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My Journey to Better Writing

While I have never had much difficulties performing well in english classes or when writing papers, this course has provided me knowledge unlike any course I had previously taken. I was challenged to branch out to new forms of writing that were out of my comfort zone, such as that of investigative journalism. Prior to this course, I had never written an article or taken the necessary investigative steps to do so. Through this process, I have learned a substantial amount about this field as well as how to improve my writing overall. This course has afforded me the opportunity to learn new forms of sentence structure as well as more about various topics I am interested in through the assignments. I have also learned how to better prepare my writing by working to understand my sources and prewrite before starting the final paper. My experience within this course has been particularly beneficial in helping me develop an understanding of journalism, passion for sports journalism, improved writing skills and ability to write articles.  

One of the most impactful portions of this course was the exposure I recieved to journalism. Previous to this course I did not have a very developed view of the news but through the course, I now know to view it more critically and be wary of bias. It was pointed out within this course that many people feel obligated to read the news and forced me to self-analyze my own intentions behind reading the news. The articles provided on this topic displayed  the harsh reality that for the most part, people’s reason to remain invested in it is often selfish and vain. Looking into the news solely for entertainment purposes is not the right intention to have. The discussions in this course have also allowed me to understand the difficulties that reporters have in providing unbiased information to their audiences. Even if the intended goal is to deliver a message without bias, this is still difficult because bias is inherent in everyone’s nature. Maintaining an objective perspective, especially when discussing something I am passionate about, is a difficult task, as I’ve discovered in this course. Reporters jobs become increasingly more difficult because they must rely on the information given to them by the witnesses. This can easily lead to the information being misconstrued as a result of the potentially biased information they receive from the witnesses, as I learned from Elements of Journalism. Through this same book, I also learned a lot about the foundation of journalism and what true journalists should champion in their own work. The basis of true journalism consists of truth being the most important aspect of any piece. It is the journalists job to put forth as reliable information as they can. However, they are also faced with the responsibility of providing as much possible transparent information without revealing any government secrets. My reaction to this was a negative one as I do not believe that as a public, we should be deprived of any information, but I realize that this has little to do with the reporters themselves. Having learned about the news today and evaluating the content in many news articles, I have realized how much of today’s news is corrupted by bias and advertisement. Some of the authors introduced to us in this course suggest, for this reason, that paper news is preferred for reliable and concise information. I would now agree with this as it allows individuals to fully get up to date without having to spend hours browsing the web. Through the assignment in which we were tasked with analyzing the tactics used by a journalist, I learned how to detect bias and understand how language can be used to manipulate the ideas of the audience. Overall, I now have a new appreciation for the work that journalists do but also have an increased awareness of the bias that exists in most news sources today.

Through the process of writing my own articles, I learned that I am particularly interested in sports journalism. During this course we were assigned a paper in which we reported about a public event. The one I chose was a Dodger game and I found myself enjoying the process very much. In viewing the game from a reporting perspective, I learned much more than I expected about the sport. While I watch the Dodgers on a regular basis, I was able to pick up on many aspects of the game that I typically would not have paid attention to. Being that I am a Dodger fan, I also gained an appreciation for the difficulty of not reporting more favorably about my team, or discussing them more in depth. It was instinct to want to discuss the Dodgers more because I know more about them, but I made an effort to include an equal amount of analysis about the Marlins. This writing process also allowed me to learn a lot about the opposing team and how the Dodgers matchup against them. I now watch games in a more analytical manner and have taken to twitter to discuss my thoughts and analysis of the game. My interest in this hobby arose out of the writing assignment from this class and while I have always loved sports, I would not have discovered my interest in this otherwise. This interest spread beyond the Dodgers to the Anaheim Ducks, my all time favorite sports team. For the last essay in this course where we were able to select any topic, I chose to write an article about the future of their team. This was such an exciting process for me during which I also learned so much more about the team and the sport. Researching the sport and writing about it is nearly as fun as watching it for me. In short, the assignments in this class has helped me discover my affinity for sports journalism which I will continue to embrace in the future.

Aside from my increased passion for sports journalism, I also felt as though my writing improved exponentially through the steps taken in this course. The first way in which I think I improved was through the sentence structure practices that I completed. While my writing was not necessarily lacking grammatically, the sentence practices on appositives, verbal phrases and concessions allowed me to add to my writing by making it more advanced and interesting. It also allowed me to add more sentence variety into my papers instead of solely sticking to the same format. Another aspect of this course that I felt improved my writing was the peer response process. In having the corrections of other students, I was able to catch errors in my papers that I would not otherwise have noticed. In reading the papers of others, I was able to take from the parts of their writing that I found to work well and incorporate similar tactics in my own work. Seeing what others have done well was beneficial to my ability to improve my own work. The paper in which we evaluated the rhetorical components of an Op-ed was also very helpful to me. It allowed me to understand the tactics that personally influenced me as a reader and therefore know which ones to integrate in my own writing. This also taught me to be cautious of manipulative tactics employed by other writers so that I am not easily influenced by incorrect information. The fact that this course also forced me to write in styles that I had not been previously exposed to, such as journalism, also expanded my abilities as a writer. The reflection process also aided my rhetorical development because I was able to self analyze my work and learn from my mistakes. Simply, the various types of assignments in the course helped me develop my writing substantially.

As a final point, this course has also taught me how to write articles and report on topics in an unbiased way. The topic I chose for the article based on an interview was immigration. While my views on this topic were fairly well developed as my mom was an immigrant, this experience taught me a lot about the process. Due to the responses I received in my interview, I also learned that in many cases, journalists often do not receive the answers they expect from those that they interview. While the answers of my interview subject did not go against my beliefs, I can understand how difficult it could be for a reporter to share the thoughts of a witness who they feel are misrepresenting a topic or situation. The process of writing an article is much different than the typical prose that I was writing in high school. While some parts of the research process are similar, the manner in which the information must be shared without opinion was initially very foreign to me. That is, for most of my education up to this point, I was always writing with the goal of persuading someone of my opinion. However, I now feel as though I know how to accurately report on events, as well as avoiding any potential bias on my end since we went into depth about the fallacies that could arise in writing. Simply, one of the most rewarding parts of this course was learning how to write in an objective way through composing articles.

To conclude, the main takeaways that I gained from this course included learning about journalism, discovering my passion for sports journalism, improving my writing and learning to write articles. I think that my personal gains from this course have been significant and that I have challenged myself every step of the way. My perspective about the topics discussed in this course, especially in regard to the news, have really opened my eyes to perspectives I had not been previously exposed to. I often find myself bringing up information from this course in conversations with others. I have no doubt that I will continue to foster my interest in sports journalism after this course has ended. It has been an experience during which I have grown immensely as a writer.

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Concessions

Exercise:              Combine each pair of sentences as if you were writing a pro-Reagan paper. Then combine them as if you were writing an anti-Reagan paper.

1)     Ronald Reagan was one of the most popular presidents in American history.

He had very little knowledge of the details about issues the government must deal with.

Pro: Even though he had very little knowledge of the details about issues the government must deal with, Ronald Reagan was one of the most popular presidents in American history.

Anti: Even though  Ronald Reagan was one of the most popular presidents in American history, he had very little knowledge of the details about issues the government must deal with.

