Letter – “Google cyber – attack from China ‘an inside job'”
I think it is understandable that Google thinks about leaving China. Although China is one of the most internet using country of the world with a bluish tendency. This country is very important in the future. But Google supports human rights activists what is good in my point of view. The government of China does not want that the problems of the chinese population, wich is caused by the government, are mentioned in the internet. An example therefor is the violent abatement of the democratic development in China. The chinese government can not accept any criticism so they do not accept unfiltered entries from Google andI think they would do everything against it.
Hell-on-earth.com
Task: Write a letter to the editor expressing your own opinion.
Dear A. N. Wilson,
I really agree to your opinion that it is not okay that Google wants to get all information about each of its regular users. Everyone I know who works with internet uses Google and everyone I know uses Internet. So Google collects data from everyone in my social environment and above. The Imagination is terrible. There is no privacy in there.
I share the view that it is very difficult to differentiate false and truth and that is a very big problem because many people collect information out of the internet without knowing if these are either right or wrong. I often notice that my classmates are searching for information in Wikipedia but everyone there can write down anything no matter if it fits or not. The entries often are biased so many people get manipulated.
I think it is unacceptable that not only the entries in Wikipedia also the politicians or concerns use this kind of manipulation and masquerading. It is good that people like inform the users of the internet about this things.
Review: Wag the Dog
The film Wag the Dog is a satire about a purpose of a reelection of the president of the USA who is blamed of perpetrating a sexual harassment. The spin-doctor Conrad Brean (Mister Fix-It), the film producer Stanley Motss and the assistant of the president Winifred Ames have the assignment to put the president in a better light and to achieve this aim they come up with making war on Albania, songs and slogans. The rival of the president Senator Neil with the help of the CIA ended the war. So the team of the president invented a new story about a missing soldier called Schumann with the nickname “Old Shoe” and a folk song about an old shoe. They pretend to rescue him. It turned out that the actor of the “old Shoe” is a convict who had raped a nun and had killed her. They can keep him under control with special neuroleptics. But this medicaments are deplete and “Old Shoe” loses control and the plain fall down. So they landed somewhere and they are in a garage where “Old Shoe” tries to rape the daughter of the tenant who shoot him. But that is no problem for Motss. They organize a state funeral with every extra. With that acts they awake the patriotism of the American population and nobody is thinking about the sexual scandal of the president. But Motss thinks that his effort has to be appreciated and he wants to got to the public. But Brean does not admit that and let shoot him. The public thinks he died by a heart attack.The consequense of all this is a real war on Albania.
This story contains ironic, sarcasm and a little bit reality because this film makes clear how medias can manipulate the points of view of the population because no one would think that a story like that could be faked. Being regardless of the consequences for example fabricate a war is possible and this critique is well implemented. The film is intelligent and witty concurrently and that makes a very interesting film without boredom.
Characterisation – Ames
The movie “Wag the Dog” deals with the purpose of the reelection of the president of the USA who is blamed of a sexual harassment. The three protagonists have the assignment to do everything to put the president in a better light. One of them is a young, skinny women called Winifred Ames. She has a normal height, blue eyes, fair skin colour and short blond hair. She often wears a red lipstick and business clothes. She is the assistant of the president, so she is smart and authoritative like in the situation when Brean and Ames meet the first time and she obeys every order as best she can. She is a sincere person so she says what she thinks most of the time for example her attitude about Motss ideas and she could be invasive. If something is wrong she is depressed for example when the CIA ends the faked war or when the “old shoe” dies. She can work in a team with Brean and Motss whereas the men are having all of the work. She she asks everything before she obeys the orders. Besides she communicates just with the president like in the situation in the “blue box” about the white kitten and bothers about formalities when Tracey has to sign a paper.
So she bothers about little problems and tries to make everything is alright and she freaks out if that does not fit. She needs often help from others.
Alien Contact – Micheal Crichton
Nr. 1) Attitude of members of the US government towards the possibility of alien contact
The members of the government believe in extraterrestrial life and they asked themselves if the aliens have some abilities humans do not have or what are their vulnerability. They think that it is a great experience to meet them and that the population will be very excited about that.
Nr. 2
a) Role of media in the event of alien contact
The media refers the population the speculation of extraterrestrial life and should calm down it by mentioning the vulnerability from the aliens. The only man who meets the aliens in the president so the media is the only way to follow this event.
b) Importance of “media moments”
For politicians on democratic countries are the “media moments” very important because the way how the media presents an event is determining for the reaction of the population. If the media tries to calm down the people the people wont be so upset like they was when the radio play “The War of the Worlds” was broadcasted because this play were very thrilling and terrifying.
