Brice's Blog

I thought the reporter summarized the important elements of the story well, not letting them too much for the reader to handle. They were clear and easy to read and understand, and also didn't make me feel like I had to slow down to understand the story.

The reporter organized the story well, with the lead in the first paragraph. The next four paragraphs gave all the neccessary supporting details to the story and quotes from people around the scene. Then the story end with a few paragraphs of information that is nice to know, but not really essential to the story. There is a clear break in the story on what part is the briefing of the story and what are the extra things added in.

I thought the way the story was structured was very effective since it flowed really well and gave the most important information right away. I don't think I would have structured the story different because the only thing I would maybe change would be the chronology used in the story, but I think that this was one story inparticular where the chronology was nice. In other stories it might have come too soon but I think it fit well in this case.

The story I used is available at http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/30/phoenix.airport.death/index.html

Posted by Brice Lehner at 5:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

An African Union base in southern Darfur was attacked Saturday night. 50 AU soldiers are missing as a result of the attack and others were seriously injured, according to BBC.

"This is the heaviest loss of life and the biggest attack on the African Union mission," AU spokesman Noureddine Mezni said. He did not go into details on the total number of casualties, according to the Associated Press.

The Sudanese army and rebel groups in Darfur blamed each other for the attack, according to Al Jazeera.

The attackers were described in an AU statement as "a large and organised group of heavily armed men." The statement did not say whether they were rebels or government troops, according to BBC.

The attackers took all the weapons and vehicles they were able to from the base, burning the ones they weren’t able to, according to sources reporting to BBC.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 5:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson filed a lawsuit against Sprint Nextel Corp. Thursday alleging the company of deceiving customers.

The lawsuit claims that Sprint Nextel Corp. renewed the contracts of their customers without consent of those customers, according to Swanson. According to the Associated Press, those customers where then told they would have to pay an expensive cancellation fee on contracts that were supposed to be expired, reports WCCO.

Swanson is seeking penalties of up to $25,000 per incident for those involved in the situation, according to FOX9.

"The company has used hidden trip wires to trap unwary consumers into lengthy contracts simply because they made small changes in their plan," Swanson said.

Sprint Nextel Corp. issued a response, according to KSTP, saying, “It is Sprint Nextel’s policy to go over the contract with the customer so that they understand all aspects of it before agreed to or before the customer-initiated changes are made to the account.�

Posted by Brice Lehner at 7:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick failed a drug test for marijuana earlier this month.

Vick failed a drug test taken on September 13th, court document from the Eastern District of Virginia shows, according to CNN. The positive test is not only a violation of the NFL’s substance abuse policy, but it is also violates the conditions of Vick’s release as he awaits sentencing in December on federal dog fighting charges, according to the Associated Press, reports Yahoo!.
Vick’s positive test came just 17 days after entering his guilty plea on dog fighting charges in federal court. Part of his release, according to the Associated Press, including submitting to random drug testing and being confined to his home in Virginia from 10 p.m. through 6 a.m.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, this latest setback for Vick will not have an immediate impact on his NFL suspension. “This doesn't affect his status in the league because he is indefinitely suspended,� NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said.

This is not the first time Vick’s name has been mentioned with the possibility of marijuana use. In January, Vick was stopped at by security at Miami International Airport for a suspicious water bottle. The water bottle contained a secret compartment which, according to a police report, “contained a amount of dark particulant and a pungent aroma closely associated with marijuana.� Vick denied the compartment was used to transport marijuana.

No charges were filed in the water bottle incident.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 9:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Two men were arrested early Tuesday morning near an apartment complex in Minneapolis after a shot was fired at an officer.

The shot was fired around 1 a.m. at the 2400 block of Ogema Place when Minneapolis police officers were approached by a nearby resident with a complaint of two people drinking alcohol in a SUV behind the building, according to Minneapolis Police, reports WCCO.

According to FOX9, when one officer approached the vehicle, the shot was fired and the vehicle sped off. The SUV then crashed into a courtyard of the building and the two passengers fled the scene on foot.

The officers chased the suspects and arrested Vincent Rosendo Macedonio, 23, and Jerome Lee Barney, 25, after receiving additional help from K-9 units, according to WCCO.

Both suspects are being held at Hennepin County Jail facing charges of second degree assault and weapons charges, according to WCCO.

A loaded shotgun was later found in the SUV and a semi-automatic handgun was found at the scene where the vehicle was parked at the time the officers approached the vehicle, according to FOX9.

No injuries were reported from the incident.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 2:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Drug Enforcement Administration agents have closed down 26 illegal, underground steroid labs and made more than 50 arrests in a four-day series of raids that began last Thursday. These series of raids are the largest on performance-enhancing drugs in U.S. history, according to ESPN.

The raids are the end of an 18-month investigation into illegal distribution of performance-enhancing substances called “Operation Raw Deal.� The operation targeted the importing of material from China used to manufacture anabolic steroids and human growth hormone (HGH). In total the operation has busted 56 labs and made 124 arrests since it began, according to CNN.

