The interview conducted by Krulwich about the topic of “Yellow Rain” was both manipulative and inherently unethical. The sort of cross examination of both Eng and Kalia about their firsthand account of what they believed to be chemical weapons was uncalled for. Krulwich went into the interview with the preconceived notion that the “Yellow Rain” was nothing more than a natural phenomenon derived from bees which caused him to either intentionally or inadvertently skew the interview in a way that would prove his assumption correct. However, in doing so he effectively marginalized the pain and suffering endured by Eng and the Hmong people. Instead of trying to gear the interview toward pushing his own agenda he should’ve sought out the account of eyewitnesses and equally represent their side of the story in adjunction with the statements made by “experts”. In this way Krulwich could’ve avoided the backlash from readers over his treatment of Eng and Kalia during the interview while at the same time presenting the facts of both sides of a story and letting the reader draw his/her own conclusion. Reporters have a responsibility to uncover the truth; however, in doing so they must try and fairly present all sides of story and displace any bias that they might personally hold. Krulwich chose to value of these doctrines of journalism over the other and that is was caused the kind of response the story received and the criticisms made by other organizations such as the Huffington Post.

Journalists have been and continue to be drawn to reporting on stories within conflict zones due to the underlying causes that provoke the violence. For example; the Iraq and Afghanistan wars were justified by American politicians as a war to end domestic threats made by extremists NGO, most notably Al-Qaeda. Journalists worked overseas as well as domestically to keep the public informed on how American intervention was effecting the lives of the domestic population as well as the progress that was being made by the military. Foreign reporting is undoubtedly important in normal circumstances but is crucial during times of war/conflict.

Journalists have always been confronted violence when reporting overseas in conflict zones, however with the rise of independently contracted journalism (freelance journalism) the level of violence toward reporters is at an all-time high. As stated by Janine di Giovanni in The rules of conflict reporting are changing, the amount of violent attacks on reporters have gone down each year since its peak in 2012; however this is largely due to reporters leaving conflict zones rather than waning violence in those conflict regions. Syria is teaming with bouts of extreme violence and news organizations have long since pulled all official reporters out leaving freelance journalists brave enough to stay with the overwhelming task of covering large regions.

The biggest question that remains is how the situation will improve. Reporters will not return until the violence settles and the violence won’t settle until the situation improves. What we’re left with  is foreign intervention; however this brings with it the question of sovereignty. Who or which countries have the right to intervene in the conflict. If it’s a matter of human rights violations then the U.N. can legitimize intervention but first it must be evident that there are a persistent violations of human rights. Without reporters the only catalyst for the flow of information are government agencies working abroad and international NGOs.

I believe that the investigative report by Ms. Sarah Maslin Nir was flawed and the critique by Richard Bernstein brought to the surface several issues with her report, however, Bernstein writes from a perspective wherein it is nearly impossible to be completely objective. One of the biggest issues that I have with the NYTimes article, and one that Bernstein brings to the forefront of his critique, is the use of Jing Ren’s experience as a representation of the whole. Jing Ren’s  circumstances are representative of some of the worse conditions that face the aggregate of people employed by these nail salons. By heavily reporting on Jing Ren’s experiences Ms. Nir is able to sway readers and while she does this in order to shed light on an issue that maybe lacks coverage her reporting went against the established principles of journalism. By only covering one side of an issue her article held a bias that was clearly evident through her word choice and the way she presented her evidence. For example, Bernstein argues that the adds presented as evidence in the NYTimes article were either misinterpreted or false.

Bernstein’s critique of the Ms. Nir’s investigative report is written well in the sense that he points out the flaws with the article and provides evidence why those facts had been ultimately false. He attacks the foundations of her report by disproving the facts and accounts that Nir writes toward the beginning of her article. However, there are instances wherein Bernstein’s conflict of interest effect the validity of his critique.

