Sunday, October 31, 2010

Media Midterm


Hannah Cho
Professor Louis Lucca
HUC120. 2614
October 30, 2010

How Hurricane Katrina Influenced other Natural Disasters.


Forming over the Bahamas on August 23, 2005, crossing Southern Florida and continuing its monstrous damage throughout the Gulf of Mexico and into Southeast Louisiana. Winds gusted to a maximum of 175 mph, enough force to haul down homes as well as push cars through the streets like tiny toys and taking about 1,836 innocent lives. Rain and winds caused the massive levees of New Orleans, Louisiana to fail. This was recognized as one of the deadliest natural disasters that Mother Nature handed to us in the history of the United States of America, known as Hurricane Katrina. Not only did this affect those that were in its path but also altered the history of the mass media by loss of means of communication, media not being well equipped to handle the coverage and affecting journalists in the mist of the storm both mentally and physically. This also impacted a historical piece of the mass media by creating special charity events, concerts and other things of that nature that were televised and heard on almost every local radio station as well as the World Wide Web, setting a standard for charity events for other devastating natural disasters like the earthquake in Haiti.
            Throughout history we can say that the public were informed about disasters, science and climate related issues through the use of newspapers, television and radio broadcasts. This type of communication allows the public to view and see personally through the eyes of reporters of the difficult stories that are covered in time. Before instruments that were able to monitor storms, earthquakes and other such natural disasters, the media were unable to reach out to the ones affected before the catastrophe can occur. Because technology has evolved and we now know that we are able to predict when a deadly disaster may happen through the use of certain devices, in order to be able to warn and secure those who are to be hard hit, the media can now save lives. But we do know that sometimes these devices can fail and may not be as accurate as they seem. For hurricane Katrina we can confirm that meteorologists knew about the build up of this hurricane while it was constructing itself on August 23. This era changed how the mass media viewed these warnings and to get the message across in order to be able to evacuate the communities to better secure areas of the states. This seven day disaster ripped through parts of the U.S like a scissor tearing through paper.
            Communication is the key for the source of the mass media to provide those around us with information on what is occurring. During hurricane Katrina landlines and cell phone lines were wiped out, making it difficult to reach loved ones or any persons that were in the middle of the storm. The media was not able to reach or contact any outside coverage due to the heavy winds and rain that destroyed satellite activity. Calling for help was a useless form of survival, due to the lack of GPS devices that would be able to locate where victims were. As history will tell, going back to the year 1900, the Galveston Hurricane, which was a category 4 (strong winds), estimated to about 8,000 deaths. The media during the early 1900’s were not able to communicate to those in the area about a storm like the Galveston Hurricane to the public before it hit because of the lack of technology. The media was able to only give the public the after math of the deadly catastrophe which was horrific. As the world progressed scientists worked vigorously in figuring out a way to predict hurricanes. One instrument they were able to use is known as a barometer. It measures the amount of pressure in the air. Because a hurricane is formed by warm air flow into an area of low pressure, this causes and increase in pressure which allows the barometer to predict that a storm is on its way. The amount of moisture in the air is another way to identify a storm through the use of the Hygrometer. Massive winds that give rise to the Hurricanes are a warning that a disaster of a large scale may occur through the use of an Anemometer which measures wind speed. All of these factors and instruments allow meteorologists who work with the media to communicate and spread the warning of a hurricane to the public at a particular time around a specific diameter. During Katrina many were not prepared for such disaster because they couldn’t get in contact with any emergency workers without any communication. People were stranded at home or other neighbor’s house, but when rescue workers have arrived, people communicated by writing notes and putting it inside bottles and dropping it on the floor so that others will be able to read it. After officials and the U.S government heard about the issue of the crisis with the communication, they tried to restore the problem by fixing the satellites. These satellites were a turning point in the history of media because we are able to see live views of the events unfolding right before our eyes.
            The Mass Media is one place we turn to for elaboration and detailed information regarding an event. Without being well equipped to handle a situation like a hurricane it may cause the group of individuals that we turn to for such details, to become victims themselves of the catastrophe. Today the media is well aware of how to deal with a situation like a hurricane but during Katrina many were victims themselves while covering the major story. The failed radio and television signals did not help the situation. As Hurricane Katrina ended many reports were being filed that looting and rapes were occurring. Those who had homes flooded were not able to reach for food and fresh water. Rescue missions were not sent out right away to help save lives. Our government was criticized for reacting to this catastrophe with urgent needs. As PBS stated on its website in September 29,2005 “The media's coverage of Hurricane Katrina's aftermath has been criticized as some news reports of rapes and murders in parts of New Orleans appear to be unfounded.” This was false information that was thrown out by law enforcements who allegedly claimed that were occurring after the disaster. Even the Mayor of New Orleans, Ray Nagin stated “They have people standing out there, have been in that frickin' Superdome for five days watching hooligans killing people, raping people.” The superdome was the only place to turn to for protection for the victims. The media instead of reporting these accusations should have been trying to figure out a way to help these people survive. These types of messages sent by the media were headlines all throughout history. People seem to enjoy reading the negatives of a tragedy instead of realizing the positive actions that should be taking place to assist those in need. The media did there part by informing those in the hard hit areas to evacuate but many did not have the strength to leave their belongings behind. Those that were able to receive the warnings given out by the mass media should be thankful that the technology is here to help them because fifty or sixty years ago this could have resulted in many more deaths than there were. The restored satellites were the only means for communication at the time for media coverage.