A Czech War of the Worlds
Nr. 1) Summary
This article “A Czech War of the Worlds” published on SPIEGEL ONLINE on 4th january 2008 focuses on a hoax that was on a czech live weather channel. On 2007 there is shown up an explosion which is digital released from a group of six people by hacking into a weather camera. They wanted to show how easy it is to manipulate the media images and they have to bring an action at law. Some people see the mushroom cloud and they thought it was a nuclear attack. Many people could fall into panic and so it was a bad idea although nobody was hurt. On the screen is a link shown of the website of the Ztohoven, a member of the group who won 2008 an award for young artists.
Nr. 2) Title of the article
The title ‘”A Czech War of the Worlds” could be chosen because of the “War of the Worlds” from Orson Welles. The similarities are the cause for the publishing of the hoaxes. Both of them wanted to scare the listeners or watchers but Ztohoven also wanted to show how easy it is to manipulate the media images. At both cases it began with a inauspicious big cloud. Another similarity is the panic which spring up while Welles story ended more fatal because more people were listening to the hoax than to the weather channel. A big difference is the directness of indicating to a faked story. In the radio play of Orson Welles were mentioned that the story is not real at the beginning and at the end but at the weather channel was only a link shown but that could be overlooked easily.
Nr. 3) Possible reasons for differences
Maybe Ztohoven did not want that so many people get to know about te hoax and get into panic so he chose just a weather channel as opposed to Orson Welles who published his story on the radio when a lot of people listen to that. It could be that Ztohoven tried to compensate this with not making clear that nothing really happened and that it was just a hoax.
Letter to CBS
Good day ladies and gentlemen,
I have listened to your broadcast the The War of the Worlds. My problem was that I turned the radio on after the introduction was sent so I did not witness that the story was just fiction.
My family and I fall in panic when I heard that there was an invasion of Martians. It was terrible and in my opinion it is irresponsible to tell such a story without making clear that it was fiction.
The whole situation cause chaos. My mother had a heart attack when it was described how the monsters look like and we did not know what to do next: shall we flee or stay. We ran to the car and drove away without knowing whereto.
Can you imagine what a feeling it is when you know that your normal life will never be the same again, when you know that you will die or will be enslaved? It is horrible!
When you are so desperate like we were and you hear that it was just fiction, a joke, you would lose self-control suddenly. Like me!
I do not know what I can do. All I am thinking about now is to take revenge but I guess it does not make sense… It would not change anything.
But I just want you to do that never again. Do not play with the human feelings.
Sincere regards, name
Social networking sides
positive aspects:
People can keep or make contacts no matter how long the distance is . You can get interesting information of people what is very entertaining.
One can publish photos of him or herself and introduce oneself.
negative aspects:
Foreigners (stalker, employer) get information of one which doesn’t want to. If one publish addresses or numbers another one could use them for thinks like spamming or harassment.
People can pretend to be much younger or older or a whole identity.
On top of that people can bully someone.
An approach to media ethics
| Parameter | Definition | Example |
| Public interest | News reports or media contributions should be of public interest and of some concern to the people who are consuming them | Amy Whinehouse’s last escape vs. the truth about the Cologne disaster. |
| Privacy | To save the human rights the private things should be concealed | Maya Schmid loves Scott Miller. |
| Neutrality | No manipulation by feelings or own opinion, only basic information – subjectivity | Man died accidental. |
| Taste | Interest of readers by “tastefull” headlines and style of writing. | ? |
| Truth | Some articles have some information that aren’t right. Their aim is to attract readers with “spicy” information. | Truth story: Pupil was a good friend of a teacher.
Faked story: Pupil had sex with a teacher. |
The Yes Men and HOAX
Comment on the action of The Yes Men:
I agree with the actions and activities of The Yes Men because they show the society how the future should look like: More freedom and justice
Maybe the people feel messed around when they read a fake newspaper of The New York Times but I do not think that this were their aim.
Differences:
I don’t think that their activities make a difference because they are critics and they call the people to make a difference who have the ability to do that but The Yes Men can not do it themselves.
HOAX:
HOAX are messages that are fake and most of the people do not notice that and they spread the fake news because they tell it to friends and family
Example: The New York Times fake of The Yes Men or the Loch Ness Monster
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