2)     He consistently made glaring mistakes in his press conferences that had to be corrected afterward.

He was well liked personally by most news reporters on the White House beat.

Pro: Even though he consistently made glaring mistakes in his press conferences that had to be corrected afterward, Ronald Reagan was well liked personally by most news reporters on the White House beat.

Anti: Despite being well liked personally by most news reporters on the White House beat,  Ronald Reagan consistently made glaring mistakes in his press conferences that had to be corrected afterward.

Exercise:              Combine each pair of sentences as if you were writing a paper supporting television. Then combine them as if you were writing a paper supporting newspapers.

1)     Television offers entertainment in more abundance and greater diversity than any medium in history.

Most television programs are superficial and mindless.

  1. Despite being superficial and mindless, television offers entertainment in more abundance and greater diversity than any medium in history
  2. Even though television offers entertainment in more abundance and greater diversity than any medium in history, it is superficial and mindless.

2)     Cable channels are quite expensive to subscribe to.

They offer movies and other programs unavailable on network channels.

Newspapers give a much more complete account of the news than does television.

They are more prone to political bias than TV.

  1. Even though newspapers give a much more complete account of the news than does television and cable channels are quite expensive to subscribe to, television offers movies and other programs unavailable on network channels.
  2. Even though they offer movies and other programs unavailable on network channels, cable channels are quite expensive to subscribe to and newspapers give a much more complete account of the news than does television.

3)     The reason is that newspapers are usually owned by individuals or families with strong political feelings.

Television networks are owned by corporations run by boards and committees.

  1. Even though newspapers are usually owned by individuals or families with strong political feelings, television networks are owned by corporations run by boards and committees.
  2. Even though television networks are owned by corporations run by boards and committees, newspapers are usually owned by individuals or families with strong political feelings.

4)     The result is that we read newspapers for substance, detail.

We watch television news for balance.

  1.  Even though we read newspapers for substance, detail, we watch television news for balance.
  2. Despite watching television news for balance, we read newspapers for substance, detail.

Concession

Join the following sentences using concession words. Try to use a variety of these joining words; see the list above.

  1. Sea View has two great cafes.

Sea View is far from campus.

  1. a) Join from the point of view of a college student without a car, whose most important concern is having a way to get to school:

Although Sea View has two great cafes, it is far from campus.       

  1. b)    Join from the point of view of a professor with a car whose day isn’t complete unless she has her morning espresso at a local cafe:

Sea View has two great cafes, even though it is far from campus.       

  1.   Sunny Hills has several outstanding public schools.

Sunny Hills has one excellent private school.

  1. a) Join from the point of view of a parent of two children in public school:

In addition to having one excellent private school, Sunny Hills has several outstanding public schools.

  1. b)   Join from the point of view of a parent of two children in private school:

In addition to having several outstanding public schools, Sunny Hills also has one excellent private school.

  1.   Sea View has poor public transportation.

Sea View has many services for senior citizens.

  1. a) Join from the point of view of a 73-year-old retired person:

Sea View has poor public transportation, but has many services for senior citizens.

  1. b)   Join from the point of a person who rides the bus to work:

Even though Sea View has many services for senior citizens, they have poor public transportation.

  1.   Sea View has great ocean views.

Sea View is far from the freeway.

  1. a) Join from the point of view of a computer specialist who must commute by freeway daily:

Despite the great ocean views, Sea View is far from the freeway.

  1. b)   Join from the point of view of a person who rarely leaves home:

Regardless of its distance from the freeway, Sea View has great ocean views. 

  1.   Sunny Hills has an outdoor swimming pool and bike paths.

Sunny Hills has no fitness centers.

  1. a) Join from the point of view of a physically active outdoors person:

Even though Sunny Hills has no fitness centers, they have an outdoor swimming pool and bike paths.

  1. b)   Join from the point of view of someone who likes to lift weights in front of an admiring audience.

Even though Sunny Hills has an outdoor swimming pool and bike paths, they have no fitness centers

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Verbal Phrases

Verbal phrases are verb forms that have no subject of its own, but depend on the sentence’s subject or a noun close to it, to perform its action.  Verbals are useful for several reasons; they can help your show simultaneous action, describe the condition of a noun, and also show a cause/effect relationship.  Verbals are signaled by the three following forms; -ing, -ed, to form.

ing form: hitting, running…

Example: “Standing before reporters, Senator Reid, who had worked behind the scenes for this result, looked euphoric”

           In this sentence, the writer is able to show that Reid is both standing and euphoric at the same time, conveying simultaneous action.

Ed form: hit, thought, prepared

Example: “Dressed in red, white, and blue for the 4th of July parade, Senator Reid stood at the front of the float waving at the throngs of jubilant celebrants.”

           In this sentence, The writer is able to show what Reid is wearing, while also describing and action.  The –ed form can be used to show simultaneous action or condition.

to form: to hit, to think

Example: “To think more clearly, Senator Reid moved into the library’s quiet area before casting his vote.”

           In this sentence, the writer is able to show a cause and effect relationship between the ideas.   It is suggesting “in order to” think more clearly…

Exercise:   The following sentences are from a National Geographic article, “Struggle of the Kurds,” by Richard Hitchens (August 1992). Underline the verbal phrases in the following sentences.

1)   Fleeing their war-torn home near Kirkuk, Iraq, a Kurdish family clings to life in the ruins of Panjwin, on the border with Iran.

2)   Lacking an alternative homeland of any kind, Kurds can emigrate, but they can’t escape.

3)   By the time I arrived, many of the former inhabitants, finding life insupportable in the refugee camps over the border, had returned to squat in the ruins of Qalat Dizah.

4)   A few days later, passing the war-scarred settlement of Rawanduz on our way back to the Turkish border, I saw other evidence of Kurdish enterprise.

5)   For months I would travel among them, trying to make sense of where this ancient people fit in the modern world.

6)   The afternoon’s serenity is regularly broken by fighter jets screaming overhead, one after another, buzzing the city before returning to their Turkish Air Force base.

Exercise:   Combine the following sentences using verbals.

1)   She banged on the side of the bus. She tried to get the driver’s attention.

 Benging on the side of the bus, she tried to get the driver’s attention.

2)   When the driver stopped the bus, Christine showed him her Fast Pass. She assured him he would be rewarded in a future life.

Assuring him he would be awarded in a future life, Cristine showed him her Fast Pass when the driver stopped the bus. 

3)   Across the aisle, a crumpled woman began to doze off. She was reading the National Enquirer. She was eating a hot dog with relish. Next to her, a businessman shoved his briefcase between them. He protected himself from accusations of sexual harassment or, possibly, cooties.

Reading the National Enquirer while eating a hot dog with relish, a crumpled woman began to doze off across the aisle. Protecting himself from accussations of sexual harrassment or, possibly, cooties, a bussinessman next to her shoved his briefcase between them.

4)   A teenager swung from the handrails above her. The teenager periodically bonked her on the head with his backpack.

Bonking her head periodically with his backpack, a teenager swung from the handrails above her.

5)   Christine closed her eyes. She held her breath. She repeated the words, “I am almost home. I am almost home.”

Repeating the words, “I am almost home, I am almost home”, Christine closed her eyes and held her breath. 