            Journalists and news reporters are usually prepared for such situations today in dealing with loss or any heartbreaking event. This can also play a role in affecting their mental and physical state. Being up close and witnessing the deaths of many New Orleans residents can cause a mental breakdown for those covering the story. Reporters working for the media during wars in the history of the United States required them to go in the battle field with the marines. This caused many of them to perish with the soldiers or traumatized them due to the witnessing of torture by use of man made weapons. Today the modification that the media made was through the use of tiny cameras which allow us to see footages of soldiers in battle. During Katrina a famous video of Geraldo Rivera, from a major media source (Fox News), in the Superdome showed how much chaos there was during the time of Katrina. The people in and around the Superdome were mad at the government for not aiding the helpless victims in which Geraldo Rivera showed to the world. He helped in changing the media by focusing on the victims of the disaster so that others can perceive the devastating toll that was taken on the community rather than the looting that was occurring. Many residents had no other choice but to loot abandoned stores for food and fresh water for themselves as well as loved ones. The slow response by our government caused this type of action to take place because there was no other means of survival without the essentials of life, which includes food and clean drinking water.
A different perspective about the United States media was reported on BBC news during September of 2005 by Matt Wells in which the article stated “Has Katrina Saved the US media?” He explained the involvement of the government and media to prove to the nation as well as the world about the incompetent Bush administration. The voices of Katrina were heard from coast to coast through the media which presented the horrific devastation as many struggled to survive without food and shelter for days. “Government has been thrown into disrepute, and many Americans have realized, for the first time, that the collapsed, rotten flood defenses of New Orleans are a symbol of failed infrastructure across the nation. Blaming the state and city officials, as the president is already trying to do over Katrina, will not wash.” as stated by Matt Wells who also said “People were still trapped, hungry and dying on his watch, less than a mile away. Black America will not forget the government failures, nor will the Gulf Coast region.” These statements provided in the article show how the Bush administration failed the people of New Orleans, concerned citizens and the nation as a whole. This demonstrated how Hurricane Katrina assisted in change of the media by providing opinions of journalists on behalf of the people, like Matt Wells of BBC News. Opinions towards the government were mostly prohibited by the media because they did not want others to believe that our country has failed us. Today those who work in the mass media share and express their feelings with the help of our constitution which gives us the freedom of speech.
Providing and assisting disaster victims with charity and necessary everyday essentials were provided for Hurricane Katrina victims by organizations like the American Red Cross as well as FEMA who volunteer to raise money in donation efforts. This is due to the nature of the mass media which was involved to present the damage that occurred during late August of 2005. This helped change the mass media by allowing them to share with the rest of the world on how Mother Nature can destroy any part of the globe and how we need to help the human race by aiding them with supplies, cash as well as canned foods. It was reported in an article in SFGATE, home of the San Francisco Chronicle written by Patricia Yollin, that the Red Cross sent many volunteers to hard hit areas of Katrina, in its largest relief effort in 124 years.  FEMA, a well known organization that sought out mainly cash from contributors willing to aid the victims, urgently released its message through the media by stating in its website www.Fema.gov, “Cash donations are especially helpful to victims,”…. “They allow volunteer agencies to issue cash vouchers to victims so they can meet their needs. Cash donations also allow agencies to avoid the labor-intensive need to store, sort, pack and distribute donated goods. Donated money prevents, too, the prohibitive cost of air or sea transportation that donated goods require.” The mass media today was now able to get important messages across in ways to aid the disaster relief efforts so that in the future we can all come together and apply what we have for those that need our help. Radio stations have also assisted in getting people to contribute by providing special hotlines that would take donations from listeners across the nation. This gave way to new sought out methods to make a difference in saving lives.
We saw how the mass media was prepared after Hurricane Katrina when a disastrous earthquake shook the nation of Haiti. On January 12, a 7.0 on the Richter scale measured the Earthquake that took down buildings, homes and bridges across Haiti. The media now had evolved to comprehend the tragedy and aided without hesitation to help bring those that survived food, shelter as well as medical care. The organizations were able to get many donations due to the past tragic events like Katrina that helped the victims. Many more charities and events were pushed across the mass media through television sets, radio broadcasts and the World Wide Web.
Mass media has changed and progressed to better the world with its citizens living in it. The history of the mass media was altered through a natural disaster like Hurricane Katrina by better providing the concerned society with detailed accounts of live events through technology and preparing its journalists for horrific events that was to be unfolded. Media has developed to aid the victims by airing organizations that were seeking donations from kind hearted people of the world. The World Wide Web allowed nations who did not have access to television to see and read about first hand accounts from journalists and other mass media employers about the disaster. We were able to see the chaos and struggle for survival by people who were unprepared for such an event through the eyes of the media.








