by Courtney Reigh
A group of Catholics attempting to receive Communion were denied Sunday at St. Paul Cathedral for wearing rainbow sashes in support of same-sex marriage.
The annual event of wearing rainbow sashes during mass has been in place for over a decade, KMSP said.
Each year, organizers ask to receive Communion wearing the sashes. According to a spokesperson for the St. Paul-Minneapolis Archdiocese, doing so would be sacrilegious, WCCO reported.
by Courtney Reigh
Two people were stabbed at a restaurant in Cambridge early Sunday morning.
The incident happened before 11 a.m. Sunday at Q Mandarin restaurant on Main Street in Cambridge.
Both of the victims, whose names have not been released, were taken to Cambridge Medical Hospital with unspecified injuries, KSTP reported.
The suspect, 49-year-old Qing-Hai Jiang was arrested on charges of attempted murder and assault. Police found the suspect hiding in a shed which he had allegedly broken into, WCCO said.
The case is still under investigation.
by Courtney Reigh
A former Minnesota state trooper was killed Friday after losing control of his vehicle and hitting a tree on Highway 84.
The crash took place at 8 p.m. near Longville. The driver, Timothy J. Murphy, was not wearing his seatbelt during the crash, The Star Tribune reported.
Murphy worked for the State Patrol from 1982 until 2008, WCCO said.
by Courtney Reigh
Teams continue the now six-day search for a missing family whose plan crashed in Wyoming almost a week ago.
The plane, which left Jackson Hole en-route to Minneapolis, was carrying four passengers from Minnesota. The plane was being flown by Luke Bucklin and his three sons, WCCO reported.
On the sixth day of the search, investigators had not found any physical evidence of the missing plane, CNN stated.
The search will continue into the following week.
by Courtney Reigh
At least 30 people were killed and over 40 were wounded in a hostage situation Sunday at a Baghdad church.
Iraqi officials stormed the church, which held over 100 people who had been at the church for Sunday mass. Police arrested the eight gunmen, who were believed to be affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq, a militant organization affiliated with Al-Qaeda in Iraq, The New York Times said.
The gunmen had reportedly demanded the release of al-Qaeda militants in exchange for the hostages, BBC News said.
by Courtney Reigh
I chose to cover President Obama's speech at the University of Minnesota, primarily because I was lucky enough to work the event. A press release of the president's visit was announced on the University of Minnesota's website.
The event was covered by hundreds of media outlets, including the Pioneer Press.
In the article, the reporter followed typical speech-writing procedures. He put the main focus of Obama's speech in the lead rather than just stating that President Obama spoke at the University of Minnesota.
He followed the lead paragraph with a direct quote from Obama, which supported the main focus of the lead.
The reporter then followed the two opening paragraphs with a summary of President Obama's speech, incorporating direct quotes which correlated to the main point of his speech.
After giving the summary, the reporter incorporated visual aspects of the speech, such as what the president was wearing, the students dressed in maroon and gold on the bleachers behind him, and the crowd.
The reporter then incorporated information from the event, including when people started standing in line, as well as quotes from attendees. He then went on to give background information into Obama's six-city trip, including why he was going to certain cities to speak on behalf of Democratic nominees.
The reporter did a great job covering all aspects of President Obama's speech. While I was at the rally, I feel I would have a very accurate depiction of what happened by solely just reading this article.
by Courtney Reigh
Wayne Rooney is considering leaving Manchester United due to concerns of the club's future strengths, BBC Sports reported.
The 24-year-old striker, whose deal with the squad expires in 2012, recently talked with chief executive David Gill. According to The Independent, Rooney confirmed his intent to leave Manchester United in a recent statement.
"I met with David Gill last week and he did not give me any of the assurances I was seeking about the future squad," said Rooney.
While he intends to leave the squad, Rooney hopes to keep ties with Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United's Manager.
"For Manchester United's sake, I wish he could go on for ever because he's a one-off and a genius."
by Courtney Reigh
A fire forced many residents to evacuate their apartment building through the windows near Powderhorn Park early Tuesday morning.
The fire, which is expected to be arson, began at the apartment complex on the 3400 block of 10th Avenue South in Minneapolis at about 4 a.m. While it has not been confirmed, tenants said they smelled gasoline prior to the incident, The Star Tribune stated.
None of the tenants were critically injured in the fire. Residents were allowed back into their units later that morning, WCCO reported.
by Courtney Reigh
A Minneapolis lawyer was sentenced to 18 years in prison for raping a 15-year-old boy.