6)   A woman on the street suddenly darted into traffic. She chased after her suicidal dog.

Chasing after her suicidal dog, a woman on the street suddenly darfted into traffic 

7)   The driver slammed on his brakes. The driver encouraged us to hold on, but the dozing woman and the swinging boy both flew forward with yelps and cries.

 Encouring us to hold on the driver slammed on his brakes, the dozing woman and the swinging boy both flew forward with yelps and cries.

8)   The hot dog broke free from its mustardy bun. The hot dog rolled into the aisle. It left a trail of relish behind it.

 Rolling into the aisle the hot dog broke free from its mustardy bun, and left a trail of relish behind it.

Exercise:    Use -ed verbals to combine the following sets of sentences.

1)   Charles was frightened by the noise he’d heard. He was pale as a ghost.

Frightened by the noise he’d heard, Charles was pale as a ghost.

2)   Karyn was stranded on a desert island. She tried to make the best of it.

 Stranded on a desert island, Karyn tried to make the best out of it.

3)   Jon is attuned to nature. He spends weekends on the beach, communing with the gulls.

 Attuned to nature, Jon spends weekends on the beach communing with the gulls.

4)   The turkey was stuffed with bread and celery. It was roasted a golden brown.

Stuffed with bread and celery, the turkey was roasted a golden brown.

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Appositives

Appositives: a strategy for defining and describing terms

Appositives are noun phrases (or pronouns) used to elaborate on the meaning of the noun they are modifying.  They allow you to pack information into a sentence and describe and define terms without interrupting the flow of the sentence or forcing you to write another short sentence to do so.  You see appositives used all the time in professional writing, so keep your eyes aware of them when you read and learn how to incorporate them into your writing to add detail.

Punctuating Noun Phrase Appositives

✏       Commas can be placed before and after an appositive when it comes in the middle of a sentence:

John Milton, a poet of great vision, went blind in 1651.

✏       Dashes can also be used to set off an appositive in the middle of a sentence. Note that the use of dashes gives more emphasis to the appositive:

John Milton—a poet of great vision—went blind in 1651.

✏       When an appositive comes at the end of a sentence, put a comma before it and a period after it:

Despite his complete loss of eyesight, he went on to write a poem of epic proportion, Paradise Lost.

✏       Once again, a dash can be used to set off the appositive, and again it gives more emphasis to the appositive:

Despite his complete loss of eyesight, he went on to write a poem of epic proportion—Paradise Lost.

✏       An appositive series in the middle of a sentence is usually set off by dashes because there are already commas in the series:

Some of his greatest poems—Paradise Lost, Paradise Regained, Samson Agonistes—were written near the end of his life.

✏       An appositive series at the end of a sentence is usually set off by a colon:

His life was full of hardship: loss of office, governmental harassment, imprisonment, blindness.

(Note: A colon, punctuation usually used near the end of a sentence, cannot be used to set off an appositive series in the middle of a sentence.)

 Exercise:Identify the appositives in the following example. Underline the appositives with a single line, the noun phrases set off by a comma, dash or colon, and the noun they are modifying with double lines.

Example:

S.I. Hayakawa, a noted Semanticist, points out that advertising and poetry are alike (162).

1)       The Sacramento River, The main source of surface water in a state where distrust of centralized governmental authority has historically passed for an ethic, has its headwaters in the far northern ranges of Siskiyou County.

2)       An expression of frustrated rage, rap music tries to be outrageous in order to provoke strong reactions.

3)     The first scene of the opera Die Walkure, the second of the four operas making up Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle, takes place in the house of Hunding, a fierce warlord.

4)     As Baranczak point out, Milosz-noble prize winning poet-rejects symbols in favor of metonymy and synecdoche, those figures of speech which represent a whole by a thing allied to it or by part of it.

5)     Cotton Mather was an exception, one who so fully accepted and magnified the outlook of his locality that he has entered folklore as the archetypal puritan, not only a villainous figure in the pages of Hawthorne, William Carlos Williams and Robert Lowell, but an object of parody even to his fellow townsmen in 18thCentury Boston.

Exercise:Combine the following sentences into a single sentence using noun phrase appositives. Be sure to write out the entire sentence in the space provided. Refer to the section on punctuating appositives if you are confused.

1)     Deep in the coke trade’s shadow, marijuana has become one of the largest cash crops in the United States.

Marijuana is the dowdy green matron of the drug scene.

Deep in the coke trade’s shadow, marijuana, the dowdy green matron of the drug scene, has become one of the largest cash crops in the United States.

2)     Prosecutors applied tough felony laws to these (pregnant) women.

The laws were designed for drug dealers, not drug users.

Prosecutors applied tough felony laws, designed for drug dealers, not drug users, to these (pregnant) women.

3)     Serotonin acts as a chemical messenger between neurons.

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter.

Neurons are the nerve cells of the brain.

Serotonin, a neurotransmitter, acts as a chemical messenger between neurons, the nerve cells of the brain. 

4)     Malawi’s cash crops were unchanged, though their value on the world market continued to fluctuate.

The cash crops are peanuts, tea, coffee, sugarcane, and tobacco.

Malawi’s cash crops- peanuts, tea, coffee, sugarcane, and tobacco, were unchanged, though their value on the world market continued to fluctuate.

5)     Trainspotting is the most hyped film of the summer.

Trainspotting is a techno-color trip through Scotland’s junkie underbelly.

Trainspotting, a techno-color trip through Scotland’s junkie underbelly, is the most hyped film of the summer.

6)     Dr. Laurie Gage has spent hours in the tank helping feed and medicate the beaked whales.

Dr. Laurie Gage is one of the few women who are exotic animal vets.

Dr. Laurie Gage, one of the few women who are exotic animal vets, has spent hours in the tank helping feed and medicate the beaked whales.

7)     Now clean for four-and-a-half years, Dave Navarro had used heroin while a member of Jane’s Addiction.

Dave Navarro is the guitarist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Jane’s Addiction is an influential first-wave alternative band.

Now clean for four-and-a-half years, Dave Navarro- the guitarist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers- had used heroin while a member of the influential first-wave alternative band-Jane’s Addiction.

Congratulations, you have just recreated sentences originally written by professional writers!

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What I’ve learned from “Elements of Journalism”

Chapter 2 of The Elements of Journalism hones in on reiterating that the most important part of journalism is the truth. The importance of truth within journalism is further developed as its importance to society is stated. The authors go as far to state that truth is innately sought after by us as humans and has been valued and prized for centuries. The authors described the importance of discovering the truth for journalists. However, their job is made significantly more difficult because they must rely on the accounts of others. It is at this point that the truth begins to become misconstrued because unless they witnessed an event firsthand, the accounts they receive are potentially biased. The difficulties that reporters face in discovering the truth remind me of the essay we are currently working on as we are evaluating the bias present in articles. However, I do not believe that the only problem that reporters face is as a result of untrustworthy witness accounts, but that in reality, many journalists display personal bias as well. This especially detrimental to the protection of the truth today because of how quickly news travels. Winston Churchill described this when he stated that “a lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on”.