Bibliography

Lehrer, Jim. "Online News Hour." Katrina Media Coverage. pbs.org, 25/09/2005. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/weather/july-dec05/media_9-29.html>.

"Hurricane History." Hurricane Peparedness. NOA/National Weather Service, 13/09/2010. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/history.shtml>.

Yollin, Patricia. "HURRICANE KATRINA Red Cross sending volunteers to South Largest effort in its 124-year history ." SFGate (2005): 1. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/08/31/LOCALS.TMP>.

Cash Sought To Help Hurricane Victims, Volunteers Should Not Self-Dispatch. Washington D.C: FEMA, 2005. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=18473>.

Warrick, Joby. "Crisis Communications Remain Flawed." Washington Post (2005): 2. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/09/AR2005120902039.html>.

Shukla, Anuradha. "Intelsat Ensures Communications after Haiti Earthquake." Satellite Spotlight (2010): 1. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://satellite.tmcnet.com/topics/satellite/articles/72787-intelsat-ensures-communications-after-haiti-earthquake.htm>.

"Help Survivors of the Earthquake in Haiti." Charity Navigator. Charity Navigator, 2010. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&cpid=1004>.

Wells, Matt. "Viewpoint: Has Katrina saved US media? ." BBC News. BBC News, 2005. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4214516.stm>.





