Story 1: Exercise 2, Number 2, Chapter 9

Devastating accident kills two, closes highway

Two drivers were killed and several others injured in an accident this morning on Interstate 790. Two tractor trailers collided at 6:45, causing a chain reaction involving 16 other vehicles, according to Sgt. Albert Wei of the police department. One of the four tractor-trailers involved in the accident was hauling diesel fuel. Luckily, said Wei, the truck didn’t roll over or dump any of the highly flammable fuel. The driver of the truck hauling diesel wasn’t injured. However, 20 others did sustain injuries. Four of the injured victims suffered life-threatening bodily damage, according to fire chief Tony Sullivan. He described the scene as something from a war zone, with bodies, blood and chaos. Sullivan said this morning’s accident was the worst thing he’s seen in his 18 years with the fire department. He and other firefighters had to cut the roofs of three of the cars off in order to free those that were trapped inside. The Coon Rapids “Life Flight” helicopter from the Memorial Hospital flew two of the most severely injured victims 50 miles to the trauma center in Statesville. According to Sgt. Wei, all of Interstate 790 is still closed, and there is no indication when it will open up again.

Obama to propose controversial spending freeze

Obama will announce on Wednesday in his State of the Union speech a three-year spending freeze on many domestic programs. When administration officials announced this on Monday, it caused outrage within the President’s own party as well as criticism from Republicans as too little too late.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/27/us/politics/27budget.html?hp

Lessons on writing leads

DO...

... include details that will make the story seem interesting. Try to draw the readers in with the lead, just like an author tries to catch the reader's attention within the first chapter or so.

... include the most important details.

... read it over several times to make sure it flows right and doesn't sound too choppy or awkward.

DON'T...

... use run-on sentences in a lead. It is easy for a sentence to extend beyond what is acceptable when you're trying to fit all of the information in one sentence.

... try to fit in every little detail. Some things that may seem sort of important might not be able to be fit into the lead. There's the rest of the story to add in those details. The lead should simply be an overview of the most important or interested details, not a summary of every detail.

... create the lead like it is the headline.

Xbox Live: the next cable network?

The Xbox 360 not only plays games, but now provides television, internet, and more. Xbox advertising sales manager Mark Kroese compared it to a “cable network”. With tens of millions of users, more people might indeed use their Xbox Live account as their main media portal, rather than cable.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/19/business/media/19xbox.html?hpw

Introduction

Hi.
I'm Josh Gloe, a senior in High School, currently enrolled in PSEO at Anoka-Ramsey Community College. I take my on-campus courses at the Coon Rapids campus.

After I finish up my generals at Anoka-Ramsey, I'll attend a 4-year college and double major in Marketing and Mass Communications. Because Mass Communications will involve lots of journalism, I thought this course would be beneficial and interesting.

I've written articles for our local church newsletter, as well as done some graphic design with it. I am a featured writer on Twinsmix.com, a blog on the Minnesota Twins MLB baseball team. I also just launched my own website, Project:Informed (http://projectinformed.proboards.com), which I am excited about. The website should help me get experience in Mass Communications.

I hope to get to know all of my classmates as well as Mrs. Christensen throughout this semester, and I hope to gain knowledge and experience in Journalism.