Chapter 3 of The Elements of Journalism describes that journalist, first and foremost, should cater to the citizens. In other words, delivering the truth to them should always be the main priority. According to the authors, this imminent goal is often discolored by the desire to make a profit, often leading to the needs of the citizens being compromised. The book defines this commitment to providing citizens with truthful news as “journalistic independence”. I felt as though the reason that this name is so fitting is because often times, big news companies will force their employees to follow a certain agenda and they must therefore be independent to truly report the truth. The book then goes on to share 5 important rules that news companies must follow in order to maintain their duty of truth to the citizens. They are as follows: ” 1. The owner/corporation must be committed to citizens first, 2. hire business managers who also put citizens first, 3.  set and communicate clear standings, 4. journalists have final say over news, and 5. communicate clear standards to the public”. These rules are particularly beneficial to the audience because it helps people understand what kind of news entities they should be supporting if they value the truth. 

Do you think any large news companies today truly abide by these rules?

Chapter 4:

This section focuses on the verification of truth within the field of journalism. This section posed parallels to the previous chapters that covered the importance of the truth in journalism, but this time, regarded the importance of accuracy as well. Personally I believe that this is incredibly important and that today, since we live in a world where the news is inherently subject to bias, that we must be aware of this. One of the most impactful quotes that was present in the section was that “neutrality is not a fundamental principle of journalism. It is merely a voice, or device, to persuade the audience of one’s accuracy or fairness”. In other words, it is the caution of “bias” that people fear but in reality, what they really hope for is accuracy. The term bias has been coined out of this fear of inaccurate information. There were various ways of verification of truth mentioned that included seeking multiple witnesses, explaining as much detail about sources, and asking many for comments. Personally, I think that we can incorporate this strategies to discover the truth for ourselves as the audience because it often takes a critical eye to discover the truth in today’s media storm. I believe that this section strongly supported the audience’s right to truthful information and that journalists must make it a priority to get the facts right for the public. Transparency within the news is vital for the truth to be accessible and in the future, news companies should foster transparency over profit. 

Chapter 5:

This chapter of the book delves into Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel’s opinion that journalist are not required to be neutral, but instead, they must be independent from those they cover. In other words, it is elaborated that it is important to truthfully inform the public, without being influenced by them. It is shared that people feel like there is a divide between themselves and those who produce the news- typically due to their inability to know what they do in the same way. However, this statement, as shared by Juan Gonzalez, struck me as strange because we are able to go out and find the news sources and learn truths for ourselves-it just takes a little more effort. In fact, we have all become journalists of sorts in this class through the reporting assignments that we have done.  The book stresses that it is important that journalists fulfill their task of informing the public, but not being an activist regarding what they report. It is when these traces of bias and personal agendas come into play that people begin to have issues with the truthfulness of the news.  

Chapter 6:

Chapter 6 of this book discusses that the fundamentals of reporting, specifically investigative reporting, are rooted in the first amendment.  Because of fundamentals, journalists have a unique responsibility and power over the people they report to and the way people access information.  Because of this, they also have a responsibility to monitor that power. Journalists are forced to maintain a balance between keeping people informed while still keeping secret the most bare government secrets, as elaborated by Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel when discussing the watchdog role of journalists. This is difficult because while they are meant to strive for transparency, they must be cautious of the potential consequences of sharing certain information. While I understood this, it still makes me uncomfortable as a citizen who wishes to have complete transparency in my government. However, I understand that this has much less to do with the press, and much more to do with our government. In short, investigative journalist requires the investigation of facts that are then shared with the public, but this role bears much responsibility. 

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Falling Into the Fallacy

In the Politico article, “U.S. officials push for sanctions on China over oil purchases from Iran”, Eliana Johnson discusses the current U.S. objective to put further sanctions in place in order to apply pressure on Iran. Although these additional sanctions are meant to contribute to an end goal of reaching peace, Johnson expresses her disapproval of the way the situation is being handled in her article. In the article, she describes the overall U.S. goal to put pressure on Iran as well as a summary of the events preceding China’s defiance of the original sanctions. This paper will analyze the effectiveness of Johnson’s argument by examining the rhetorical strategies and appeals that she utilized to enhance the validity of her claims regarding potential U.S. sanctions on China, which are the driving force behind her argument that these actions will likely result in increased tensions abroad. Despite the lack of supporting evidence and presence of fallacious arguments, Johnson’s article is effective due to her appeal to the audience’s fear and compelling language.  

One of the weaker aspects of Johnson’s article was that she makes various claims regarding the consequences of U.S. actions abroad that are unsupported by evidence and statistics. An example this absence of evidence lies within the following excerpt from the article: “It has had some success in persuading several of Iran’s largest consumers — India, Japan, South Korea and Turkey — to curb their purchases.” This statement is void of any statistical testimony as to what “some success” truly means in regard to this progress. By failing to provide more concrete details regarding the success of these sanctions, this conclusion is left up to the audience. If Johnson has provided legitimate statistics regarding the extent of the success of the sanctions, she would have established better control of the argument. However, in this case, this lack of evidence serves to make her argument seem stronger because it makes U.S. efforts seem less successful than they are, therefore making her argument more compelling. However, when Johnson states that further sanctions would “complicate trade talks between the two countries and further strain the relationship”, she is making an assumption without any evidence to support it. This makes her main argument weaker because the claim is hinging on nothing but speculation. Additionally, by failing to support why further sanctions would result in greater tension, it weakens the logos, a persuasive device that employs logic, of her argument since there is no logical explanation for this conclusion. Simply, Johnson’s failure to provide sufficient supportive evidence weakens her argument to an extent. 

Aside from her failure to provide sufficient evidence, Johnson loses credibility as she commits various logical fallacies, or premises that no not logically support the conclusion, within her argument. For example, the claim that “China hawks on the National Security Council are now pushing for the U.S. to impose secondary sanctions on Chinese entities, a move that would complicate trade talks between the two countries and further strain the relationship”, is illustrative of the slippery slope fallacy, when the arguer claims that a dire consequence will take place without evidence. In depth, Johnson is posing the assumption that if legislative action is taken against China, that it is inevitable that their relationship with the United States, including their trade relationship, will be subverted. In making this argument, this unsubstantiated assumption of dire consequences strips Johnson of her credibility as she does not make proper arguments. In addition, Johnson also commits the red herring fallacy, that is when the author goes off on a tangent that distracts from what’s really at stake, in the statement that “Trump has repeatedly slammed it as “the worst deal in history.” His aides, meanwhile, have struggled to explain how they intend to compel or induce Iran to engage in negotiations for a deal to replace it — beyond adding still more pressure”. In choosing to focus on Trump’s commentary and the supposed lack of explanation regarding government activity abroad, Johnson is distracting from her argument regarding the potential consequences of further sanctions. This tactic is also drawing the audience’s attention to the seeming lack of control of the officials in charge, also sidetracking her argument. As a result of these fallacies, Johnson detracts from her ethos, an appeal to the audience’s ethics,and discrets herself as a source.

