My portfolio website

Here's the link for my finished portfolio: http://sgoldportfolio.weebly.com

Possible Essay 4 subjects

For my last essay, I am not entirely sure what I'll write about right now. It will be set up as a newspaper feature. I will most likely write about a sports topic, possibly the concussion problem in football. If I write about that topic, I'll have plenty of current events to talk about. There has been a breakthrough in diagnosing concussions, and there is more focus on making sure players don't return too soon to the field from concussions. I could also talk about the dilemma facing the NFL, deciding how to limit concussions while also keeping toughness and big hits in the game. I think that could be an interesting topic for a newspaper feature.

Possible Feature Writing Subjects

For my next essay, I will most likely focus on a topic from my major, political science. It might write a feature essay on the recent election results if I decide to make my essay follow the news. If I want a more timeless essay, I could focus on things that always happen during campaigns. I'm not completely sure I will go that route, I do know that I will focus on politics because it is my strength when I need to write an essay.
I do know that in the next essay, I will have the newspaper type feature. A newspaper style feature usually deals with current events. Because of that, I will also need to narrow down my subject I choose. Some possible ideas I will use is: local reaction to the elections, national results and the consequences they will have, and maybe talk about a so-called "enthusiasm gap," and whether it is realistic. In the end, I will narrow down the subject, but I think I'll focus on something political in my next writing assignment.

New Orleans culture still strong

If you follow this link, recent clip from the 5th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina coverage from CBS News...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFQsQldilEo

Save Charity Hospital campaign

Here's a clip from Why New Orleans Matters author Tom Piazza, talking about the importance of Charity Hospital in New Orleans.  There are talks to tear down the hospital and people's houses in the vicinity.  He talks about the need to keep the neighborhood in place and not let profiteers take advantage of the situation.  A lot of what he says in this clip is mentioned in the book...

Final Review of "Why New Orleans Matters"

      In my final assessment of Why New Orleans Matters, I will look at the final 2 chapters and also the "afterword" section in which Piazza gives the reader an update of the situation from 2008.  My overall opinion of the book is that it is an effective defense of the city of New Orleans against those who felt the city not be rebuilt as it once was.  There were calls in the aftermath of Katrina if not rebuilding New Orleans as it was and instead starting over.
      Throughout the book, Piazza talks about the importance of keeping New Orleans' spirit alive the devastation.  In the last chapter, he talks about the need of a "bottom-up approach" to restore the city.  That means relying on the fact that "the things that make New Orleans attractive to the people who have supported the tourist industry for all these years, not to mention to the people who live there and pay its taxes, is that it is not a theme park."  The most important point he makes is that New Orleans "has always had, and still has, a unique flavor that comes from hundreds of years of slowly mutating culture."  Rebuilding what was there before the storm and getting people back into their homes is the most important thing.  
       Piazza also talks about the opinions from outsiders to start clean.  He calls it the "top-down approach," basically starting over.  The idea that New Orleans was a flawed city from the start, being build below sea level, too many poor people, etc.  Piazza discredits this viewpoint a lot during the final pages of the book, talking about the loss of one of the most unique cities in the world.  The uncertainty of the future is apparent when realizing the book was written mere months after Katrina.  He provides an "afterword" section from 2008 that updates the reader on New Orleans.  Some good has been done, but he talks about the issues of demolishing affordable housing projects that housed so many, and not building anything to replace them.  Also, he talks about the few attempts from the federal government to get involved.  He voices his frustration about the fact that the devastation from Katrina was a man-made disaster.  The hurricane was extremely damaging, but did not cause the flooding, the faulty levee system was to blame.  He mentions that the work to fix the levees have been patchwork and is opened up for another disaster down the road.  
       Why New Orleans Matters is a great book for someone who loves the city of New Orleans, an affirmation of the importance of the city.  For someone who has never thought much about New Orleans, except when seeing the coverage of Katrina 5 years ago, reading this book is a great way to learn about the unique style of the city.  The people of New Orleans have a distinct viewpoint on life: enjoy today, you don't know what's going to happen tomorrow.  

