'Washout' poses problems for UNH community

Durham, N.H. - At 4:06 a.m, the New Hampshire posted a flood watch for southern ME and NH posing dangerous conditions for morning commuters.

Power outages in Bethlehem, Durham, Concord, Madison and New London were reported as of 8:25 a.m. Weather forecasters predict continued stormy weather this weekend, with between one to three inches of rain anticipated tonight alone.

Due to high winds expected to reach 38 mph, all residence hall sites on the UNH campus have lost power. A flood watch remains in effect by The National Weather Service for Southern Maine.

President Huddleston will notify the UNH community of curtailed operations immediately after a final recommendation is made by the Vice Pres. of Finance and Administration.

But the town of Durham is still feeling the effects of the heavy rainfall, expected to taper off later this evening. Slower morning commutes and widespread power outages pose problems for the community.

In the month of November, the rainiest month in New Hampshire, average temperatures reach 41.5 degrees which is 3.5 degrees above the average. 5.9 inches of precipitation was an expected average rainfall.

Stocks Plunge and Credit Markets Seize Up

When reflecting on an article from Friday’s Times, I was instantly drawn to the bold letters shouting in the dead center of the paper, “Stocks Drop Sharply and Credit Markets Seize Up”. With the economy in a slump, the article is extremely relevant, not to mention hard to miss. The Dow industrials were also a nice, catchy visual.

The lead, which set the economic scene by relaying Thursday’s fear-stricken financial market, jumped right into Friday’s plunge that wiped out gains within the last decade. The article was organized very clearly in a linear pattern, expanding on the reader’s questions about Friday’s drop in the Dow Jones industrial average.

The first paragraph fueled reader’s interest by addressing the extent of the latest damage-which means back to square one for many companies bailed out by the $700 billion rescue plan in October. The second and third paragraph address the details of the article including:

1.) The Dow’s fall by nearly 445 points, or 5.6 percent- the lowest drop since the pre- dot boom era in 1997.
2.) The $8.3 trillion in stock market wealth erased in the past 13 months.
3.) The increasing worry of investors like Citigroup, which dropped to fresh lows of 26.4 percent.

The remainder of the article zeros in on specific investors and the recent plight- like Standard and Poor’s and Citigroup- to give readers a personal sense of the economic damage. I do not have much criticism for the article, as it addressed the obvious who, what, when and where questions in lamest terms and also expanded on particular companies losses.

I was surprised to learn that the Dow Jones industrial average closed at 7,552.29, barely surpassing lows in last October's 2002 bear market. I think the article could have benefitted from more quotes from investors, as this would drive home the severity of the companies' struggles for real individuals facing the consequences of a plummeting market.

Major smuggling operation in NYC ends in fatal shootout

New York City- In a frenzied police chase Sunday night, Police Detective Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle of the NYPD Narcotics Division, shot and killed a suspected assassin, Pierre Jeantot, 36, of Nice France.

Jeantot was allegedly working for a drug kingpin smuggling heroin into the States, whom Doyle and partner Buddy “Cloudy” Russo had been investigating. He was killed by a single shot from Doyle’s .38 caliber service revolver on the platform of the 15th St. elevated railway station, where the chase fatally ended.

Jeantot, who entered the country Nov.4 after a flight from Paris, France, fired several shots at Doyle from the roof of an apartment at 1767 W. 57th Ave. Police officers recovered an automatic rifle and several shell casings on the roof, which were used in an attempt to assassinate Doyle.

According to a press release from the office of Ruth L. Ess, the New York City Police commissioner, during the shooting, Jeantot instead killed a bystander, Betty B. Badluck, 63, of the Bronx in a park adjacent to the apartment complex.

But the chase did not stop there. The chaos ensued on an elevated train that Jeantot hijacked from the 35 St. Station to the 15th Street Station where he was killed. During the hijacking, Jeantot killed conductor Horatio C. Hornblower, 30, of White Plains and trainman Peter Howe, 27, of Queens of an induced heart attack at gunpoint.