Aside from the flaws within Johnson’s article, her argument is effective in raising her audience’s concern and draws their support by using fear tactics, or appeals to their emotion of fear. For example, by describing the situation between the U.S. and Iran as “amid the worsening standoff over Iran’s nuclear program”, Johnson builds the audience’s concern regarding the event. By creating a frightening scene within the minds of her readers, Johnson compels them to support her stance against furthered sanctions because it provoked a fear factor. On a similar note, Johnson appeals to the audience’s fear through language and the threat of impending tension by stating that “China’s continuing defiance would seem to undercut the Trump administration’s claim that its efforts to squeeze Iran are working”. The previous excerpt from Johnson’s article exemplifies her renewed application of this fear tactic, while also appealing to the audience’s pathos, or sense of emotion, because it heightens the stress of the situation by insinuating that it is only worsening. This statement is also building up her logos because she explains that China’s actions insinuate that the U.S. has been ineffective thus far. Simply, through her integration of the fear tactic, Johnson was able to compel her audience to support her argument. 

In addition to the incorporation of fear tactics, Johnson also makes her argument more compelling to the audience through the application of incriminating diction and tone. An example of this lies within the statement that U.S. officials “have struggled to explain how they intend to compel or induce Iran to engage in negotiations for a deal to replace it”. This tone makes the authorities involved in the matter seem incapable of solving the problem, therefore making their decisions seem less reasonable. By discrediting the officials in charge of easing the tensions and avoiding conflict, Johnson’s argument that their actions to increase sanctions seems more stable and reliable. Similarly, Johnson also uses a similar tone when referring to President Trump, “but many Iran analysts consider them politically impossible for Iranian leaders to accept — and Trump has at times brushed them aside”. This exemplifies the same tactic that was previously outlined because the tone and language clearly shows Johnson’s lack of respect for these official’s choices. In specific, the tone of the word “brushed” in regard to the handling of the situation sounds unprofessional, leading the audience to further support Johnson’s seemingly more “rational” point of view. This specific argument is particularly well oriented for audience members who are already displeased with the current political status and those who oppose President Trump. To summarize, through the application of loaded language and condemning diction, Johnson’s argument became more effective. 

In conclusion, Johnson’s argument was overall effective, regardless of her inclusion of various fallacies, lack of evidence and loaded language. Her stance regarding the U.S. decision to push for more sanctions is against this action on the grounds that it will only incite further conflict. In order to compel her audience of this stance, Johnson uses faulty logic to make the situation seem worse as well as discrediting the officials in charge of the matter. While her incorporation of logical fallacies takes away from her credibility, Johnson’s argument is still effective due to the emotional response she evokes from her audience, in favor of her argument. 

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The News: A Scavenger Hunt for the Truth

As a society, the news is regarded as a vital source of information that individuals are considered responsible for staying up to date with. However, due to the dubious credibility of news sources today, there is reasoning to support a rejection of the status quo, encouraging the public to refrain from reading the news. The discussion regarding whether or not people should pay attention to current news sources is a controversial one as the benefits of this task are more closely examined. Due to bias and political agendas corrupting the majority of news sources today, some individuals have deemed current news as unnecessary and unproductive. In comparing the views of various authors who share a similar dissatisfaction with modern news platforms, I was able to dissect some similarities in their opposition to these sources. This paper will examine the commonalities between the ideas of various authors regarding the credibility of the news and the extent to which it should be relied upon, in comparison to my personal experiences with the news and how it should evolve in the future. 

In comparing the beliefs of various authors who oppose a reliance on modern news sources, some similarities in their reasoning were apparent. One argument that they all seemed to share was the belief that news should be consumed in finite sources. For example, John Zeratsky, in his article “Why it’s More Important Than Ever to Ignore the News”, expresses his concern that “If you spend all day obsessing over bad news, when will you have time to do anything about it?” (Zeratsky). In other words, devoting too much time to staying informed could potentially lead to inactivity when it matters. This dilemma can be broken down into this simple analogy: someone could dedicate endless hours to researching learning to surf but will not have any success until they chose to take action and try it themselves. In order to incite any change, individuals must not dedicate too much time relying on the news but instead choose to take action when they feel change is necessary. Authors Jack Shafer and Brett and Kate McKay offered various suggestions regarding how to avoid falling into a rabbit hole of endless news articles online. Jack Shafer, in his article “Why Print News Still Rules” suggests that readers opt for printed news sources instead of online platforms in order to efficiently catch up on the news. In specific, he states “newsprint has the power to focus me. It blocks distractions. Give me 20 minutes with the newsprint version of the Times and I’m convinced I could clobber anybody in a news quiz who used the same time reading from the Times website” (Shafer). That is, Shafer champions newspapers over online platforms due to his belief that it allows him to more effectively absorb the information. Overall, all of these authors agree that people should limit the amount of time they devote to reading the news in fear that it will lead to decreased productivity, both in their personal lives and in regard to political and civil action. Another opinion shared by the authors is the idea that perhaps, people only choose to read the news out of a feeling of implied social responsibility. This idea is voiced by Brett and Kate McKay in their article “Is There Any Reason to Keep Up With the News?” and supported with evidence from a psychological study, making their argument more compelling. John Zeratsky shares this notion as he states that “the breaking news runs on a very potent myth: You need to know what’s going on around the world, and you need to know now” (Zeratsky). In essence, these authors share the idea that people only remain connected with the news in order to fulfill a sense of social responsibility that in turn, decreases their daily productivity. A common theme among the ideas of these authors is that they feel as though an excessive interest in the news is too time consuming and not worthwhile. In short, while each author had a different motivation for composing their articles regarding their opposition to the news, they all shared similar ideals concerning an excessive devotion to reading the news. 

In contrast to the opinions of the aforementioned authors, I still consider the news an important source of information in society today, but agree that the current news system is flawed. Initially, I felt as though I would strongly disagree with the author’s opinions due to the potency of their titles in opposition to the news. However, after analyzing their articles, I realized that none of them encouraged their audiences to actually stop reading the news, but instead suggested better alternatives to online news consumption as well as ways to limit the amount of time spent reading the news. One suggestion, as listed by John Zeratsky in his article, is one that I personally abide to and encourage. Zeratsky advises his audience to “Sign up for a daily news summary email” (Zeratsky) in order to quickly and efficiently stay up to date. My advocacy of choosing finite news sources stems from my experience attempting to stay informed while juggling a busy schedule. For the most part, all of the authors value some form of the news and for this reason, I found their chosen titles to be erroneous and divisive, hypocritical for an article regarding the biased nature of news sources today. In addition, I strongly disagree with the stance that not reading the news is socially irresponsible. In fact, as I was reading Tim Ferriss’ 4 Hour Work Week, I found myself being particularly appalled at his belief that reading the news takes away from his ability to be productive and that if something is important, he would hear about it from others. Ironically, this author and his stance on the news was referenced in a positive light in John Zeratsky’s article as he listed ways to limit news consumption. This idea was also shared by Brett and Kate McKay when it is stated that “With the time I save in not following the news more… I personally find works on philosophy, history, sociology, science, and so on ultimately much more edifying and educational — more pertinent both to my personal and professional goals — than the news. While the truth of the news expires each 24 hours, such books often stay relevant for several years, and even centuries, and spark my mind in ways the news never does” (McKay). My opposition to this statement lies within the fact that the purpose of the news is not to allow individuals to reach their personal educational goals, but instead inform them about current events. Understanding the political and social state of our society cannot be achieved through reading books that were written in the past. While we must be aware of the past in order to better the future, we must also be aware of the current status of our society in order to continue to progress. This is especially true in our current world where our society and technology is constantly evolving. Without an understanding of the direction that our world is headed, people will fall behind in more than just one aspect of their life. Another reason that staying informed is critical to the well-being of our society is that in America, we have a democratic political system that is fueled by the votes of citizens. Without an awareness of current politics and world events, this system is put at risk. Essentially, while it may not be immediately obvious, the news plays a significant role in our society and without it, people would lack guidance and awareness. Simply, while I agree with the authors to some extent in regard to limiting the amount of time spent on the news, I still believe that the news is a valuable resource that is a necessary tool in order to be aware of current events.

