Broadcast Script

Blog 11 - IMHO #2

A year ago, I visited Hawaii for my spring break. I used my ATM card to withdraw cash on several occasions while I was there. When I got back to San Jose, I checked my bank balance and found that I had overdrawn on my account. Over that, Bank of America had charged me two overdraft fees of $ 35 each. It was completely my fault, but they ended up revoking the fees as it had been my first time. A few weeks ago, I read an article in the New York Times and it stated that U.S banks make over $ 37 billion in overdraft fees a year. Now, I agree that banks should charge fees when a customers go over their limit. However, the ways in which they do it are completely unethical. Banks are clearly profiting from the mistakes and misfortunes of their customers.
This issue has been in the spotlight over the past year or so. Bank customers have launched several complaints over how they have been treated. In October 2009, there was a case with Bank of America customer, Tam Tran. He had to pay over $ 5,000 in overdraft fees. The bank kept charging him for transactions without notice. He didn't have adequate funds in his account but the bank approved the transactions because it claimed he was a trusted customer. I still maintain that people should monitor their accounts and learn how to manage their money. But, banks are conducting unethical practices when they capitalize on the mistakes of their clients. The fact that America's largest banks, including Citibank, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America, have gained over $ 37 billion in revenue from overdraft fees is a complete outrage.
The problem I have with this issue is that banks aim to profit from their customers when they are supposed to be protecting them. When an individual opens an account in a bank, he or she is trusting it with his or her money. It absolutely should not allow you to spend money that you don't have and then charge you a fee on top of that. Banks have billions of dollars in reserves and can easily cover customer's petty transactions. A person being charged a $ 35 fee for a $ 2 cup of coffee is wrong. I realize that, like everybody else, banks are trying to make money. However, the terms and conditions of overdraft fees are completely unethical.
I am happy that this issue has been brought to the Federal Courts. After all, I am a victim of this malpractice, even though I take full blame for my action. I am happy to report that Bank Of America has announced that it is ending overdraft fees on debit cards. This is a step in the right direction.


References:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/10/your-money/credit-and-debit-cards/10overdraft.html

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/afx/2009/10/30/afx7068152.html

http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/credit/2009-09-28-overdraft-fees-anger-regulation_N.htm

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2009/08/americans-pay-38-billion-of-bank-overdraft-fees-a-year/23020/

Blog 6 - NPR Radio Interview Analysis

I did my analysis on a segment called “Is the Planet Facing A Mass Extinction?” It was a part of the Talk of the Nation program. The host of the show was a man named Paul Raeburn. He was very knowledgeable on the topic and was very well informed of all that was going on in regard to it. He knew relevant facts and history. The main point of his introduction was that about one-third of the world’s species are now threatened with extinction. He was interviewing a group of biologists and ecologists. They were all professors and were all conducting research at top universities.
Raeburn started off with some rudimentary questions. He asked his guests the nature of their professions to get a feel of what they do. Then he dived straight in to more detailed questions about the topic at hand. He was interested on his guests take on a recent U.N report on an increase in number of endangered species in the world. This triggered many more questions about the guest’s respective research and findings. Raeburn fully understood the answers and would give his own input and views before posing another question. He would also state justifications for why he was posing these questions before he actually asked them.
To me, this segment was more of discussion amongst professionals of the field rather than a radio interview from a host who was trying to cover a story. Every individual was qualified and they were all respectful of each other’s opinions. I do not recall any inappropriate or irrelevant answers. Raeburn was very much in charge. He posed questions to the individual he thought could give the best answer. It seemed like he knew his guests very well prior to the interview, and he knew exactly how to get the best out of all of them.
I learnt that knowledge is very important when interviewing a guest. You must cover all the bases. If you are going to interview an individual who is well qualified in a certain field, then you need to be prepared with intelligent questions and appropriate input. I kept in mind that this was a radio show that people tune in to listen to. The objective of the interviewer should be to provide the best possible listening experience. So the interviewer needs to pose questions that will deliver informative and thought provoking answers.