Jeantot, in a desperate effort to escape further killed police Chief Roland Evans, 34, of the Bronx when he was confronted on the train. He was a 15-year veteran of the New York City Police Department.

City commissioner, Ruth L. Ess commends Detective Doyle for his bravery and the unfortunate loss of life. “Let me just say it is always unfortunate when these incidents end in a loss of live,” she said. “We would have preferred to see Jeantot prosecuted in the court, and we believe Doyle was close to a breakthrough on the case.”

A ‘vigorous’ and thorough investigation, into what appears to be a major smuggling operation is set to continue, in the NYPD’s efforts to rid their streets of potential drug dealers.

Hand in hand with Iraqi police, American soldiers are pictured dancing and horsing around in Baghdad. However absurd, it kept me reading on in A1 of today’s Times.

The article, to the right of its catchy picture, began with a typical summary lead. The lead jumps right in to the information- summarizing the main points of the proposed security agreement, when it happened (Sunday) and what it means for the United States (A final departure date for U.S. troops).

The article has perhaps the best organization I have seen all week, set up in a linear style. The article quickly and simplistically expands on the reader’s central questions. Who? What? When? Where? And of course, the significance to the reader. Why should I care about this?

To answer these questions, the story linked the main points: Iraqi’s cabinet on Sunday overwhelmingly approved a security pact for a full withdrawal of U.S. troops in Iraq by 2011.

The agreement still needs to be backed by Iraq’s Parliament, and reflects a turnaround in Bush’s disapproval of timetables.

I learned a great deal from the article, as it was packed with information. For example, I did not know the pact took over a year to negotiate and I was surprised it passed,; timetables were so publicly shot down by the Bush administration in recent months even.

But I was left with a few unanswered questions: The article speaks with assurance about the pact and Shiite support, but what of the Sunni opposition?

What is Obama to do?

While checking out the A1 section of the Times today, I was instantly drawn to the “World of Advice for Obama on Foreign Policy” article. Centered smack dab in the middle of the paper, it was an easy way to grab at my attention. The clever pun of a ‘world’ of advice also told me it was an international issue (important!)

The lead-which rattled off the unrelenting demands of foreign nations-, built up a sense of the impending global chaos that Obama’s administration will all too soon face. The reader is left to wonder- Well what next? Then proceed to finish up the article to get their questions answered.

The article, which focuses more primarily on foreign efforts to sway the U.S.’s new administration, outlines several abrupt changes in policy. In North Korea, for example, international inspectors are suddenly not allowed to take samples from nuclear tests sites.

I was disappointed at the vague tone of the article. Obama’s responses to ‘talks’ with foreign administration was not really explained at any length. The article was also somewhat ‘jumpy’ in that it narrowed in on Obama, and then fanned out to international policies.

Though the story seemed to tackle the main points, I would have organized it differently. I would have included a quote much earlier along in the article. The first quote was actually located at the end of the column. That is a lot of facts to muddle through for busy readers!

I was surprised to know that the radical change in policies is normal during a presidential transition. Yet the article stresses that this election will bring far greater change, with Obama’s different approach to foreign policy.

School Chief Takes on Tenure, and Stirs Fight

While my eyes zipped over the A1 section, the article “School Chief Takes on Tenure” grabbed my attention. I’ve been spending time at Stratham Memorial School lately (as an Education minor), and teacher tenure is always a hot point of controversy.
The lead-which was a little bit lackluster- didn’t really hook readers, many of which wouldn’t find a story about Michelle Rhee (you may be wondering, who is she again?!) very compelling. The lead is also very long … “Michelle Rhee, the hard-charging chancellor of the Washington public schools, thinks teacher tenure may be great for adults, those who go into teaching to get summer vacations and….. on an on an on!
The story rebounds in the next few paragraphs, narrowing in on Ms. Rhee’s radical $40,000 proposal for teachers to give up tenure. The fifth paragraph really gets at the bulk of reader’s questions- like Rhee’s current effort to rid ineffective teachers, the lack of union support, and the potential for a ‘wrenching’ labor struggle.
The rest of the article is organized well; there isn’t a strong sense of a story -within -a -story here. The points pan out like this:
Ø Explain who is this ‘School Chief’ (Michelle Rhee)
Ø What is her proposal (how much $ in proposed raises)
Ø Union response/ possible drawbacks
Ø Limitations under her proposal

I was also interested to learn the severity of Rhee’s proposal for labor strikes, and I was left wondering what the Teacher’s Union is likely to do, seeing as their quite divided now.

