My Favorite Time Wasting Website

Have you ever worked in any kind of customer service or retail job? If so, I think you will like this website as much as I do.  The website is notalwasyright.com, and it is my favorite online time waster. I am always amazed by the things that come out of people's mouths.

Where do you waste time online? Post a link here!

Hazing

Last week we took part in National Hazing Prevention Week at BSU. There were some great events, including a presentation by Travis Apgar. After everything that was discussed last week, I feel like I have a pretty solid understanding of what hazing is and how it can affect a person. Fast forward to this week when a story broke about hazing at Needham High School** on the soccer team. Now, the hazing incident itself was shocking enough, but it doesn't compare to the reactions of the players' parents and the news media.

-The school reacted (correctly, and according to policy) by suspending the players and not allowing them to play in a championship game.
-The parents reacted (wrongly, and outrageously) by attempting to get a court injunction that would allow the girls to play. They did not deny their child's actions, or even argue that what they did was right. They basically argued that they shouldn't be punished for behaving in an illegal manner. One father stated to the nightly news that it was "a misguided team-building exercise", which, frankly, is pretty much the definition of hazing.
-The media reacted by sending mixed messages to the viewing public. They descended upon the families to question their motives, and used graphics with their stories that implied perhaps the school was wrong in their reactions. At the same time they all aired or wrote opinion pieces that derided the players, the coach and the parents for their actions while celebrating the school's reaction.


Perhaps it is time to consider how entertainment programming presents hazing. Movies like Animal House and Old School present it as something that is fun and brings people together. Even the popular television show Greek has shown hazing as a normal activity. I can't think of any sports movies where hazing is presented off the top of my head, but I know they exist. I wonder if presenting hazing as both normal and entertaining has led to the average person thinking it is both normal and entertaining in the real world.

What do you think? Both about the situation in Needham and the way hazing is presented in entertainment?

**Check out the comments on this link. They are pretty outrageous.

Media Undefined

I got into a major disagreement with a faculty member last week about internships. He basically said that all media internships must take place in a studio/production setting, and I disagreed. I think a media internship also relates to social media, and other content creation such as advertising and even marketing, especially when you are creating the content.

What do you guys think? What does this really broad term "media" really mean?