As for how the role that the news should have in society in the future, steps must be taken to increase the validity of the information being distributed as well as the way the information is presented to the public. My suggestion as to how individuals can uncover the truth within the news would be by gathering as many reports of the same event and dissecting the facts from each one. By comparing the various recounts of the same event, the similarities between them should lead to a clear understanding of what actually occurred. Deciphering the truth within the news when there is doubt regarding the validity of a source is similar to a scavenger hunt of sorts. In the future, news platforms must be proactive in setting guidelines for journalists in regard to ensuring that the evidence provided within articles is accurate, statistically significant and reliable. There should be a push for more stringent rules to be assigned to the disbursement of information into society because as a society, we should value truth and transparency. Another aspect of news platforms that should be improved in the future is the design. As expressed by Jack Shafer, “Don’t completely forsake the design language that made newspapers great and informed readers for generations…Don’t try to trap me on your site like a rat in a maze, forever clicking…direct the reader to that which is vital, tease him with that which is entertaining and frivolous, and give him a sense of a journey completed by the time he hits the last pages” (Shafer). In other words, as printed news become increasingly obsolete, online news platforms should cater to the practical needs of their viewers and choose to clearly display the pertinent information rather than choosing to drown their audiences in a pool of information. News sites today are losing sight of their responsibility to the public to inform them of critical events. In the future, I hope to see a distancing of entertainment news from news platforms and a greater emphasis on significant social, political and fiscal events. In other words, modern news platforms today have become corrupt with bias, clickbait articles and articles riddled with inaccurate information and it is my hope that in the future, news sites will better cater to their audiences by focusing on delivering concrete, reliable information. 

In short, as a result of the lack of reliable news sources in today’s society, many individuals have turned away from the news or greatly limited their news consumption.  However, the importance of staying up to date with current events should not be completely discouraged as it is still important for individuals to know what is going on around them. In order to navigate the news today, it is important to think about the information critically and decide whether or not it can be relied upon. It is important to be aware of potential bias but still continue to stay up to date with current events in order to contribute to society in a positive way and make a difference. There are a variety of ways to not become overly consumed by the news while still remaining informed. As the news continues to evolve in the future, platforms should focus on increasing credibility and accuracy as well as becoming more user friendly and practical. The news shapes a significant portion of our society today and will continue to do so in the future, therefore it should not be disregarded. 

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Immigrants in the United States

Hear the story of someone who went through the immigration process at just 16 years old.

It was 1979 and Karin Copquin was fleeing economic, political and social hardship in Argentina as a result of a corrupt government. Her story is a depiction of one of the many experiences that people endure when moving to the United States. People decide to immigrate to the U.S. for many reasons but Karin, like many others, came in search for a better life. The immigration process is different for every individual and is often times viewed as controversial. There are endless discussions today regarding the fairness, lengthiness and restrictiveness of the process, all contributing to an overall negative view of the American immigration system. However, the experience of every individual is not the same and what Karin had to say does not necessarily align with the stereotypes surrounding this topic. Through her story, one can gain insight to what her life was before coming to the United States, how the experience was once she arrived and how she feels about the immigration process today.

Before arriving to the United States, Karin had known no other reality than the hardships she had been raised with. In fact, she had only lived in Argentina for 16 years before coming to the United States. Where she lived, she faced a failing economy and a vast lack of political freedoms, inspiring her to move to the United States on a student visa. Due to her young age, the immigration process was fairly simple because of the fact that she was a student. However, while dealing with the American consulate in Argentina, she was faced with unwelcoming and discourteous situations throughout the entire process. After finishing High School, she was granted her second visa to attend college. Another inspiration of Karin’s that drove her to move to the U.S. was her desire to learn the language and culture. What would have been called a daunting experience by most was strongly sought after by her. Due to Karin’s home life in Argentina, she was forced to travel and move to the United States completely alone. When she was only 9 years old, her dad passed away, leaving her with only two abusive brothers and her ill mother. Without the support of a family, Karin’s immigration process was controlled solely by herself.  Before moving, Karin was a second generation born in Argentina with foreign gw up with grandparents. She grew up around various languages including german, russian and spanish so she was raised with an appreciation of different customs and cultures. After her dad’s death, Karin worked 12 hour days as a tutor and house cleaner by the age of 11 in order to help support her family. She also endured severe food rationing that was imposed by the government, along with extreme inflation. In short, Karin’s life before moving to the United States was challenging and contributed to her reason to immigrate.

Once Karin did make the move to the United States, it was clear that her experience was very different from that of her previous living situation and also different than she expected it to be. Her expectation in coming to the United States was that people “lived in large homes like in the movies, with a maid and a nanny and that everyone had freedom of speech”. However, after immigrating, her life was different than the expectation that had developed. Instead, life was lonely since she was so young without a family. She worked hard as she attended college during the day and worked long nights. She was also pained as she saw the progression of the country in that she felt citizens were losing their freedoms over time in regard to “outrageous taxation, excessive government control”  and the realization that many undocumented people did not have to follow the same process that she did. Simply, after moving to the United States, Karin “slept less, worked harder and suffered more stress” due to the effort that she had to put in to survive. Surprisingly, she does not believe that she was afforded any more opportunities than she was in Argentina, but instead, she gained access to a more stable political and economic situation. For her, seeking a better life had more to do with her personal freedoms rather than the opportunities she sought. Once settling in though, Karin was faced with a siginificant amount of discrimination. While Karin believes that culture and traditions from one’s past should be kept to the home rather than blatantly celebrated publicly in the U.S., she did mention that while some people were kind to her, others were very racist. Overall, her experience in immigrating to the United States was different than what she expected but in many ways, she still felt that it was worth it and allowed her to better her life.

After having completed the immigration process and lived in the United States for many years, Karin has developed her own opinion on today’s immigration process. When directly asked her stance on illegal immigration, Karin stated that she does not support asnything that breaks the law. She feels as though it is not the responsibility of the U.S. to provide help and assistance to others by allowing them access to this country without documentation. Having gone through the process herself, she has her own respect for the law and for the country that granted her the new life that she has been able to lead. In fact, when asked about any changes that she feels should be made to the immigration process, Karin stated that in her opinion, the process is in no way “too difficult”, and that is is fair considering the immigration policies of other nations. When asked about how she thinks the process should be changed in the future, she suggested that there should be clear checklists that immigrants must follow to qualify for immigration and then wait to see if they are accepted. She believes that everyone who applies for citizenship should have proof of legal sponsorship in order to enter or be an asset to the United States. For safety and fairness reasons, she also believes that individuals should apply for citizenship in their own country and not allowed entrance until documented. Simply, when asked about her stance on immigration policy, Karin believes the current system is both fair and necessary. 