The NYTimes published a story online indicating that Hillary Clinton was the focus of a criminal inquiry brought by the Justice Department having to do with Clinton’s mishandling of classified government documents. The headline read ‘Criminal Inquiry Sought in Hillary Clinton’s Use of Email’ driving massive amounts of online traffic. However, the Justice Department had not issued a ‘criminal inquiry’ directed toward Hillary Clinton’s mishandling of classified information but a ‘security inquiry’ about the general mishandling of classified information. The NYTimes was delinquent in revising the misreported information and as a result readers lost confidence in the Times’ ability to publish accurate, verified and un-bias information.

Margaret Sullivan, the author of an Op-ed published in the Times on the 27th, believes that the misreporting was due to the elevated level of competition between news-outlets to report the latest scoop and lack of transparency after the fact.

There has always been competition amongst news outlets to break first on a story, especially one involving a prominent politician. However, with the rise of online journalism the level of competition has increased dramatically. News-outlets are invested in breaking a story first which has caused instances of mis-reporting due to inaccurate information. One of the problems that the Times ran into while gathering the information to publish the HRC article were ‘unnamed sources’. No matter the track record or certainty reporters have with unnamed sources they risk a higher level of accountability. If a source is willing to publish his/her name then he/she is accountable for the information given to a news-outlet.

I believe that, for the most part, trusted news-outlets do a good job reporting the news. To my knowledge it is only when there is a ‘scandal’ that facts get crossed and misinformation redacted. The only possible way to combat this issue is to hold a story until you can report it with absolute (or nearly absolute) certainty. And when something is misreported to revise the mistake and explain why to readers in order to maintain a level of trust and decency.

From a journalistic standpoint I believe that Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras, the Guardian and those involved in reporting the story had a duty to publish the information brought forth by Edward Snowden. With the advent of technology, the use of telecommunications has been crucial in the development of countless industries. The ease with which an individual can transfer information across thousands of miles, essentially the world, has broadened the horizons of millions. However, with all the potential good that a global network could provide, it can also be a catalyst for evil. Many organizations have recruited hundreds of thousands of people in the same way that armies or corporate banks have recruited new members. In the post 9/11 Era the DOH’, DOD, CIA, NSA and a myriad of other government agencies have made the issue ‘national security’ of the upmost importance. The umbrella term of ‘national security’ has been the justification for, as it a turns out, the violation of millions of peoples rights to privacy. The core issue with the ethics of the data collection by the NSA, aside from the blatant disregard for the right to privacy, was the lack of checks and balance. They lied to the agencies that, in theory, should have been the authorizing their actions.

In the opening scenes of CitizenFour a description of metadata and the implications of collecting it on a mass scale  are given. In short, by looking at the metadata collected from an individual, a profile can be made of behavior and then flagged if deemed appropriate. However the government, more specifically the NSA, validated an initiative that allowed them to collect indiscriminately across borders violating the privacy of millions of people. Jacob Appelbaum, in a scene toward the end of the documentary states that, “…what we used to call liberty and freedom, we now call privacy…”. Soon after Mr. Appelbaum equates surveillance to control which I contend is contextually inappropriate. While the government’s actions were deemed unconstitutional by federal courts, the reasoning behind the collection of data (not the illegal collection of data, however, the lawful collection of data from those already flagged) is sound. The programs have stopped a number of terrorist organizations from recruiting, planning, and attacks.

I believe that because the NSA’s showed a blatant disregard for both the unconstitutionality of their actions and the ethical imperative of their inception, news organizations were obliged and had the duty to inform the public. On the NSA.gov website they state under ‘Our Values’, “We will protect national security interest by adhering to the highest standards of behavior”. There needs to be balance, governed by the judiciary, between what supersedes conventional order due to national security.

There are many factors that should be reviewed when entering into a discourse about the polarity that exists between the news that media outlets report and the way that they set their agenda. In the case of Bill Cosby and the allegations of sexual assault made against him, there exists a multitude of variables that play into why and how the publicity of the case was staunched. Before examining the coverage of the case it should be noted that Cosby is not the standard, his story is an example of someone who is undeniably against the norm (to a certain extent). The image and reputation he has built over the past years is a part of why the case flew under the radar for so long. It is the same reason why the first sexual assault allegation made against him was ignored.