Saturday, October 23, 2010

Blog 10

          From the essay “The Man on the Moon” George J. Anna writes that “The new ideal human, the genetically engineered ‘superior’ human, will almost certainly come to represent ‘the other’.  If history is a guide, either the normal humans will view the ‘better’ humans as the other and seek to control or destroy them, or vice versa” (236).  From Anna’s viewpoint, his hypothesis might be talking about the government or about people that are smarter than us such as bill gates who created windows for computers; Steve jobs the creator of apple and etc…   It seems like those people are taking over the country.   But to correlate it with a human history aspect Hitler is a good example.  Hitler categorized the Germans as a norm and the “other” with the Jews.   Hitler tried to eliminate all the Jews, but he also had an animosity towards the communist and the African Americans.  Maybe he was afraid that the Jews or the African Americans were better than him and was scared that they might take control more power than him.  Because Hitler didn’t like these certain people, what he did was to eliminate them.  In comparison, I feel that now a day the politics are following Hitler’s footstep by taking control of the people which to them are considered the “other”.  The government is easy to eliminate us if we don’t pay our taxes by putting us in jail.   
           I do believe that Anna might be analyzing about the government because, now a day it seems like the politics are taking over us.   They are like the “superior humans” because of their power over us; we are like the other to them because of their level.   From the movie Gattaca, it showed that the regular humans which are called the “god choice” are depicted as how they don’t have any special talent or knowledge and sees them as a waste of time.  And the people that were chosen by choice, they were treated as if everything in the world were possible for them because of their knowledge.  They were eating the proper food, living in a very high class spacious place and driving those hybrid cars.  This movie can be compared to the society we live in today.   If our societies don’t see that people have certain knowledge or went to an Ivy League college, have a top grade point average and don’t have any financial issues; they are considered the norm instead of the “other”.   

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Blog 9: essay 2


Illusion, a force depicted in our mind which makes us visualizes and thinks that everything around us is maybe perfect. It can also be something we sight for desire. A hallucination can be best described as a type of an illusion, where people can foresee the future we appetite for as seen in the movie, “The Matrix”.
            Neo, the protagonist in the film, is first introduced to the Matrix phenomenon by Morpheus and Trinity. He seems to have no historical knowledge, so he begins his quest to find out the truth. Neo turns to Morpheus who states: The Matrix is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now, in this very room. You can see it when you look out your window, or when you turn on your television. You can feel it when you go to work, when you go to church, when you pay your taxes. It is the world that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth.” He perceived the matrix as living in the illusion theory, where the reality isn’t real and our eyes were being forced to assume that the illusion is reality.  But from Cypher’s perspective in the movie, the reality world wasn’t satisfying him because his eyes were craving for the illusion where he can be pleased with anything that he wanted. From the movies perspective of an illusion, the matrix is something we can portray with our senses, just like Cypher where his craving for money and food in the illusion world was known to him as reality.  This can be a great example from the “Allegory of The Cave” by Plato, where he describes his perspective on illusion as being ignorant.
In the “Allegory of The Cave”, Plato described how slaves were stranded in the cave from childhood. This led them to be able to never fully comprehend what reality was. They thought that reality and the world only revolved around and in that cave. For instance Socrates states: “the prison-house is the world of sight, the light of the fire is the sun and you will not misapprehend me if you interpret the journey upwards to be.”  But from Socrates perspective, the prisoners were to decide if they wanted to be scorned by others and live with the truth or to live in a lie and be ignorant. As well as to live in an illusion in which the prisoners had already decided to live with. This statement can be compared to the Matrix where Neo had to make a decision and choose to want to uncover the truth. Morpheus tells Neo to decide if he wants to drink the blue pill or the red pill. The blue pill will allow him to go back to the reality world in the illusion, where this can be compared to living with a lie and being ignorant in the illusion. The red pill would consent to finding out the facts about the Matrix, and this can be compared to living by telling the truth and being scorned by others.  Socrates also stated: “and look towards the light, he will suffer sharp pains; the glare will distress him, and he will be unable to see the realities of which in his former state he had seen the shadows; and then conceive someone saying to him, that what he saw before was an illusion,” In my opinion, this statement is that the reality is an illusion.
      Hallucination is what we define as an illusion and what we portray in our brain.  Neo sees that the real world was the illusion and from “allegory of the cave” Socrates also perceives that reality is an illusion as well. Illusion can also be a fantasy to allow us to see whatever we want to see, but in Neo’s case anything you plug into your brain is an illusion. The Matrix best explains the theory because it describes that an illusion is something we see, touch, hear, smell and taste.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