In short, Karin’s immigration story has given her insight about what the immigration process should be like today and how she feels about her experience. Even though the process is considered unfair by many, Karin believes that considering the benefits and security, the strict regulations are understandable. Due to her challenging past, Karin feels like she has gained a lot by moving to the United States. However, she does not think that the process of becoming a citizen was that easy. Although, her difficulties have more to do with the racism she faced in the country, rather than the immigration process itself. Now, Karin lives in California with her two children and her husband in a nice home and would never change her decision to become an American citizen.  

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What Does the Anaheim Ducks Future Look Like?

The Anaheim Ducks have been an NHL team since 1993 and have won the Stanley Cup once, in 2007. As a team, while they have never dominated in the NHL, they have had some stronger seasons than they have had recently. In fact, the Ducks made the playoffs for 6 years in a row, until their streak was broken this most recent season. This season was a complicated one for the Ducks as many of their top line players were out on injury for the beginning of the season and due to their head coach being fired, leaving the team without a coach for the remainder of the season. All of these complications that led the Ducks to one of their worst seasons yet, leaving fans wondering what this means for their future as a team. Many factors contribute to whether or not a team has a prosperous season including their coaching staff and management, ability to sign new players, current offense and defense and the teams speed. One of the most significant factors is whether or not a team has the ability to expand by signing new players or not. This is often limited by the salary caps put in place by the National Hockey League in order to ensure fairness and equality among teams. Basically, the salary cap is a set amount of money that a team can spend on all of their players contracts in order to ensure that no one team is able to sign many top players simply because they have the funds to do so. Simply, all of these factors contribute to the Anaheim Ducks ability to succeed in the future. However, the team’s future can be predicted through an analysis of their offensive line, salary cap and coaching staff. 

In regard to how the Ducks offensive line will perform in the future, there is a lot of uncertainty. Currently, the Ducks have their cap filled by many expensive contracts that stretch over a 7 year contract. Unfortunately, the players signed to these contracts are nearing the end of their professional careers in age and will therefore be putting a strain on the teams ability to perform. However, this fact is offset by the reality that many of the Ducks rookies and prospects have been showing immense talent and skill. They all put up great numbers in the minors and have displayed a competitive edge during their time in the NHL. Players like Sam Steel, Max Comtois and Isac Lundstrom are some of the Ducks most uplifting prospects and  have all been signed to entry level salaries, therefore not taking up a lot of cap space. The overall abilities of these young Ducks can be expressed through the statement released by Corey Pronman in Athletic’s article that “placed the Ducks at No. 15 in having the best farm system”, or Ducks in their minor team. Moreover, since then, the San Diego Gulls, the farm team, have acquired players who are getting lots of attention within the NHL. However, the problem with the Ducks offense is that it is uncertain if these players will play to the caliber of driving forces on the team like Ryan Getzlaf  and Ryan Kesler, who held the Ducks strong through their championship win in 2007. CJ Woodling, a reporter for the Ducks stated that even though these young players are talented, ‘their successes in juniors and in the AHL, their previous career numbers do not suggest that they will be as effective as the Ducks captain”. In other words, the offensive future of the Ducks is left uncertain due to the lack of strong, big name players to drive the team. On the other hand, the Ducks coaching staff predicts that their current offensive stars will still be performing well within the next 3 years, meaning the Ducks are likely to secure a playoff spot this season. In spite of the lack of high scoring offensive players, the Ducks do have a fairly strong lineup of forwards. Players like Ondrej Kase and Rikard Rakell were both on track for 30 point seasons in scoring, that being in the top 5% of scorers in the NHL, had they not become injured midseason. As for the upcoming season, these players have made a full recovery and will be returning to play in October.  In addition, the Ducks also have the best goalie in the league and is very early in his career. Aside from this, sports journalist Ian Denomme states that “Their forwards might be a little slow and have a hard time keeping up with the likes of the young Oilers and Flames, but their ‘D’ more than makes up for it” (Donomme), meaning that regardless of the uncertainty regarding the Ducks offense, their defense will likely be able to pick up the slack. 

As previously mentioned, the Ducks are faced with a strict restriction on how much money they can spend on their players salaries. Currently, the majority of the money is committed to the salaries of 3 top players, Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry and  Ryan Kesler, who are slowly dropping in ratings for the Ducks. However, these Ducks contracts will only last for 3-4 more years, meaning that they will no longer be restrained by these expensive contracts for much longer.  The concern is that they will stop making a valuable contribution to the team while being signed to multimillion dollar contracts, inhibiting them from signing any new talent. However, some sources, such as Justin Ritzel from the Ducks Foundation, think that the Ducks salary cap is actually as it includes “mainly players being paid for under market value” (Ritzel). In other words, whether or not the lack of substantial salary cap space ends up inhibiting the Ducks from future success depends on whether or not their young, and old, talent can put up the necessary points. According to the previous breakdown of the teams strengths and weaknesses, the Ducks are looking at a team that is likely to put up good numbers as long as their young players continue to display the same potential.  

As a final point, the Ducks coaching change is likely to be extremely influential in their future as a team. Their previous coach, Randy Carlyle, was previously fired from the Ducks franchise after leading the team through a losing streak that lost them their playoff spot. However, they then rehired him in 2016, claiming that he was the only coach who had led the Ducks to the Cup and could get them there again. During this most recent 2018-2019 season, Carlyle set the Ducks on another losing streak, this time 12 games long, out of an 80 game regular season. With over 30 games left in the season, the Ducks were left without a head coach, and no replacement was made. No coaching change was made for the remainder of the season because the Ducks were so behind that they would not be able to qualify for the postseason. However, at the end of the season, the Ducks announced their selection of a new coach, Dallas Eakins, “ who has coached the Ducks’ AHL team in San Diego for the last four years and compiled a 154-95-23 record during his tenure” (Denomme), according to Ian Denomme. Due to his success with the farm team and the fact that he has trained many of the newly signed young Ducks, experts predict that he will improve the teams stats. This change could be a significant turn around for the ducks since they have had the same coach since 2005, other than a brief 5-month period when they hired Bruce Boudreau before rehiring Randy Carlyle. Essentially, after having served as the Ducks coach through their playoff win, Carlyle was fired but then rehired, leading the Ducks into many losing streaks. This mostly resulted from questionable line changes and a lack of defensive strategy during games. After his firing though, the Ducks displayed immense improvement, even without a coach, as they went on to win the majority of their remaining games. This fact is indicative of the Ducks likelihood to succeed under a different coach, especially with Eakins having led their farm team to their most successful season yet. Additionally,, Eakins has been familiar with the Ducks franchise and the players for over 6 years and will therefore not take long to adjust and begin making a valuable contribution to the team. 