I believe that when the news first broke in 2005 the story was adequately reported by the news. They presented facts and title conjecture about the events that had happened and they did not report anything that couldn’t be verified. However, the promotion behind the story was, in my opinion, purposefully weak. It wasn’t until recently that there was public outrage over the allegations made against Cosby and some of that outcry was directed at journalists who hadn’t taken the opportunity to question Cosby of any direct wrongdoing.

Cosby’s situation sheds light on one of the flaws within news coverage. There is a conflict of interest between journalism and the stories that are chosen by media outlets to be disseminated. I believe that most journalists would agree that stories based in fact and given fair coverage relative to the importance of the

From a journalistic stand point, I believe that stories should be rooted in facts and coverage should be given to stories relative to their importance in our everyday lives. From the stand point of a media outlet, I would be more interested in pushing a story at the most opportune time with regards to how much money can be made.

International News: Germany and Sweden Press for E.U. Deal on Quotas for Migrants

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/09/world/europe/denmark-migrant-crisis.html?ref=world

The European Commission, in hopes to quell concerns about the migrant issue, plans to release a proposal that would call on the 28 members of the European Union to collectively distribute the influx of refugees from neighboring Middle Eastern countries. Due to the growing conflicts in Syria, the number of people seeking asylum in Europe is expected to rise.

Germany has stated that it will open its borders to a half million refugees seeking asylum, however expect closer to 800,000. The high estimation is hypothesized to actually help Germany sustain its economic prosperity as the current workforce is heavily reliant on older generations. Greece, who is already struggling with their own financial crisis has asked for 2.5 million Euros in order to aid in the relief. There are a reported 17,000 migrants on the Greek island of Lesbos, which has a population of 85,000, currently seeking asylum. The Danish government has reportedly used advertisements to dissuade migrants hoping to seek asylum. Using tactics closely resembling disinformation in order to scare away those thinking about travelling to the Nordic country.

The migrant issue must be addressed collectively by all the members if the European Union instead of separately. However, many nations feel that immigration laws should be managed by each nation independently. Either way all of the countries will need to work together in order to find a suitable solution for the migrant issue.

National News: Baltimore Reaches Settlement in Death of Freddie Gray

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/09/us/freddie-gray-baltimore-police-death.html?ref=us

The family of Freddie Gray has received a $6.4 million settlement, however, it is important to note that the Baltimore Police Department has stated that the settlement is not an admission of guilt. The suite was settled in order to avoid further litigation that could be costly on both sides. It is also important to note the current time in which the suite was settled, a time of civil unrest due to the targeted policing of African Americans.

Within past few years the issue of targeted policing augmented with the unfair treatment of black Americans has been a hot topic. In the case of Freddie Gray it resulted in violent protests in Baltimore. The amount of money in these settlements has also increased due to the publicity of the cases; the estates of Eric Garner and Kenneth Smith came to settlement of $5.9 million and $5.5 million respectively.

Local News: New York City Health Board Approves Sodium Warnings on Menus

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/10/nyregion/new-york-city-health-board-approves-sodium-warnings-on-menus.html?ref=nyregion

The NYC Board of Health unanimously passed legislation that would require many restaurants to put a warning label on items that surpass a certain amount of sodium. NYC has been very liberal when it comes to Public Health issues and legislation. The Bloomberg administration made strides towards reducing the problem of obesity in NYC by cutting sizes and increasing taxes on soft drinks at restaurants. NYC restaurants are also banned from using trans fats and are required to post calorie counts of all the items that they service.

I believe it is also in the best interest of those in the food industry to post calorie countes and move toward a more health conscious approach. There is currently a health movement within NYC and if restaurants are able to target that growing niche of people it could prove