Review: The Camera Never Blinks: Adventures of a TV Journalist

By Joshua Spaman

The Camera Never Blinks: Adventures of a TV Journalist

William Morrow & Company Inc.

April 1, 1977

Page Count: 320

Price: $5.90 - $12.99

Wayne State University

COM 2100, April 10, 2018

Before Dan Rather became a correspondent for the news station CBS, he began his roots in broadcast journalism in a small town in Texas. Rathers would find himself reporting on controversies from all levels of government, even one that would be remembered as Watergate in history.

Rather’s journey began in his hometown of Huntsville, Texas. Here he attended Sam Houston State Teachers College, where he would meet a man who would teach him a lesson he would never forget, said Rather.

Within many chapters of The Camera Never Blinks: Adventures of a TV Journalist, Rather brings the audience back to lessons he learned from this man, Hugh Cunningham. While it may have become somewhat repetitive, it reinforced the importance of the lesson he learned.

“He required us, in class, to repeat out loud the journalist’s creed: ‘A public journal is a public trust,’” said Rather. This was one the lessons that Cunningham taught the students at the college, one that was brought up in later chapters of the book as well.

With the way the book was often written, it seemed to follow the style in which an interview may have followed. Rather wrote in a way that seemed to be a recount of events after having been proposed a question, almost like he recalled anecdotes for a story.

“From the start out goal was to film an interview with the Democratic nominee,” said Rather. This was in reference to an interview with John Kennedy after he had been nominated to be the President in 1960. The way in which Rather wrote about it seemed so casual, as though it was an expectation of the day. 

“I just cut through the traffic and squeezed in front of him with a mike,” said Rather, “The security people tried to brush us out of the way but Kennedy stopped.” Many would never have even dreamed of being able to have a one-on-one interview with the nominee for the a position such as the President, yet Rather treated it like any other subject.

On another face this can also be evident of what Rather acted on to be considered a good journalist. 

“One of the rules of journalism is, you never report your hunches,” said Rather, “doing so can prove fatal.” In reference to weighing the decision of staying put over the weekend to wait on a tropical storm to get closer to the shore, Rather had to make the call to send a team out. The decision to potentially be able to track the storm on the station’s radar could prove pivotal in gaining notice for the storm, however he could not guarantee that his hunch was right.

“This is actual scale, there’s the state of Texas, one inch equals fifty miles,” said Rather, “The storm actually covered much of the Gulf of Mexico.”

“Carla struck the coast early Monday morning,” said Rather, “The Weather Bureau said later that strong early warnings had minimized the loss of life.” His reporting and persistence to get the information the public as soon as possible prevented a potentially catastrophic disaster.

One of the most notable stories that Rather covered during his time as a reporting journalist was the Watergate scandal.

“We had him on the record as saying, in general, that he thought reporters looked at him, quote, with hatred in their eyes,” said Rather. Aside from the interesting contradicting statement in this sentence, Rather was well aware of the issues many journalists faced trying to uncover the story.

“What’s a bad story?” said Rather.

 “Ehrlichman said, ‘A story that’s dead-ass wrong. And you’re wrong ninety percent of the time,” said Rather.

This exchange was in regards to stories being written about Nixon’s potential issues in how he came to office. Many times issues arose with the fact that he did not know Richard Nixon well enough, an issue shared by many other reporters, said Rather.

Rather’s autobiography takes the reader through his many experiences through broadcast journalism, starting from his roots and leading up to his work with the CBS station. He retold stories that would lead many readers to recount the versions they understood from the perspective of the reporter.

“For the working reporter, what is the most important thing,” said Rather, “don’t let the bastards scare you.”

Warren Resident Pursues Passion for Writing

By: Joshua Spaman

Wayne State University

COM 2100, Jan. 27, 2018

The term “scientific journal” scares many readers off, causing them to believe the content may not affect them or that they will not understand it. Topics covered in them may affect people at home more than they realize however, such as veterinary journals.

Laura Ahee, 23 year old student at Wayne State University is one of many who writes for these journals. Her interest in veterinary sciences began at a young age, commonly found with the neighbor’s dog. Her father, Robert Ahee, said that even though the dog once bit Laura, she still adored the it regardless. Laura Ahee’s interests in this field took her to enroll in the veterinary technician program at Macomb Community College, with her goal to become a licensed veterinary technician. After obtaining her associate’s in applied sciences with a concentration in veterinary sciences, she transferred to Wayne State University, changing her major to journalism. She said that this change was because she became apprehensive of the field, based on personal and other’s experience.