Blog 9 - Japanese Internment Memorial essay

The Japanese internment was the forced relocation of Japanese and Japanese-American people living along the Pacific Coast of the United States. This occurred in 1942, after Japan’s attacks on Pearl Harbor in December of the previous year. Over a hundred thousand people of Japanese origin were banished to official military zones labeled “exclusion zones.” The order was given by then President Franklin Roosevelt on February 19, 1942. Multiple branches of government were involved in rounding up Japanese people.
Ruth Asawa was one of the many unfortunate people to be relocated to an internment camp. However, Her story did have a happy ending. After all, she is one of the main reasons for this blog post. She created the Japanese Internment Memorial that we visited for our field trip.
I found it to be an extraordinary piece of art. It represented a real occurrence in this nation’s history. There’s no denying that the Japanese internment was a mistake, but more on that later. However, the fact remains that it happened and is very much a part of American history. There is no way to change it so why not embrace it and use it as a source of strength and culture. This is exactly what Ruth Asawa accomplished with her sculpture.
There were a couple vignettes that caught my eye at the memorial. The first one was of the Japanese victims being herded onto the train to take them away to one of the internment camps. I can imagine that many people were in disbelief at what was happening to them. Let’s keep in mind that the majority of those interned were American citizens. Getting their rights trampled on by their own government must have truly outraged them. I think the act of boarding the trains was the point at which those unfortunate people realized that what was happening to them was in fact a reality. At that moment, their lives changed forever.
Another vignette that intrigued me was one of a family being supervised while they were gathering their belongings from their home. There were many different camps scattered around the U.S. The victims were not informed of where they were being sent and therefore could not pack accordingly. There existed camps in locations like Wisconsin, which gets very cold in the winter. The point is that these people had no idea what to expect and were bound to be ill prepared for the journey ahead. It was truly a crime against humanity.
In 1988, Congress passed legislation signed by President Ronald Reagan that apologized for the actions of the U.S Government in regard to the Japanese Internment. Branches of government that initially denied any involvement in this matter ended up confessing. For example, the United Census Bureau provided confidential information on the Japanese victims. At first, they denied it but in 2007, their involvement was proven
But with all said and done, the Japanese Internment was a dreadfully bad mistake in every sense of the meaning. Will something like this ever happen again? To be honest, it would not surprise me if it did. Men are capable of great and terrible things. I like to think we are more intelligent and advanced than people were all those years ago. But history has a way of repeating itself. Although, I don’t believe something of that magnitude and extremity could reoccur, I think that something similar is completely possible.

Copy Edit The World

"Boneless Chicken Breats: $ 2.99 per Lb"

Correction: Breast

I saw this sign in the meat and poultry section of a Mui Pueblo Foodstuff branch near my house.

Blog 10 - Fish Out of Water

I attended the SJSU International House's Pancake Breakfast which took place on April 11th. They host this event twice a year. The International house is an SJSU dormitory which house 72 international and U.S residents. The Pancake Breakfast takes place once every Fall and Spring semester. The house is transformed into restaurant and they serve a buffet breakfast with cuisine from many countries. The residents take on different roles like cooks, waiters, and hosts. It is organized by the house's resident advisers with the help of the director and the office manager. This semester's attendance figure was a record.
I found this event to be relevant to this assignment because it involved people with different cultures and racial backgrounds. It's interesting to see individuals with distinct origins combine and work together as a team. The language barrier was quite apparent. I noticed that many of the Asian residents were not as adept at English as the others. However, they were making a genuine effort. They could understand and be understood, which ultimately is the goal of two way communication.
The residents were like a family. I guess that is natural when you are living under the same roof. There was a very positive feeling about this place though. Most of the residents spend a total of one year there since they are on exchange programs. That drives them to make the most of their time in the United States. They just seemed to me like a very close-knit group.
The event was very enjoyable. There was great food, entertainment, and plenty of happy people. The only negative thing was the weather; It was raining. What I liked most was that it was very multicultural. I even met someone from Mauritania.
The most important thing I took from this experience was that it was an example of a productive system. People usually put aside their differences when asked to work together. In this case, they embraced their differences and that made them special. It goes to show that different cultures and races can learn to live and work together peacefully and successfully.

Word of the Week #10

1. Magisterial

2. "Lionel Messi turned in a magisterial performance against Arsenal."

3. Magisterial: (adj) 1. having or shown great authority; domineering, dictatorial.

4. The police office showed up at the crime scene and his leadership was nothing short of magisterial.