Magazine project (radio)

• Radio:
• Anchor: There has never been a show on television that has captivated the attention of so many people. Grey's Anatomy uses the popular concept of doctors and adds catchy dialogue and romantic ties between characters to give it that finishing touch. Five years ago, Grey'sAnatomy came into existence like a shooting star, surprising everyone at its impact and influence. Julie Toy, a follower of Grey's Anatomy.
• Julie Toy: This show, each season, has gotten better and more entertaining. Since I followed it from the beginning, I know the characters as if they were my real friends.Their pains are mine and when they talk, it isn't completely in jargon and they use normal dialogue.Every episode, I have to make sure I do not have a lot of makeup on because it is just cried off during that hour. 
• Anchor: Tonight, the fifth season finale airs on ABC at 9 for a 2 hour event. It will be consumed with all the favorite characters and a death might be inevitable. 

Magazine project part 2

• List
• The Top Five Tear-Jerking Moments of Grey's Anatomy
• (selected by a fan, Jennifer Xiao)
• 1. The death of Denny, a patient and love interest of Dr. Isabel Stevens. (season 2 episode 24) 
• 2. Meredith proposes a future with Derek by building a house with candles (season 4 episode 17)
• 3. The death of Isabel and George (season 5 episode 24)
• 4. The appearance of Isabel's mother and the realization of the intensity of her condition (season 5 episode 21)
• 5. Two people are impaled by a pole and the decision to choose who gets to live (season 2 episode 6)

Magazine project

• Grey's Anatomy
• There are many different things that affect a persons lifestyle. For some people, family always comes first. For others, their career is what they strive to achieve. For the minority few, a television show is their safe haven. It is absurd to think about how a television show could influence a person and their actions. However, an average person watches 3-4 hours of television a day. The fact is that television shows are a big part of a persons life. 
• One show in particular that has influenced the viewers at home is Grey's Anatomy. Not only does this show give people a view into the life of a surgeon's job, it also provides characters with believable personalities. In the last five years, Grey's Anatomy has proven itself to be a source of inspiration, drawing an average of 17 million viewers each week and more tears shed in a hour than imaginable. 
• Five years ago, the first episode aired, introducing all the main characters and paved the way into their long journey from being interns to residents at Seattle Grace Hospital. Meredith Grey, a cynical first year intern, follows her mothers footsteps in becoming a doctor at the same hospital. Christina Yang, an independent and career focused intern, strives to be the best of colleagues. Isabel Stevens, a model-turned doctor, breaks through the stereotypes and uses compassion as a tool. Alex Kurev, a pompous know-it-all, just trying to stay afloat while getting the ladies. George O'Malley, the weakest link, struggles to rid the name of 007, license to kill. The show follows these five interns through each surgical experience, family drama, and romantic endeavors. 
• As the seasons grow, so do the characters. Meredith falls in love with an attending doctor, Derek Shepard, also known as one of her bosses. She then proceeds to find out that he is married and is left hanging while Derek trial runs this marriage one last time. Then magically, they fall back where they belong, with each other. Meredith also deals with her mother's Alzheimer disease, death, and the discovery of her father and his other family. Christina, like her best friend Meredith, also gets involved with an attending doctor, Preston Burke, who inspires her to be a cardio-surgeon, teaching her everything, then leaves her at the altar. As Christina excels in the program, George struggles to keep up. After their third year of the program, a test is administered to wheel out the unqualified. George fails his test and is sent back to start over his internship while the rest of his group passes. Isabel, being an optimistic romantic, falls in love with a patient, who ends up dying, and resigns from the intern program. After realizing what she has done, she rejoins the program and ends up in a relationship with Alex. After being called out by many doctors, Alex loses his arrogance and becomes a team player. 
• Last night, the fifth season finale aired with two major punches. While love is the air with Meredith and her marriage to Derek and Christina and her love confession, death overshadows the finale. In the most recent episodes, Isabel spends it fighting her cancer and getting married to Alex. Unfortunately, the cancer takes a spin and she passes away. After pulling a girl away from an incoming bus, George is however, ran over and in critical condition. At the end, George and Isabel are seen all dressed up, as in an alternate reality. 
• As a fan, questions relating to the deaths and what will happen next are afloat. But as of right now, this show is more powerful and tear-jerking as ever. Grey's Anatomy makes people cry, laugh,yell, and even quote it. So to the deaths of George and Isabel, "seriously"? 