Ahee’s interest in journalism spurred from a passion for writing, one that was noticed since she was a child. Her friend, Joshua Corrin, said, “It is awesome that she does was she loves.” Ahee’s penmanship has helped her write many short stories, and even a novel or two.  “She hopes to have one of her novels copyrighted and published soon,” her father said, “She also has a list of short stories she has written.” 

Ahee’s writing does not solely fit in with her personal writing, it also flows into her veterinary work. “Laura’s writing can be quite graphic,” her sister, Jacqueline Ahee said, “She is able to adapt her writing to suit animals she writes about.” Her journal writing is something she said she aspires to continue in for her career in journalism.

Ahee’s is currently employed at Banfield Pet Hospital in Roseville, MI. “I love working with the animals at the hospital,” said Ahee, “Although sometimes they do need to be muzzled or pee on me.” Aside from the cases of the patients being a bit lively, Ahee seems to love her working with animals.

Aside from her work and academic life, Ahee’s home life is one she happily recounted. “Our home is a joyful one,” said Robert Ahee. He said, “The girls are always in the kitchen cooking and trying new recipes.”

Laura is not only a gifted writer, but also a gifted baker. “Her cakes are like works of art,” her father said. Laura even said, “One time my co-worker took my pen hostage for baked goods.” With her talents, she will surely make her mark on the world.

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New Livonia Development on Plymouth road

By: Joshua Spaman

Wayne State University

Com 2100, March 5, 2018

The Livonia City Council has moved a site plan for the addition of a commercial building on Plymouth road and Tech Center Drive to the regular council meeting to push for a vote. This plan will also expand the shopping center existing by adding additional room for retail.

The shopping center chosen for this development houses a Red Lobster alongside Plymouth as well as a commercial shopping center currently occupied by a Dunham’s Sports and a Big Lots. 

“We want to renovate the shopping center,” said Ghassan Abdelnour, “in order to give it a facelift.” Abdelnour is the architect behind the plans, working alongside Frank Oabaja on this development.

The developers have been approached by competitors already; such as bagel shop and a fitness gym, said Oabaja. With the additional building, there will be room for three separate entities, two focused on business and the other for retail. 

Support for the project was voiced by several of the council members. “The new development is compatible with the current market” said Brandon M. Kritzman. He also complimented the design’s “sleekness”, as well as the choice of 360 architecture with the design being the same around the entire building.

“The potential business would have big impact” said Laura Toy, “and I am glad we are moving away from the Livonia brown!” Toy is the city council president as well as owning a business on Six Mile and Farmington.

“I am concerned the new development might block the current businesses from receiving traffic” said Toy. Her concerns were based on similar developments, where small strips of commercial buildings were placed forward on a lot, obscuring the view of the establishments further back. A sign to list all of the businesses in the lot would be essential, she said.

Another item of concern was the lot’s parking availability. There is not a heavy demand on the spaces, with the Red Lobster being the primary user of them, but the addition of the new building, as well as expansion of the existing center, will require for some to be removed.

“What kind of parking would be required,” said Scott Bahr, “The additions could have a multiplying effect on the demand.” Bahr’s concerns were based on with the addition of the buildings, as with the new potential businesses, a heavier demand could be placed upon the parking spaces. There might not be the same excess of parking, he said.

“Right across the street has potential for development” said Kathleen McIntyre. This area of interest has plenty of vacancy for additional commercial additions as well as no current lots besides a fitness center further down the street, along with a White Castle and two banks. 

Another concern was voiced regarding the timeliness in which the development would be finished. A similar development was begun at Farmington and Plymouth road, which promised to be opened in 2017, however it still remains under construction.

“What kind of timeline would we be looking at?” said Toy, “There is not always follow-through with these promises.” 

The project would hope to begin late this year, said Oabaja. 

After each council member spoke on their thoughts, the decision was made to move the item to the regular council agenda in order for it to be pushed to a vote. “We thank you for your business in Livonia.” said Toy.

The vote for the plan’s approval will take place at the next city council meeting on March 12. It is expected to receive support from the council and be passed.