According to ESPN, the raids have also seized more than $6 million and 532 pounds of raw steroid powder. Almost 60 percent of which coming in the past week.

A list of names that received steroids, humane growth hormone and other performance-enhancing drugs was also compiled by federal officials, according to DEA spokesman Rusty Payne, reports Yahoo! Sports. The list may eventually be made available to professional sports leagues, such as the National Football League and Major League Baseball.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 9:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A man staying at an Embassy Suites Hotel in St. Paul ripped the head off a duck in the hotel lobby early Saturday Morning, according to police reports.

Scott Clark, 26, corned the duck in the lobby, and then, telling onlookers, "I'm hungry. I'm gonna eat it," removed the head of the duck from its body, according to St. Paul police Sgt. John Wuorinen, reports the Pioneer Press.

Clark, who was staying at the hotel on a business trip, is from Denver, Colorado. According to WCCO, he will remain in jail until Monday when he will appear in court on suspicion of felony animal cruelty.

Clark faces a possible fine of $5,000 and the possiblity of spending two years in jail, according to KSTP.

The use of ducks in the lobby at Embassy Suites was questioned by Tim Shields, general counsel with the Minnesota Federated Humane Societies. "I think Embassy Suites needs to take another look at this and review how they keep ducks safe, or use fish like most hotels would use," Shields said, according to WCCO.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 8:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I used a story about a report on Alex Rodriguez from ESPN for this analysis. - http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3033203

The named sources in this story are New York Magazine and Randy Levine. I think that they are scattered well throughout the story. The beginning of the report attributes to the magazine while the second half seems to reference Levine instead.

The information is mostly from people. Randy Levine, an executive with the New York Yankees, and the New York Magazine, which an author of the story was not mentioned so that wouldn't clasify as people in this case. There is also a lot of information in the report that isn't attributed to anything, as it is mostly public record. Some examples of this are Rodriguez's stats for the 2007 season, his current contract information with the Yankees, and Yankees team information. I didn't think it was confusing the way the reporter set up the story. There was never any confusion on exactly what source a piece of information came from, and it seemed very effective.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 8:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Floyd Landis lost his appeal against the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency Thursday when arbitrators upheld the lab results taken during the 2006 Tour de France, which showed him testing positive for synthetic testosterone. Landis has to forfeit his Tour de France title and will be banned from cycling until January 2009.

Landis has repeatedly denied using testosterone.

He appealed the test results based on mishandled lab samples by the French lab that reported him positive for testosterone, according to BBC.

Landis can appeal one step further, to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. If he does not get the ruling overturned by that final appeal, however, Landis will be the first person in the 105 years of the race to have his title taken away from doping charges, according to the Associated Press.

"For the Panel to find in favor of USADA when, with respect to so many issues, USADA did not manage to prove even the most basic parts of their case, shows that this system is fundamentally flawed. I am innocent, and we proved I am innocent,� Landis said, according to the Associated Press.

According to BBC, Landis has one month to decide whether or not he will appeal one last time.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 3:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

O.J. Simpson posted the $125,000 bail Wednesday on 11 charges, including kidnapping and armed robbery, stemming from a robbery of sports memorabilia in Las Vegas last week.

Simpson was forced to surrender his passport after posting bail, but will be allowed to fly to his home in Miami, according to CNN. An arraignment hearing was set for the week of October 22nd. Simpson will plead not guilty to all charges, according to attorney Yale Galanter.

“You can’t rob something that is yours,� said Galanter, according to the Associated Press.

The first-degree kidnapping charges Simpson faces carry the possibility of a life-in-prison sentence if found guilty.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 11:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Typhoon Wipha hit land on the east shore in China on Wednesday morning local time, just south of Shanghai. Authorities in China evacuated close to two million people from the area, according to the Associated Press, after experts determined the storm could be the worst in a decade for the area.

Typhoon Winnie was the deadliest storm in recent memory for China, which killed 236 people in 1997, according to BBC.
Shanghai closed all means of public transportation and schools after warnings of the possible severity of the Wipha. According to Al Jazeera, there have been no injuries or reports of damage made yet.

The Women’s World Cup soccer tournament, taking place in Shanghai, also postponed several matches due to Wipha, according to the AFP, reports Yahoo! Sports.

The winds could potentially carry speeds of around 120 miles/hour, according to BBC.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 11:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Star Tribune publisher Par Ridder was forced to step down from his position after judge’s ruling in Ramsey County District Court on Tuesday. “Irreparable harm� was done by Ridder when he took the job at the Star Tribune and took with him a laptop from the Pioneer Press containing material confidential to the Press, Judge David C. Higgs wrote, according to WCCO news.

According to the Pioneer Press, also included in the judge’s ruling is that the data the Ridder took to the Star Tribune will be eventually destroyed, along with the Tribune will repay the legal fees accrued by the Pioneer Press, which have reached a level of approximately $5 million, according to Dean Singleton, President of the parent company of the Pioneer Press, MediaNews.