Why New Orleans Matters, Up to Part II

        Continuing through the first half of Why New Orleans Matters, Piazza talks a lot about the unique experiences one can enjoy in New Orleans.  He talks about great clubs to go to, the excellent local restaurants, and many uniquely New Orleans things to do while you're there.  In Chapter 5, Piazza lays out the dichotomy when he says, "New Orleans is a city of elegance, beauty, refinement, and grace.  It is also a city of violence, poor education, and extreme poverty of a type that you can't imagine if you haven't actually seen it."  Like in many parts of America, there is an obscene difference between the wealthiest citizens and the poorest citizens of New Orleans.  "In New Orleans, you can walk out the front door, if it has a door, of a house that is falling down, in a neighborhood full of such houses, and walk five blocks and stand in front of mansions that people from around the world save their money and spend their leisure time to travel and see."
        In regards to the role of government, Piazza simply says, "New Orleans suffers from a level of official corruption and ineptitude and mismanagement that is as astonishing as the poverty."  It is obvious with the many problems the city has that it is a "tangled web" of other problems that cause the problems.
        The first part of Why New Orleans Matters gives readers who have never been there a close-up view of the city.  A lot of the truly unique aspects of New Orleans, such as the importance of Mardi Gras to the citizens, as well as the not-so-pleasant aspects of the culture.  It has been a very enjoyable book to read, and I'm looking forward to get to Part II.

Talk of the Town Essay Ideas

For the next essay assignment, I am not sure specifically what I'll focus the writing on.  Most likely, I will focus on the recent coverage of Bridgewater State in the local papers.  In the last couple of weeks, the school has been on the front pages of the Brockton Enterprise in not the most positive light.  Initially focused on the late-night skirmishes involving trips to Providence and most recently interviewing Bridgewater residents about off-campus parties that are bothering the locals.  I think it'll make an interesting topic to talk about if I interview different students about their reactions to the school's current perception in the local newspapers.

Why New Orleans Matters, continued...

      The next couple of chapters in Piazza's Why New Orleans Matters focus on the music of New Orleans, which is vital to the spirit of the city.  Piazza's love of jazz music, and a lot of other styles of music in New Orleans is apparent in the way he first went to New Orleans, to go to Jazz Fest.  Live music is a way of life in New Orleans.  It can be heard all over the city.  It even is heard at traditional funerals, in which Piazza explains how the band starts of solemnly, then speeding up the march and going into a swing-type march with the loved ones of the deceased dancing (among others who join the procession).  It is a uniquely New Orleans tradition of honoring the deceased and the living enjoying one's time on earth.
       The chapters were mainly about the music of New Orleans and how it is such a part of the city.  It is enjoyable reading about the authors love of the music of New Orleans.

Comments on "Why New Orleans Matters"

          So far for the book club assignment, I have read the first two chapters of Tom Piazza's Why New Orleans Matters.  The book was written in 2005, shortly after Hurricane Katrina struck.  Piazza introduces the book with details of the situation after the Katrina occurred and the devastating effect of the levees breaking.  The sense of frustration is apparent when he mentions that for years experts were sounding the alarm over the vulnerability of New Orleans to a massive storm rupturing the levee system there.  Piazza mentions early on that experts were talking about when the levees would break, not if they would.
          The early chapters focus on the author's beginnings in New Orleans.  He then looks at the troubles the city has, but mentions that people love the city, warts and all.  This is mainly because of the unique culture New Orleans has.  The people there, along with the music and food, create a culture that isn't seen anywhere else in the world.  Early on in the book, Piazza has introduced his favorite city, and explains effectively to outsiders how important New Orleans culture is, and why it is so vital to keep alive.  
          When reading this book five years after Hurricane Katrina, it is important to put the book in its proper context.  There were many uncertainties facing New Orleans after the storm.  Would the city ever be the same?  Would people come back to visit knowing of the death and destruction that occurred?  Thankfully, many people have returned to the city they love, but there are still many more that were displaced.  The positive aspect of reading the book five years later is the ability the reader has to appreciate how the beloved city has responded to the multitude of problems it faced then, and still does to this day.
 

Specifics of a Profile

        In the Featured Writing book, the section on "The Profile" contains different elements of effective profile pieces in magazines or newspapers.  My focus was mainly on magazine profiles because of the essay I'll write with be in that form, longer and more detailed than a simple interview you will see in a newspaper.  The definition stated in the textbook stresses that depth is the major ingredient of a well-written, interesting profile.  
        The amount of depth a profile piece has will determine how interesting, or not, the piece is.  With the proper amount depth, people will get to know the person you're writing about.  "Depth" is achieved in a profile when the writer researches and observes the subject.  A writer needs strong interviewing skills in order to describe the subject.  A way to have productive interviews is to research the person thoroughly, know the basics before the interview takes place, and be able to get interesting answers that will form the foundation of a successful profile.