follow up to blog 8

 
          I remember when I went to go shopping for a new car, one of the male sales person looked at me funny.  Maybe he thought that I didn’t look professional, I wasn’t a guy or looked too young to go buy a new car.  I went in there wanting someone to help me but everyone just looked away and didn’t pay any attention to me.  The next day I went in with my father, and all of these sales people gave all of their attention to him.  A few weeks later, when I had to go back in for a detailing for the car, they charged me so much.  But the same person that sold the car to my father and I told us that the detailing was for free, but that same person tried to charge me extra because I was this young female that they thought I was clueless about everything.           
          Well after when I came back home from the car dealership, I was upset and hurt the fact that these people were just ignoring when I kept asking for help.  I was also upset the fact that when I knew for a fact that I had a free detailing on the car, this same person tried to charge me.  From my point of view, I feel like when they see a girl coming into a car dealership; it’s like an easy target to them because they think that women don’t know anything about cars.  I feel like most places not even car dealership, categorize sex and treat people differently.  One of my best friends dealt with the same situation, where she was being ignored when she went into a car dealership, so the next day she walked in with her father and came out with the best deal. 

blog 8


My other would be someone that doesn’t have any taste in fashion, who listens to country or hard rock, who loves to study, not an upper class, who acts shy and all crazy and hyper.  My other would also love to eat meat and drink every day.  She is not an animal person and abuses them, she is bald, which has a strong body odor because she only takes a shower once a week; her height is 6’7 and really skinny.  My other is someone that works for the IRS.

          This other person is described as my opposite because she doesn’t have any quality that I like in a person, or someone that I don’t define myself as.  I am a type of person that loves to go shopping and have trendy outfits. My other has an animosity towards animals and abuses them.  I myself am an animal person; I love animals and all living things besides creepy insects.  I can’t stand standing next to a person or even sitting next to them with a really bad body odor.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

blog 7

1.    The mass media during Hurricane Katrina had been impacted mentally and physically. 
2.    Reporters and journalist who were there to cover the storm began rescue efforts in helping those who were trapped or stranded by using their satellite systems. 
3.    Many witnessed death and saw firsthand of art of survival.

  • Media will be more prepared in handling situation more affectively.
  • Government response to this natural disaster will be handled in an orderly fashioned.
  • The technology in the media will help save more lives because during hurricane Katrina communication were destroyed, so technology will be more advanced.
  • The media showed the effect of the natural disaster in a way that people helped by donating goods, food and money to help those in need.
  • Hurricane Katrina can influence other natural disasters.


Lehrer, Jim. "Online News Hour." Katrina Media Coverage. pbs.org, 25/09/2005. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/weather/july-dec05/media_9-29.html>.

"Hurricane History." Hurricane Peparedness. NOA/National Weather Service, 13/09/2010. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/history.shtml>.

Yollin, Patricia. "HURRICANE KATRINA Red Cross sending volunteers to South Largest effort in its 124-year history ." SFGate (2005): 1. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/08/31/LOCALS.TMP>.

Cash Sought To Help Hurricane Victims, Volunteers Should Not Self-Dispatch. Washington D.C: FEMA, 2005. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=18473>.

Warrick, Joby. "Crisis Communications Remain Flawed." Washington Post (2005): 2. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/09/AR2005120902039.html>.

Shukla, Anuradha. "Intelsat Ensures Communications after Haiti Earthquake." Satellite Spotlight (2010): 1. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://satellite.tmcnet.com/topics/satellite/articles/72787-intelsat-ensures-communications-after-haiti-earthquake.htm>.

"Help Survivors of the Earthquake in Haiti." Charity Navigator. Charity Navigator, 2010. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&cpid=1004>.

Wells, Matt. "Viewpoint: Has Katrina saved US media? ." BBC News. BBC News, 2005. Web. 30 Oct 2010. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4214516.stm>.