Daily Reading Log for 11/12

With the economy in a slump, the “Buying Binge Slams to Halt” caught my eye while scanning A1 of the New York Times. The article’s catchy title, with words like ‘binge’ and ‘slam’ would grab up the attention of any consumer these days.
The lead- which was a scene setter lead- worked well, grabbing interest by claiming the worst of our economic woes may in fact not be behind us. The idea that ‘another may be coming’ was enough to keep my attention!
The story fans out typically in the next few paragraphs, first summarizing the more relaxed economic scene in recent weeks- then switching fairly smoothly to the obvious crisis of consumer confidence on Wall Street. (It’s a scary time with giants like GM and Circuit City going under.)
The rest of the article expands on the nut graft, offering consumer’s concerns, and referencing Barrack Obama’s unclear strategy for cleaning the economic mess. The story connected these points:
Ø Fall of consumer spending sales by 32% in vehicles/ loss of consumer confidence
Ø Large companies like GM and Circuit City declaring bankruptcy
Ø Obama’s ‘aggressive’ new approach to the slump on Wall Street
The story was a bit circuitous, but the points affected each other logically. Readers that wanted to know about the article’s main point: the loss of consumer confidence would have such questions.
What is Obama going to do to clean up Wall Street? How is the slump affecting big time companies? The article manages to address all of these points, and connect back to the new consumer crisis.
What struck me most about the article was the extent of consumer concern. I had no idea that spending had fallen so steeply: the largest amount since 1942.
My one unanswered question was what was the stimulus package that Obama’s administration planned to initiate. It was a little vague for the average reader.

Election Day shows unprecedented voter turnout

Durham, N.H. - An unprecedented number of charged-up voters swarmed the Oyster River High School early today, offering one of the highest voter turnouts in recent memory.
“We’ve been slammed all this morning,” said polling official Tom Poirier. “It’s been a busy turnout, and this is the thinnest I’ve seen the line today.”
Poirier anticipated a strong turnout, especially among young, first time voters. But what he did not expect was to be just 2000 ballots short of a full voter registration. “We may need to Xerox more copies and count the difference the old fashion way- by hand,” he said.
And yet the line continued to wrap around the side of the Oyster River School all morning. “I’m so fired up to vote,” said Kerry Murchie, 18, a resident of Durham. “It’s my first election and I’m excited for the chance to vote. I’ve been here since 7 a.m.”
Veterans of the polls agree, sharing in the excitement of first time voters. “This country’s in a bad spot,” said Chris Lowell, 43 of Durham. “I’m voting so that my voice can be heard.”
Attendees, who meandered slowly into the five alphabetized tables in the gymnasium, showed a similar fervor for Democratic Sen. Barrack Obama. Becca Romanoski, 21 of the College Democrats was especially excited. “Face it,” she said with shoulders shrugged, “Obama is the reason for the popular young turnout.”
Poirier, 51, who himself was a once registered republican, is following the ‘young’ trend for change. He is voting for the first time as a democrat. “Yes, I’m most definitely voting for Obama, no question,” he said, “This country needs a change.”
But young support for Republican Sen. John McCain was not lost on eager voters, despite the usual harangue of Obama advertisers. Justin Polanik, 20, of the UNH ROTC program voted Republican. “McCain is the best thing for the U.S. military and I’m training for the army,” he said. “All my friends in the program are voting McCain too.”
Young voters not yet registered also had the opportunity to register at the polls. The entire process, which required domicile students to fill out Addavit forms, took an estimated 10 minutes to complete. UNH owned shuttle vans also transported eager students, often snapping photos of one another, between the campus and Oyster River.