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2. The argument that the world consists of numbers to its bare essence goes far back in history, often times even being seen in discussions dating back to the first recorded occurrence of numbers. Philosophers tend to see the world to be made up of something beyond mortal comprehension, which could support why Pythagoras chose to denote the bare materials of world creations as numbers. They are a man-made creation, which would be something that people could then grasp an understanding of. There is no true history to them, they have been an invention of man, used solely by man, and were only intended for man. Pythagoras often saw numbers solely for their mathematical uses rather than their social or philosophical uses, “The Pythagoreans recognize only one kind of number, mathematical number, but they say that it is not separate, but perceptible things are made up of it” (103). This would contrast the idea of them being a building block of the world since he would often only see them as mathematics. If he only saw the numbers for math uses, then how would he have applied them to the world? It could be argued that he saw the world as an endless mathematical equation that could not be solved by mortal means, however this would then bring up questions regarding why the numbers were chosen in the first place. Would this mean that every entity in the perceivable world has a purpose that it must fulfill, as based on the numbers that its fundamental essence is based upon? If not this, then the claim that all numbers exist in musical harmony brings forth prompts of how the numbers often seen as a pattern in music could show that the whole of the world flows inside a symphony. This could be supported by the idea that man has always been able to facilitate people to organize and work alongside one another, leading to people functioning almost as a coherent song. However, this line of thinking would require a bit more inquiry as to Pythagoras’ musical background to see how much basis he truly held with it.

3. The first of Heraclitus’s saying that will be examined is “…the universe is for those who are awake is single and common, while in sleep each person turns aside into a private universe” (38), and the second being “They tend away from that with which they are in most continuous contact” (38). The first quotation from him deals with the idea of the collective unconscious, a world privy to none, yet accessed by all. The idea he presents from the start seems to be that everyone experiences the same reality every day, not seeing anything differently from one to the other. This can be seen as a continuous understanding between all of mankind, as people tend to perceive the world the same as others see it, however this may not always necessarily be true. He notes that the universe is common, whilst they are awake, which would indicate that people can see the universe differently separate from the one that can only be seen during sleep. Heraclitus argues that the world of dreams is one only experienced by the person who dreams it, something many can accept with relative ease. It would be difficult to imagine somebody else having the same nightmare as one another, or having a paralleled fantasy in their dream, simply because not everyone would think or wish for the same thing. The second quote deals with an idea of people choosing to shy away from that which they are most familiar with. Almost all people try to keep a supposed “continuous routine”, as much of a repetition as that is. This idea is one that not everyone can keep consist however, the world is ever changing which naturally invites chaos into their daily lives. In turn, people would naturally be afraid of the idea of consistency as it is something that they do not have any, or extremely little experience of. These two quotes share a common theme of acting upon people’s natural unconscious desires. Both show that people will naturally perceive the world differently, one based on a desire to see change whilst the other is based on a way of seeing. Neither is incorrect, both act as fundamental blocks for the other to surface upon.

5b. The Atomists had some of the closest understandings to modern realizations of the core constructs of the world. They understood that everything has similar core essences, referred to as atoms in modern sciences, however they had varying pathways to comprehending how they functioned or came to be. One of their key searches to prove the idea of a singular core-essence was the idea of how things would move from place to place. For something to move into an empty space, there has to be nothing in the new spot, this would be considered a void in their understanding. Of course, in modern day science it is understood that atoms are everywhere so there is no true void except where there is no matter, however for the Atomists this idea would be thought upon later. Their key argument was that, “…that without void it is inconceivable that there could be such a thing as change of pace…” (173). This understanding was interesting to think about in terms of molecular understanding as they had already grasped that a void was required for objects to move into a new spot, otherwise as they noted later objects could be infinitely stacked upon one another, removing all understanding of individual identity. This is quite similar to the idea of teleportation and how people would fear that if they were moved to a spot that was previously occupied by another entity, would they be assimilated into the latter? Without this foundation of a building block that supports all existence, people would truly be able to merge in and out of other entities without restriction otherwise. The fact that man cannot preform this would indicate that there must be something that refuses to give way in the fundamental build-up of all matter. As demonstrated in the lecture previously, people cannot move into a table if it is already there, we are stopped by the initial build or construct which will not permit us to enter said space. The Atomists founded their beliefs upon this ideal and would lay the foundation for much of modern day sciences. 