Topical Blog #3

Fmylife.com

Everyone experiences bad days. There is no getting around it and how you deal with it is what makes each person an individual. Some people call and vent to their friends. Others, they blog. These days, while walking on the streets, you always encounter people saying "facebook status" or "myspace picture". Now there is another online website that has created a new saying, "F*** my life".

Fmylife.com is a website that sponsors peoples stories about their weird daily experiences. This website has become a phenomenon to the generation who has grown up with myspace and facebook. Whether you actually blog about your day or you just a reader of the material, Fmylife.com is something worth reading. 

The topics that people usually write about include relationships, sexual episodes, family drama, money, school, health, and just everyday excitements like going to the dentist or riding the elevator. The subjects are widely spread and all end with the words, "fmylife". The reason to this being the theme is to show everyone else that everyone's life isn't perfect. With life's imperfections, its what makes it entertaining. Some of the posts on the website are emotional while most of them are hilarious. 

Fmylife.com has become an everyday source of entertainment. Not only does it provide a good laugh, it is also a good stress releaser. It is similar to venting to your friends except your friends include the rest of the world. Whenever you are bored, just go to the website and check it out. Once you start visiting the site more and more, you vocabulary will include those famous words, "fmylife". 

Focus Story Structure

During a football game, a player rammed his head into the chest of the ball carrier, resulting in a cracked vertebrae in his spine. Although football injuries are common, the extent of its permanent damage has increased.

Pete Stenhoff, a junior at Chula Vista High School in Redmond, California, is now being confined to a wheelchair. 

"I knew the risks involved when I decided to play football. I wish I would have known just how bad it could be", said Stenhoff. 

Like Stenhoff, many of injuries are permanent. There 20,000 injuries in high school football each year and 12% of the injuries, include permanently disabling the victims. 

Due to this accident, Stenhoff has not only suffered physical pain and weight loss, but also emotional pain of not being able to graduate with his class. 

Find that feature lead

While browsing CNN.com, I came across 2 stories that did not use just the basic lead. For one of them, it had the startling statement lead. The story was about the swine flu and its increase in numbers of cases around the world. It starts with this:

"The number of people confirmed to have been infected with the H1N1 virus stands at 331". 

This statement alone makes me question going outside. That many of cases proves even more that the swine flu is nothing to taken lightly. Then it continues to say:

"The virus, commonly known as swine flu, has spread to 11 countries, but the hardest-hit areas were in the Western hemisphere". 

Knowing that it is so wide-spread but especially influential in the areas that I live in right now, made me want to continue to read to know exactly what I am in for.

Another type of lead I ran into was the roundup lead. This article was about men and their habits of having to be the "macho man". It starts with a generalization and then spreads.

"Men don't have 'guilty pleasures.' We own, nay, celebrate what's bad for us. Our obsessions are points of pride, not shame."

This is speaking on behalf of all men. I do not know about others but the guys that are in my life and not entirely like this. Yes, some of them are, but only a select few. 

The basic news lead is always reliable but sometimes it is nice to read an article that captivates your interest with just the first few lines. 

Topical Blog #2

Personal Meditation

After a stressful week at school or at work, a detox of all those troubles is necessary. For some people, it is alcohol, while for others, it is some form of exercise like yoga. For me, it is a road trip. 

For a lot of people, being cooped up in a car for countless hours does not seem that appealing. But for me, it isn't about being stuck in a car but being able to escape the drama of my life. 

With the windows down and music blasting from the speakers, that is where I feel the most free. It does not matter where I end up or who I am with, as long as I am on the road, nothing can touch me. 

Every person goes through those days or even months where nothing seems to make them feel happy. It does not they have depression, but they just might have a lot on their plate at the moment. A road trip is not running away, but taking a break to think about things in a different environment. 

A drive down the coast of California clears my head and sometimes even my heart. I like to think of myself as a strong woman but that does not mean I don't have my breaking points. 

Every so often, I take a trip to San Luis Obispo or Santa Barbara, and it makes me feel great. Seeing my favorite sights, listening to my favorite artists, and bonding with whoever I bring are just the icing on a road trip. The destination is never the same because you are never the same person traveling.