Aaron Biber was sentenced Wednesday to 18 years in prison. He has been in custody since his conviction in August.
During Tuesday's hearing, witnesses gave testimony as to how Biber had been targeting the boy for years, WCCO reported.
Over time, Biber exposed himself to the victim, gave him pornography and sent over 1000 sexual text messages, The Star Tribune stated.
During the sentencing, the victim, the victim's family, Biber's son and Biber himself gave testimony for the case.
Biber will remain in custody for 18 years, a sentence higher than the standard 12 years in similar cases.
by Courtney Reigh
The British government sentenced a Saudi prince to life in prison, with possible parole after 20 years, for beating and killing one of his servants at a British hotel.
Justice David Bean sentenced Prince Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser al Saud to at least 20 years in prison on charges of murdering his servant at the Landmark Hotel in London February 15.
The victim, Bandar Abdulaziz, had so many injuries the medical examiner was not able to accurately determine what caused his death, The New York Times reported.
"No one in this country is above the law," Bean said.
While the news of the sentencing has been broadcast internationally, Saudi officials have not made mention of the incident, nor has it been mentioned in any Saudi newspapers or television shows, Fox News stated.
by Courtney Reigh
The United States Military is now allowing recruiters to accept openly gay applicants. This is the first time in U.S. history this has been done, according to The New York Times.
The ruling follows a series of decisions made by California judge Virginia A. Phillips. On October 12, she ordered the military to stop enforcing the "don't ask don't tell" law.
However, the US Department of Defense warns openly gay applicants the ruling may be overturned, BBC News stated.
Although many are trying to reinstate the law, President Barack Obama has said vowed to end the policy.
by Courtney Reigh
In the article Super-typhoon Megi heads for northern Philippines published by BBC News, the story's lead tells the reader the most important information in the story.
The lead is as follows, 'Thousands of people in the Philippines have fled their homes as Super-Typhoon Megi has begun to lash the north with heavy rains and strong winds.'
The lead does a great job setting up the story. It tells the reader what is happening, where it's taking place, and who it's affecting.
The name of the typhoon, as well as where the typhoon is taking place is specific. However, the details of how many people have fled their homes, exactly where the typhoon is hitting, and when it expects to hit the hardest are not specified. However, it is appropriate that these details come later in the article, which they do.
Overall, the lead is effective in getting the most important news to the viewer first.
by Courtney Reigh
In the article French report new threat of terrorist attack in Europe published by The New York Times, the information is sourced from very similar sources.
The sources, including Saudi intelligence officials, the French minister, the Yemeni president, an official in Washington, a European intelligence officials and CIA officials are all very similar and all have credibility.
The sourcing is president throughout the entire article. Almost every paragraph has either a quote or an indirect quote from a different source. The article is consistent and all of the information is from people, rather than from records or other media sources.
The reporter was consistent in setting up attribution for the story. He began each indirect quote by saying who said it, and never began a direct quote without having introduced the speaker previously.
Overall, the article flowed and was informative. As a reader, it was easy to know the story had credibility judging on the important officials who were quoted, both directly and indirectly.
by Courtney Reigh
In the article The Hobbit to begin filming in February next year from BBC News, the article maintains a steady flow of information to most important to least important.
In the first paragraph, the reporter explains that filming will begin in February. However, the reporter does not give any information as to why filming would have been delayed, leaving the reader to wonder why.
In the next paragraph, the reporter gives the second-most important piece of information; that Warner Bros. has decided upon a director for the two films.
The next paragraph discusses why the filming was delayed, answering the reader's question from the first paragraph. In this case, the reporter should have merged this paragraph with the first paragraph, answering the reader's question right away as to why filming was delayed.
In the next few paragraphs, the reporter discusses that release dates have not been set. The films' budgets, as well as how the film will be shot in 3-D are also discussed. The reporter then talks about the resignation of the first director, Guillermo Del Toro. The article continues with a quote from the new director, Peter Jackson, as well as highlight information from his past films, The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Overall, I think the reporter had some information out of order. As stated, he should have merged the information about the movie progressing and why it was halted. It also wouldn't have been a bad idea to merge the information about the new director, Peter Jackson, with the information about the previous director's resignation.
Other than that, I think ending with a quote from Jackson and highlights from his previous films was a great way to wrap up the article.
by Courtney Reigh
In examining a new story's progression from The Star Tribune from Saturday evening and Sunday morning, it was striking to see the differences.