Monday, October 11, 2010

Blog 6


     The media portrays “hero” as a miracle worker, an angel or a person that can do various things.  In the media, journalist, reporters or news anchors will write about a person to make the people either to love that person or to hate them.  A “hero” can be anyone that can do good deeds or bad, just as long as those people have a heart.  From the movie “hero” it was about a guy name Bernie Laplante and John Bubber, who are both heroes.  This movie is a good example of how the media depicts the ideal hero for the viewers to love. 
            From the movie “hero” Bernie Laplante was characterized by this lonely loser guy, who can’t have a steady job, can’t keep a family, and not a people person.  But all of a sudden he saves a ton of people from the plane crash, but didn’t get the credit.  Another guy name John Bubber, who was a veteran from the Vietnam War who saved people during that war, was being characterized as a hero because of the lie he informed to the reporters.  In this movie, the media and the viewers loved and worshipped John Bubber because of his lying heroic act.  But the media loved him because of his past history, and he was the type of person that can be titled as a hero.  Even though the reporter knew that he wasn’t the hero, he still stuck to the story and still claimed himself as a hero.  The media didn’t depict Bernie Laplante as a hero because of his image and his criminal records.  After his heroic act, he disappeared from the scene but confessed to the wrong people and reported to the reporters too late.  But at the end, when Laplante hinted the reporter that he was the hero that saved the people from the plane crash, he wasn’t shown in the media that he was the hero.  Laplante didn’t like the fortune and the fame in the media, so he decided to stay off the media. Anybody can be a hero but I guess it’s the media who picks the ideal person for the viewers.   For example, a New York City guy name Wesley Autrey and Chad Lindsey is being labeled as a hero, for saving a person from the train tracks but one of them was rewarded.
            From the New York Times, a journalist name Ray Rivera and Karen Zraick labeled Wesley Autrey and Chad Lindsey as a hero because of their heroic act.  Autrey is being labeled as a hero because he saved a person from a seizure attack that fell onto the tracks, right before the number one train came.  Autrey is a fifty year old guy, who is married and has two kids and works as a construction guy.  Autrey was awarded with a visit to the white house and the people in the city saluted him for his heroic act.  Lindsey saved a person who fell on the tracks right before the train came.  But Lindsey was going to become an anonymous hero until his friends told about Lindsey.  From my viewpoint, I feel that the journalist gave an innocent man Autrey more credit of his act because he is a family man which viewers like to see, because he is like our everyday people.  I guess these news reporters or journalist knows what type of people would stand out and can be classified as a hero.  Just like in the movie, Gale Gayley the reporter gave more credit and fame to Bubber because he was this homeless guy that had nothing.
            A hero in the media is someone who fits in with the story and the type of people viewers would like.  The media from the movie “hero” illustrated Bubber as a hero because of his image; the media weren’t satisfied with the real hero Laplante because of his records and his characteristics.  Just like what Bubber said “everyone is a hero”, so personally, the media shouldn’t choose which person should be the hero that best suit the media, it should be whoever did their duty.  






http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/25/a-subway-hero-descends-then-vanishes/

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Blog 5 overview of what I'll be writing on for the midterm (to be continued)

My topic will be on the coverage of Hurricane Katrina, because I feel like this disaster impacted on a lot of people all around the world, such as the media and how people helped out giving donation through the radio shows and from Red Cross through commercials.  In this paper, I will develop the paper by introducing what Hurricane Katrina is, and when it hit, how many people lost lives and how it impacted the whole world.  
Sources I will be using:

Blog 4 Reflection

Well I really didn’t know how to come up with a thesis statement or a main idea and I had a really hard time. But after you went over with the class about how to write a thesis by having an argument and a position, it helped me realize how to start a thesis.  I also learned that the main idea should be broad and not specific, but again be a position statement.  So every time I post a blog online, it helped me a lot with writing my main idea.  But for some reason I do have trouble writing my conclusion and I know conclusion is something you restate from the introduction but I really get a hard time writing that.  And I literally take a long time trying to come up with a topic to write about, and I know that’s not a good sign because for the final we only have two hours to write an essay with six hundred words. But free writing will help me come up with a topic because it’s a technique where I’m suppose to come up with one topic and write about it without stopping.
 Posting blogs online and interacting with other students from other class is interesting, because it shows other peoples mistakes and it can allow me to see the types of mistakes I make with my writings as well.   Also giving feedback to someone outside of the classroom helped in a way because its different from giving feedback to someone you already know in class.  It helped me learn the type of mistake that person makes on their essay, and the same error that person make are the same errors I make on my essay so it helped me correct mine.  It was kind of hard trying to give that other person a feedback, because I was suppose to write it in a way where that person won’t feel like they didn’t go good on their essay.  I also didn’t want to bring down her self confidence on writing an essay or think they did a poor job.
I don’t really having anything to reflect on but to say that I’m starting to improve on my essay, but only on writing up to 600 words or more.