6. The thought process of how objects do not truly exist is one that often sends people into a dumbfounded state. How could things not exist if we not only interact with them every day but also are able to clearly envision and concept them in our minds? The only issue with this is that Gorgias’ argument isn’t exactly far off if taken in the perspective that he holds that if objects did exist, man could not express their existence. He mainly focuses on the idea that objects cannot be brought into reality if they are thought of, as one of the examples brought up in the book denotes, “For it is not the case that if one thinks of a man flying or a chariot being driven in the sea” (235). What Gorgias most likely intended to express with ideas such as these is not that objects truly have no form, but rather that the objects one perceives in their own mind are not truly what is seen in the real world. Everyone experiences the world in their own cognitive format, be that similar to the collective masses’ interpretation or not, it is all a matter of how man communicates with one another and interacts with it. The idea does hold some falsehood however, as Gorgias claims that things cannot be expressed to one another due to their lack of existence. He holds steady that objects truly do not exist, which is something that can be argued, however if they did exist then how would man not be able to communicate this fact to one another? If one interacts with an object, then shares it with another to interact with as well, then is that not communication and mutual understanding of its existence in totality? The argument he brings forth only serves as a blockade to prevent people from understanding material existence for the reality they perceive, rather than conceiving the truth behind how existence functions. In my opinion, Gorgias seems to be similar to the people who would always argue with something just for the sake of putting up an argument. He does not wish to find any truth or apply an observation to a phenomenon, rather he only intends to set back man in its search for the truth behind the universe. However, this is just one opinion, not the truth of his ideals.

Student Organization Inspires Change in Detroit

By: Josh Spaman

Wayne State University

COM 2100, Feb. 8, 2018

Community impact is in facets of people’s daily lives, but many do not know what is happening. A group of Wayne State University students seeks to change this by inspiring students and locals through the sharing stories of individuals leading change.

This group belongs to an organization known as TedxWayneStateU, a community-run event focused on bringing a similar experience to that of TED talks. These talks allow speakers to engage with the audience and share ideas with topics such as game changers.

“A GAME CHANGER has new and different ideas that stand from the crowd. This person has an idea that completely changes the way a situation develops.” according to the pamphlet for the event.

The event began with an introduction given by a member of the student group. After introducing the organization and the topic for the evening, she introduced the first speaker, Annmarie Cano.

“I want to focus on having people be good to each other.” she said. Cano is a professor of psychology at Wayne State University as well as the associate dean of students for the graduate college.

Cano believes that being with others has healing properties in its own right, she said during her part. As a speaker, she focused on how individuals can assist in people’s healing more than medicine can, through a concept known as emotional validation. 

Forms of this that she brought up were gratitude, recalling a time when the person was able to provide support, and listening to be aware of one’s own feelings.  “With practice, we can regain this attention.” Cano said. 

Another keynote speaker during the first half was Tonya Fitzpatrick, a lawyer and travel blogger. She opened her own travel agency to connect cultures through meaningful travel, Fitzpatrick said. 

Fitzpatrick believes that the world is growing more divisive, with negativity becoming the core, she said during her presentation. Her travel agency was the solution to this, by assisting clients in engaging with cultures through a transformative effect. She believes that travel should consist of three aspects, transformative, inspirational, and educational effect, she said.

To conclude her presentation, Fitzpatrick shared a story from a meeting she had with other leaders in cultural connection. After hearing everyone share their programs, she felt as though her work was nothing in comparison, to which one of the people grabbed her hand and said told her she was “not just talking about travel, but world peace.” she said.

“The music must be the vehicle for connection.” said Natalie Frakes, a violinist and keynote speaker at the event.

Frakes’ change focused on using music as a “vehicle for social change”, recounting time spent in Costa Rica teaching a music class. When asked which, “¿Cual es tu canción favorita?”, her class unanimously answered ‘Libre Soy’,which is the Spanish translation of “Let It Go” from Disney’s Frozen, she said.

One concern about the event arose with information about it. “I wasn’t really expecting much from them because there wasn’t a lot of info on it,” said Jacob Jackson, “Once I got there I was pleasantly surprised.” Many attendees shared similar sentiments regarding the topic.

TEDxWayneStateU hosts events in hopes of spreading ideas to inspire change and continues to impress attendees with its topics and speakers.

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