The Star Tribune's story from late Saturday night, the lead begins as a prediction. The author of the story reported that rumors had begun to surface about Tim Brewster's resignation, or the fact that he may have been fired.
The lead from The Star Tribune's story from Sunday evening began much differently. The lead begins with a statement that the University of Minnesota is already looking for a replacement coach. It is obvious from the lead that Tim Brewster is no longer the University of Minnesota's head football coach.
In the first story, the main news is all here-say. While the reporter quotes reputable news sources like Sports Illustrated, the main news is that there is only speculation that Tim Brewster will not be the head coach for long. In the second story, it summarizes how Tim Brewster was fired earlier this morning. It also immediately goes into conversation of who will be Minnesota's new head coach.
The second story is not a response to another news source. It is, however, a response to how the public feels about losing Brewster. It brushes past any emotional feelings that could be happening over him losing his job and immediately looks to the future.
Overall, the articles are not 'hard news' articles. Rather, they summarized what could happen (first story), and then summarized what will happen next (second story), while barely explaining the main events of the story, that Tim Brewster was fired.
by Courtney Reigh
In comparing multimedia from The New York Times and BBC News, I was surprised to see how two seemingly similar countries have varying preferences of multimedia.
The New York Times, a popular American news source, tended to feature multimedia stories that included pictures. BBC News, a popular British news source, tended to feature videos as their medium of multimedia.
Both effectively accompany news stories. The videos used by BBC News are effective because they can give the viewer of exactly what happened - they can show an entire train crash, a riot etc. This is something that can not be accomplished by photographs alone. The photographs, however, are able to tell news in a different way. Each individual photograph is able to explain to a reader so much more than a video clip.
Writing techniques are different in both forms of multimedia. In the video clips, people are interviewed for information and are many times shown on camera as they speak. The photographs, however, are sometimes captioned with a direct quote from someone who was interviewed. Other times, they are captioned with background information about the picture itself.
While both forms of multimedia are different, they are able to effectively tell a news story.
by Courtney Reigh
The technique of interviewing was used effectively in KMSP-TV's article, Brewster Fired, Gone for Season.
While the article was short, KMSP-TV had both direct and indirect quotes from athletic director Joel Maturi, as well as an indirect quote from a KMSP-TV reporter.
An indirect quote from Maturi helped set the precedent of what the remainder of the article would include. It was also much more effective to use indirect quotes to get the information across without making the article become wordy.
For example, KMSP-TV indirectly quoted Maturi, 'Maturi says he's had several conversations with university President Robert Bruininks in the last few weeks about the coach and both agreed on the move.' By doing so, they were able to get information across while only directly quoting information from Maturi that could not be summarized.
Later in the article, they directly quote Maturi. In the quote, Maturi talks about how he respects Brewster's passion, something that could not easily be summarized.
Also later in the article, KMSP-TV indirectly quotes one of their sports reporters to give the reader an idea of what the loss to Purdue was like.
Interviewing skills were critical to the story. KMSP-TV was good to use both indirect and direct quotes to report the best story possible.
by Courtney Reigh
A man died Saturday night after being struck by a vehicle as he was trying to cross Highway 36.
Anthony J. Mailloux, 19 of Oakdale, was running across the road near Highway 120 when he was struck by the vehicle, The Star Tribune reported.
The driver, Dawn Oswald, 45 of Grant, Minn. was not injured. WCCO-TV reported that Oswald had a green light at the time of the incident.
Police are continuing to investigate this case.
by Courtney Reigh
University of Minnesota's football coach, Tim Brewster, was fired today and will not be returning as the Gopher's head coach for the rest of the season.
The news of his release was issued Sunday morning by University of Minnesota's athletic director Joel Maturi. The Gopher football team had lost their sixth game of the season just a day earlier to Purdue, KMST-TV reported.
Jeff Horton, the co-offensive coordinator will replace Brewster for the majority of the season, The Star Tribune stated.
The University of Minnesota will immediately begin a nation-wide search to find a replacement for next fall season.
by Courtney Reigh
President Barack Obama will be at the University of Minnesota campus this Saturday in support of DFL gubernatorial candidate Mark Dayton.
The rally will be held at Northrop Auditorium at 1 p.m. Saturday.
According to the University of Minnesota News Service, the last sitting president to visit the University of Minnesota campus was George W. Bush in 2002.
Specifics of the rally, including travel, parking and security will be released in the upcoming days, The Star Tribune reported.
by Courtney Reigh
Rapper T.I. is sentenced to 11 months in jail for violating his probation after he was arrested on drug charges last month.
