Dooms Day or Election Day?

As the map of the United States gets painted in blue and red, I cannot help but think of previous election days, and the poor mainstream media coverage of them. Because the news world has turned into a 24 hour world, the focus of journalism has become who can get the news out first instead of who can be the most accurate in their reporting. This can have extremely negative repercussions. It is not like mainstream media hasn't called the winner wrong before, just for the sake of getting the "answer" out there first.

But what will be this year's main obstacles. ProPublica came up with a list of seven things that could go wrong this election day (or already have).

1. Confusion of voter ID laws.
2. Hurricane Sandy
3. Shortened early voting in Florida (and frusteration)
4. Newly drawn districts' voters going to wrong areas
5. Provisional ballots take a long time to count
6. Voter suppression and intimidation
7. Tie in the electoral college

To me, two of the greatest issues on this list have to do with voter id laws and intimidation tactics because this is discouraging and taking away people's right to vote and have their voice heard. In Florida, voters are waiting for 4-6 hours just to vote, and many potential voters are turning away because of the inconvenience. Many of these long lines or lack of voting machines are in areas near colleges or with a large minority community. Coincidence? I personally doubt that it is seeing as those are the communities most likely to vote for Obama. And in areas where voting machines are plenty, the process is still not running smoothly. Some touch screen voting systems have been caught altering votes.

But are we hearing this in mainstream media? No. I just watch a map of the United States change colors, and I listen to arbitrary numbers thrown around in discussions about polling. Mainstream media is all about voter sanctification, whereas alternative media like ProPublica is actually covering the voter suppression.  

This is such a tight election, and such an important one, that everyone should be able to have their vote count. Because this election is huge. So go and vote. Take an active role and make sure you are going to your correct districts voting area and that your ballot is filled out accurately. Pay attention to media's coverage of the election with a critical eye. Because if there was ever a time to have an opinion or be passionate about something, it is now and it is this. 

I cast my vote, and with my eyes and ears glued to the election coverage, I am left crossing my fingers.

Society of Professional Journalists and Indy Media: My Time in the Sunshine State

Here in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the Society of Professional Journalists is having their annual national conference. Here, journalists of popular and independent media alike have come together to discuss the field of journalism and the ethics behind it. 

In preparation for the conference, I was so preoccupied with my campaign for student representative on the national board that I had not really given much thought to the type of media that would be represented through these programs. I am shocked at how well independent media is being represented here. 

The first program I went to, Crisis U, was about covering breaking news on a college campus. The editor for Penn State’s newspaper The Daily Collegian, Lexie Belulfine, spoke of the coverage of the Sandusky/Paterno controversy. One thing that really struck me was how she stressed being an independent paper from the university was extremely important to the coverage of this case. They had no restrictions or ties, enabling them to phenomenally cover the scandal. 

At my second program about following the money in political campaigns, we learned 5 tools and websites all reporters should know. Most of these tools were independent organizations, such as Propublica, who do in depth reporting. The question “where is your funding coming from?” is very familiar, and an important one to ask when covering politics or even when questioning media. 

The highlight of this conference for me, however, was meeting News 21 Media Editor Brandon Quester. The cantaloupe story in Guatemala? All him. It was fascinating discussing the ins and outs surrounding the interactive and in depth reporting that News 21, student reporters, produce.

Even the Society of Professional Journalists realizes the importance of independent media and its growing presence. It has been out of this world to meet and discuss these organizations with the top people in their field. Now I am off to enjoy the beach for the rest of my stay in the sunshine state!