to accentuate detail.

Before Halftone

        Prior to halftone, the woodcut process was the primary way that visuals would be presented in newspapers. The woodcut artist would first draw directly on the wood or place a sketch face down on the block of wood then color the entirety of the back of the sketch using graphite or chalk. This would copy the drawing to the wood block. They would then chisel the wood with a knife or sharp object where they didn’t want ink. The raised areas that remain after the block has been cut are inked, while the deeper areas would not retain ink. Then, like a stamp, the wood block would be inked then pressed down onto a plate with paper on it to copy the illustration according to this article. This was a tedious process and would reflect a written drawing rather than an photograph like halftone. 

Benefits & Impact

A huge advantage to halftone was that it enabled publishing companies to print text and images in one single run of the press and also printing a mass amount in quantity according to this article. It was a better and more effective picture for readers and it was also a fairily cheap process since it utilized only a small amount of ink. The ink was the only aspect that needed to be replenished as they would be able to continuously reuse the metallic dotted plates. Unlike woodcut where there was an expense for the artist, the wood, ink, and chalk or graphite. It also offered the public a quicker turnaround time for news since publishing companies didn’t have to use the meticulous process of woodcut engravings to produce a drawing.  It took many different tries for the process to become refined, but even to this day, halftone images have become the standard for printing in newspapers. 

The very first half tone photo to be published in a newspaper was in 1880, when the New York Daily produced an image of Shantytown, New York. 

Blog Post #5: 2nd EOTO Review

Emily Faithfull 

She was a female journalist that spread liberal feminist politics through journalism during 1835 according to this article. She was also a founding member of The Langham Place Circle which advocated for legal reform regarding women's rights with heavy importance on women's employment, and more availability of educational opportunities for girls and women. They also became increasingly aware of the existence of prostitution and overall the need to help those that are oppressed. She was also a part of The English Woman’s Journal which was created in 1859. It was the first monthly magazine to be published by an organized feminist network in England. Their articles involved employment, education, volunteering, notable women, and poetry. This signaled a new era in feminist writing, women’s journalism, and attitudes towards women’s employment. A scandal occurred with a high class admiral and his wife, after where sexual assault charges were brough to light with Emily Faithful. The charges were dropped as Emily Faithful’s affair with the admiral’s wife came to light. Her reputation was tarnished and she was shunned from both the Langham Place Group and the Victoria Press. She would still continue to publish articles and essays regarding women’s suffrage.

Nellie Bly

After submitting a fiery rebuttal back to a writer who made sexist comments regarding a woman's place in the world in the Pittsburgh Dispatch, that same newspaper would offer a position as a reporter according to this article. During the beginning of her journalism career, she focused solely on unraveling sexist principles, showcasing women’s inequality, and even going undercover as a sweatshop worker to reveal poor working conditions for women. She then worked for William Hearst at New York’s World which was a main contributor to yellow journalism and sensationalism. She did an extremely exposing piece on a mental institution called Blackwell's Island in New York. She went undercover as a mental patient for 10 days to experience the treatment of the asylum’s residents. Afterwards, her exposé unveiled the neglect, physical abuse, and overall mistreatment. As a result, the city did a full scale investigation and made significant changes to the mental institution. Another significant piece that she did was when she traveled the world in 72 days which beat the record and also proved that women were able to travel just like men could. She broke many sexist labels as she traveled light with one suitcase and did not fit into the stereotype of women being materialistic and frivolous. Her journey detailed in her book “Around the World in 72 Days” would be record breaking and impactful to how women were perceived.