The ruling also blocked the hire of Jennifer Parratt, who was hired away from the Pioneer Press by Ridder. Higgs ruled that Parratt did violate her non-compete clause with the Pioneer Press, while Ridder did not. Parratt will not be allowed to work at the Star Tribune until April of 2008.

“Today’s ruling is clearly not what we expected,� said Chris Harte, chairman of the Star Tribune. “…we will of course abide by the court's decision as we evaluate our legal options."

Ben Taylor, spokesman at the Star Tribune, said that Ridder left at 8:40 a.m. Tuesday, according to the Star Tribune.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 6:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The passenger jet crashed at Phuket International Airport on Sunday just as it was about to land, killing at least 87 of the 130 people on board. The survivors were being treated at a nearby hospital for a number of different injuries, according to Reuters.

According to FOX News, flight OG269, which took off from Bangkok, crashed as it was landing in very heavy rain.

Many of the survivors escaped the wreckage by climbing out of an emergency exit onto the wing, according to CNN.
"I saw passengers engulfed in fire as I stepped over them on way out of the plane, I was afraid that the airplane was going to explode so I ran away,� survivor Parinwit Chusaeng told the Nation television channel, according to FOX News.

The official cause of the crash is not known at this time, and Reuters reports that the pilot was experienced. It is not known if the pilots were among the survivors.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 1:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The main elements that are focused on in the lead of a story are the who, what, when and where. The who, when and where I would say are usually pretty general and are not detailed as much as what. Usually the what is the main focus of the lead, so it requires the most detail. Other elements like who and when are usually answered in just a few words, even if they are the main focus of the lead.

A reporter chooses a certain approach of which element to highlight if the lead is not a straightforward hard-news lead by deciding which element is the biggest news maker. For example, if the story is about a celebrity getting arrested, such as Lindsay Lohan, then the who would be used as the main focus. If it was not someone famous getting arrested, then it makes less sense to start off a lead by saying the person was arrested when a very small number of readers would know who that person was.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 5:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

O.J. Simpson was questioned by Las Vegas police Friday in connections with breaking into a casino hotel room and stealing sports memorabilia. Investigators named Simpson a suspect after questioning him. No arrests have been made in the case so far.

A call was made at around 8 p.m. Thursday night, according to CNN, from a person claiming numerous items were taken from his hotel room. The person then mentioned a group of men had broken into the room with guns, and that Simpson was one of the men involved.

“It’s stolen stuff that’s mine,� Simpson told the Associated Press, according to ESPN. Simpson denied breaking into the room.

According to CBS, no weapons have been recovered yet and there are conflicting reports as to whether weapons were involved or not.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 5:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Terry Ryan, 52, announced Thursday that he plans to resign his duties as general manager and executive vice president of the Twins at the conclusion of this season. Ryan, who has been the GM of the Twins since 1994, will remain with the organization as a senior advisor.

"I felt a lot of elation when we won and sorrow when we lost. “Now all of a sudden the defeats are getting a little harder to take, and the wins aren't as much fun. That's not a good thing to experience as a general manager,� said Ryan at a news conference Thursday, according to the Associated Press.

According to ESPN, Bill Smith is set to replace Ryan as GM. Smith is in his 22nd season with the Twins and been a close advisor to Ryan, according to the Star Tribune.

Ryan had been having difficulty in signing some notable Twins to extensions this season, such as Torii Hunter, Johan Santana and Justin Morneau, according to Mike Max of WCCO news.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 6:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, 52, announced Wednesday that he will be resigning. The approval for Abe had been in a decline leading up to the announcement. According to Al Jazeera, the approval rating had dropped to around 30 percent.

Abe told a news conference that a new leader to "fight against terrorism" is neaded for Japan, according to BBC news. Abe's party, the Liberal Democratic Party, is expected to have a meeting sometime next week to determine a replacement for Abe as Prime Minister.

"The people need a leader whom they can support and trust," said Abe, according to Al Jazeera.

According to CNN news, Abe's government had come under scrutiny over numerous scandals, even resulting in the LDP losing control of Japan's upper house of parliament in elections earlier this summer.

Abe had taken control as Prime Minister around a year ago. At 52, he was the youngest to serve as Prime Minister of Japan in the post-war era, according to BBC.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 10:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This new law passes Monday night by the City Council in Chaska makes the person or persons hosting a party liable, regardless of whether those persons are providing the alcohol or not. In doing so, Chaska becomes the first city in Minnesota to pass a bill like this.

There are a few small exceptions to the law, according to the Chaska Herald. They are parents giving their own children alcohol and no others, to observation of religious events, and when an underage person is legally allowed to possess alcohol in a work-related manner.

According to the Star Tribune, a violation is punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a fine of $1,000.

The city of Chaska decided to go ahead with passing the law instead of waiting for Carver County to do so because there was concern from the City Council that it may never get passed by the county.

Posted by Brice Lehner at 10:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)