In short, the future of the Ducks success as a team, in both the short and long term, is overall hopeful. While there are concerns regarding their top player’s ability to keep up in the upcoming years, while restricting the Ducks with expensive contracts, the Ducks will still have the support of their many young talented players. Based on their current statistics, it looks like they will be making their way to being well known NHL scorers. In regard to being able to continue to sign new talent, the Ducks will mainly have to rely on their current players until their top 3 large contracts end in 3 years. Aside from the players contribution to a strong season, the new coaching changes are predicted to have a positive effect on their rankings. This is mostly based on the fact that their new coach has had previous successes with the Ducks franchise. However, the definition of the team being successful is dependent on what the timeline for this success is. It seems as though in the long run, the Ducks stand to be extremely competitive, once they are free from the salary cap issues. Within the next 3 years though, they are likely to make significant progress. Therefore, while there are many uncertainties to how the Ducks future will be, the majority of data supports the claim that they will be strong competitors in the upcoming years.

Works Cited

Denomme, Ian. “2020 Vision: What the Anaheim Ducks Roster Will Look like in Three Years.” TheHockeyNews, 14 July 2017, thehockeynews.com/news/article/2020-vision-what-the-anaheim-ducks-roster-will-look-like-in-three-years.

“List of Anaheim Ducks Seasons.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 20 May 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Anaheim_Ducks_seasons.

“Randy Carlyle.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 28 July 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randy_Carlyle.

Ritzel, Justin. “5 Reasons Why the Ducks Future Is Looking Up.” Anaheim Calling, Anaheim Calling, 22 Apr. 2019, http://www.anaheimcalling.com/2019/4/22/18485719/five-reasons-why-the-ducks-future-is-looking-up-anaheim.

Woodling, CJ. “5 Reasons to Be Concerned about the Ducks Future.” Anaheim Calling, Anaheim Calling, 1 May 2019, http://www.anaheimcalling.com/2019/5/1/18519341/5-reasons-to-be-concerned-about-the-ducks-future-anaheim.

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Covering the Dodgers


The Los Angeles Dodgers managed to secure a win against the Miami Marlins on July 19, 2019 at Dodger Stadium. The starting pitcher for the Dodgers was Hyun-Jin Ryu, who has maintained an ERA of 1.78 this season, and the Marlins had Zac Gallen starting with an ERA of 3.67. The game came to an end with the Dodgers winning 2-1 with no extra innings. The Dodgers displayed a different pitching style and incorporated their playoff bullpen as they had Kenta Maeda, a starting pitcher in their bullpen, with Kenley Janson as their closer. Regardless of the loss, the Marlins’ pitcher, Gallen, limited the Dodgers damage immensely. Overall, the game was a tough match due to the significant statistical difference within the matchup between the two teams. That is, the Dodgers are standing as first in the National League while the Marlins are in the last, in addition to the consequential difference in the ERAs of their starting pitchers. After this game, the Dodgers continued to win the next two games against the Marlins, sweeping the series. In order to fully cover the outcome and progression of the game, the main events that led to the final score of the game, along with an analysis of each team’s contributions throughout the game, are significant. 

While the Marlins were statistically disadvantaged to the Dodgers, the Dodgers had not played historically well against them in the past, leading to a challenging match up. Coach Roberts, the Dodgers head coach, voiced this when he stated that “History speaks very closely to me with the Marlins. Over the last few years, they have played us very tough, so we’ve got to come out here and play good baseball.” (Coach Roberts). The coach’s words rang true as the game came to a close end. The Marlin’s pitcher, Gallen, pitched 5 and a half innings, giving up no runs. The Dodgers starting pitcher, Ryu pitched 7 innings and gave up a run to the Marlins at the top of the 4th inning as Jorge Alfaro doubled to Alex Verdugo in the left field, allowing Haroldo Ramirez to score. This game was subordinate representation of Ryu’s pitching as it lowered his average from a 1.78 to 1.76. Followed by Ryu was relieved by Kenta Maeda who pitched his first non starting game this season. This was a controversial choice as Maeda is used to his starting position. Roberts expressed his understanding the peculiarity of this choice as he says that “I know that we view him as a starter. He views himself as a starter,” said manager Dave Roberts. “But for him to give us one or two innings, it was electric, it really was. You saw some 94s [mph] there, the slider was really on point” (Coach Roberts.) He was able to hold down the score for the inning until he was replaced with Kenley Jansen who saved his 24th game for the Dodgers this season. The Dodgers were able to recover from the 1-0 deficit in the 6th inning when Corey Seager got on base and allowed Alex Verdugo to score, tying the game. Later in the same inning, Enrique Hernandez got on base due to a fielding error by Marlin Starlin Castro, allowing Justin turner to score, resulting in what would become the final score, 2-1. Thus, regardless of the Marlin’s disadvantage to the Dodgers, they managed to keep the game close and perform well as the Dodgers fought to secure the lead. 

In spite of some errors, the Dodgers were able to win against the Marlins and defeat them in the series. In the first inning, a fielding error by Joc Pederson allowed Marlin Curtis Granderson to get on base. Another error that resulted in a Marlin player, Harold Ramirez to get on base. In spite of these errors, though, none of them resulted on the Marlins getting any runs. Overall, the Dodgers headed into this series after just completing grueling back-to back games in Philadelphia that were delayed due to rain. The limited break likely contributed to the difficulties throughout the game. In addition, the Dodgers had just faced a short losing streak coming off of the All Star break, but seem to have bounced back. Since the All Star break though, the Dodgers have been committing an increased amount of errors per game. One of the most encouraging aspects of the Dodger’s success this game was due to Jansen’s closing pitching. His ability to save the game indicated his recovery from a recent ankle injury as well as his difficult game in Philadelphia, as he attributes the loss to his pitching. Simply, with the Dodgers best record in baseball and the Cy Young candidate Hyn Jin Ryu on the mound a Dodgers win was the likely outcome but the Marlins made it further than anticipated.

Cy Young candidate Hyn Jin Ryu as he pitched for the Dodgers on July 19, 2019 against the Miami Marlins. Source: the televised game on billasport.net

In contrast to the Dodgers who have an extremely strong team and coaching staff, the Marlins are currently rebuilding and have a weaker team than the Dodgers. Their minor staff has been making huge strides and demonstrated potential for success, but at this point in time, the team is behind in the rankings. However, their play against the Dodgers displayed a lot of pressure and talent. Historically, when the starting pitcher for the Marlins performs well, they tend to continue to perform competitively. Their pitcher, Gallen, started them off excellently with no hits through the first round of batters. He was even able to strike out Cody Bellienger, the Dodger who played in the All Stars and has the second most home runs in the league, twice. Gallen admitted to the challenge it was piutching against the Dodgers as he stated that “I thought it was pretty good against if not the best, then one of the best offenses in baseball” (Zac Gallen). In other words, the Dodgers were a recognizably challenging opponent for the Marlins, and yet their score remained controlled. Pitching for over 5 innings was a huge milestone for Gallen as well, since this young pitcher has, at this point, only made it to 5 innings four times in his professional career. Therefore, while the Marlins may not have had the most successful season so far, they are working on developing their prospects, or minor players, for the seasons ahead. 

This exciting game between the Marlins and Dodgers forced both teams to put their best foot forward. Both teams made many impressive plays, as well as some errors, resulting in a close game, won by the Dodgers. The win could be mainly attributed to the Dodgers successful pitching and incorporation of their “playoff bullpen”, giving them as edge for the game. The Marlins kept the score tight and their defense was able to avoid a larger point deficit. There was a lot of encouraging plays from either team as they fought for the win in Los Angeles.