T.I. was on three years' probation after serving time for a federal weapons charge, Rolling Stone stated.
He was stopped by police on September 1, after which he was arrested on suspicion of possessing ecstasy, BBC News reported.
T.I. is expected to begin his prison sentence on November 1.
by Courtney Reigh
The Hobbit will begin filming in February after months of delays, including financial problems at MGM Studios, The Telegraph Reported.
Warner Bros. also announced that Peter Jackson, director of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, will be resuming his directorship position for The Hobbit.
Jackson, who co-wrote the screenplays and is also producing the films, originally hired Guillermo Del Toro as director. Del Torro passed on the offer after over two years of delays, BBC News stated.
The two films will be shot in 3-D and will have over a $500 million budget.
by Courtney Reigh
After a party spiraled out of control, a UW-Madison student from St. Paul and his two roommates are facing $86,000 worth of fines.
Kevin Tracy, 20 of St. Paul, alone faces a maximum penalty of $28,149 in fines, The Star Tribune reported.
In comparison, a year of tuition at UW-Madison, including housing and other expenses costs about $21,600, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
Tracy and his roommates were charged with over 135 violations, including procuring alcohol for underage people, dispensing alcohol without a permit and encouraging underage alcohol consumption, The Star Tribune stated.
However, Marci Paulsen, who handles house party cases for Madison's city attorney's office, stated that these fines are the maximum amount and could be lessened, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
by Courtney Reigh
President Barack Obama on Wednesday awarded the Medal of Honor to fallen Green Beret Staff Sgt. Robert J. Miller, who willingly sacrificed his life to save his comrades on January 25, 2008.
The ceremony was held at the White House in Washington D.C. Wednesday.
Staff Sgt. Miller's unit was ambushed on January 25, 2008 in Afghanistan. Amidst gunfire, Staff Sgt. Miller commanded his troops to fall back, while he continued to fight the insurgents.
According to the Pentagon, Staff Sgt. Miller killed at least 10 insurgents and saved 7 American and 15 Afghan soldiers, The New York Times reported.
Staff Sgt. Miller is the seventh service member to receive the Medal of Honor while serving in Afghanistan or Iraq, CNN stated.
Staff Sgt. Miller is survived by his parents, Maureen and Philip Miller.
by Courtney Reigh
A female Brazilian student was awarded over $20,000 in compensation after being expelled from a private college for wearing a bright colored minidress, MSNBC reports.
Geysi Villa Nova Arruda, 20, was expelled last year for disrespecting "ethical principles, dignity and morality" by wearing a short dress on campus, MSNBC states.
The Sao Paulo university changed its stance on Arruda's expulsion after a federal investigation was launched. Arruda said she would be returning to the university to complete the academic year, Reuters stated.
by Courtney Reigh
A second man died Tuesday after an alleged drunken driver drove into a crowd outside a Minneapolis home early Sunday morning.
The victim, whose name has not yet been released, died Monday evening at his home after being released from North Memorial Medical Center, The Star Tribune reported.
Maurice Meeks, another victim of the crash, died Sunday on his way to the hospital, The Star Tribune stated.
Police believe the driver, Amecio Enge, was intoxicated when he drove into the crowd of people. He was taken into custody Sunday, WCCO reported.
by Courtney Reigh
University of Minnesota fraternities unanimously approved a social moratorium Sunday banning guests from consuming alcohol in fraternity houses after a third sexual result has been reported in the past two weeks.
The latest assault, which took place Thursday evening at Phi Gamma Delta on the University of Minnesota's campus. The victim is a 19-year-old female University of Minnesota student, The Star Tribune reported.
This incident is the latest in a string of assaults taking place at the University of Minnesota, all of which were reported to have taken place at different fraternity houses on campus, WCCO stated.
Police say that all of the sexual assault victims had been drinking.
Chad Ellsworth, Director of the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life, said, "They made the decision to do a social moratorium, for the time being, indefinitely, until we can get our policies in a safe place so that our members and our guests are safe."
by Courtney Reigh
One man died and another is in the hospital after a man drove into a crowd of people early Saturday morning. The incident took place near the 1000 block of 39th Ave. North, WCCO reported.
The victim has been identified as 35-year-old Maurice Meeks. The other injured victim has not yet been identified, The Star Tribune stated.
The police identified the driver as 27-year-old Amecio Navaro Enge. He has been arrested on charges of probable cause murder, probable cause vehicular homicide and DWI, WCCO reported.
by Courtney Reigh
Verizon Wireless announced Sunday that they it will refund over 15 million customers who were wrongly charged. Refunds to all customers could total up to $90 million, ABC News reported.
Verizon stated that the charges affected customers who did not have data plans but were nonetheless billed. Customers who were wrongly charged will receive monetary credits on their October or November cell phone bills, The New York Times stated.
These recent customer complains are the newest in a string of complains about Verizon Wireless received by the Federal Communications Commission over the past three years, The New York Times reported.
by Courtney Reigh
Rutgers University held a silent vigil Sunday in remembrance of a student who committed suicide after a sexual encounter of his was publicly broadcast online. The vigil was held Sunday evening on the University's campus.
The body of 18-year-old Tyler Clementi, a former freshman at Rutgers, was recovered from the Hudson River Thursday, more than a week after he jumped off of the George Washington Bridge, CNN reported.
Two Rutgers students have been charged with invasion of privacy for streaming a video of Clementi with another man online, Fox News reported.
The vigil was just one of many acts of remembrance held at Rutgers University. On Friday, students wore black and many students visited a memorial for Clementi. On Saturday, a moment of silence was held before the start of the University's homecoming football game. A Facebook group in memorial of Clementi was also created, Fox News reported.
by Courtney Reigh
Crews rescued 17 people trapped on a ferris wheel in Racine, Wisconsin Saturday afternoon.
Emergency crews were called to the Party on the Pavement event after the ride appeared to have stopped working, The Chicago Tribune stated. After two hours, crews were able to evacuate all the passengers safely. No one was injured.
The ride will not be moved until an inspection is completed to determine why the ride failed, Fox News reported.
by Courtney Reigh
The victim of a September 25 shooting died Saturday at the Hennepin County Medical Center, WCCO stated.
Timothy Wayne Wilson Jr. was the victim of a shooting on the 2000 block of N. 4th St. last weekend. While police have made no arrests, the investigation is still ongoing, KSTP reported.
by Courtney Reigh
Sergio Reyes of Palmdale, California was the top finisher at the Twin Cities Marathon on Sunday. He finished the race seven seconds ahead of the second place finisher, Jeffrey Eggleston of New York, WCCO reported.
The race began early Sunday morning in at the Hubert Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis and ended at the State Capitol in St. Paul. Over 250,000 spectators attended the event, KARE 11 reported.
by Courtney Reigh
Wally the Beer Man has a new job at Sneaky Pete's after being suspended for selling alcohol to an underage fan at a Minnesota Twins game last week, The Star Tribune reported.
Wally, who had been working as a vendor for the Twins for over 40 years, said he had a momentary lapse in judgement when he was caught selling alcohol to a minor, WCCO stated.
Wally will working as an alcohol vendor at Sneaky Pete's during Twins games in the upcoming playoff season. However, he's still hopeful to return to Target Field next season, The Star Tribune reported.
by Courtney Reigh
A University of Minnesota-made film about Mississippi River pollution aired Sunday after much controversy after its original premier was cancelled. The documentary, which was produced with a grant from the Bell Museum of Natural History, focuses on farming, pollution and the Mississippi River, The Star Tribune reported.
The film aired at the Bell Museum of Natural History Sunday afternoon on the University of Minnesota campus, stated WCCO. It is also set to air on Twin Cities Public Television on Tuesday, The Star Tribune reported.
by Courtney Reigh
At least 36 people were killed and dozens were injured after a high speed train collision in Jakarta on Saturday. Officials reported that the accident was most likely a human error, The New York Times stated.
The collision took place early morning one train collided into the back of another stationary train, causing many of the carriages to derail and overturn, BBC News reported.
The Jakarta train crash was one of two crashes reported recently, the other taking place in the city of Solo in which only one civilian was killed, The New York Times stated.
by Courtney Reigh
A travel alert was issued Sunday to all Americans traveling abroad to Europe. The alert, which specifically targeted France, Germany and the UK as target countries, warns travelers to be cautious of terrorist attacks, specifically those of Al-Qaeda, The New York Times stated. British officials also raised an alert for Britons in France and Germany.
The alert, deemed less dangerous than a travel warning, is not meant to dissuade Americans from traveling to Europe. Rather, it was meant to alert travelers to be cautious of tourist attractions and public transit, The New York Times reported. However, such travel alerts could have negative effects on Europe's tourism industry, BBC News stated.
The alert was issued after details of potential militant plots were leaked to media sources last week. To prevent against attacks similar to those in Mumbai in 2008, officials in larger cities in the UK, France and Germany are taking precautions, BBC News stated.
