Obama to negotiate with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu today in an attempt at forging peace in the Middle East

Experts and Elon University students weigh in on the president’s ability to reverse decades of war

By Scott Van Dorn

Over the next few weeks, President Obama’s focus will be on planting the roots of peace with the leaders of Middle Eastern nations.  On May 18th, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit Washington, followed by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on the 26th and Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on the 28th.

But the question still remains: Can the new president bring peace to the Middle East?

Today, Obama’s meeting with Netanyahu will focus on a large range of topics, including the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel in order to establish peace.

Aaron Miller

Aaron Miller, a public policy scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, said the talk is the “beginning of a long movie” and that two issues will dominate the meeting.

“The only two questions that matter right now are will they come to a consensus on Iraq and will they trust each other,” he said.  “And they’re probably not going to answer them.”

Ali Al-Ahmed, however, had a slightly different take.  Ahmed is the founder and director of the Institute for Gulf affairs, a think tank in Washington dedicated to improving U.S.-Gulf relations.

“The Obama-Netanyahu negotiations are an important step in building up peace in the Middle East,” he said.  “The peace goals must focus on creating ties between Israeli and the major Arab powers, such as Saudi Arabia.”

However, like Miller, Ahmed doubted the feasibility of a positive outcome in the near future.

“It seems that this peace issue won’t be solved anytime soon, as the parties

Ali Al-Ahmed

involved are benefiting from such crisis,” he said.  “I do not see any realistic chance for a permanent settlement between the Palestinians and the Israelis. We will have some Palestinians make peace with Israel, but that would be limited to the West Bank.”

Students at Elon University offered a similar sentiment – even with the hope Obama brings.

“I think it’s silly that people think he can all of the sudden fix things,” junior Kyle Davidson said.  “Its been going on for so long, and I feel like people are putting unrealistic expectations on Obama. He’s not Jesus.”
Junior Mike Kleinman, a political science minor, also had issues with how Obama could bring peace to such a war-torn region.

Whether or not Obama can make a change is still unforeseen.  But Michael Carver, a junior political science major and former associate analyst under Ahmed, pointed out Obama’s main strength with the Arab leaders.

“What Obama brings is quite simply that he isn’t George Bush,” Carver said.  “Obama’s foreign policy thus far isn’t that different from Bush’s second term foreign policy, but Bush was so polarizing his first term, when his foreign policy moderated he was unable to come off as credible in the eyes of world leaders making negotiations rather untenable.”

“Most of these leaders still remembered how Bush said, ‘you’re either with us or against us.’”

Tennis coach Leonard a bright spot for Elon athletics

By Scott Van Dorn

When coach Mike Leonard took over Elon Men’s tennis team five years ago, the team was did not win a match in the Southern Conference.

Two years later, they were the only SoCon Champions for any sport in Elon school history.

Leonard

It would be easy to credit the coach after such an amazing turnaround. Leonard, however, remains modest.

“Well it’s the players, you gotta recruit and you gotta motivate them and get them to a point, but it comes down to the players,” he said. “The players are the ones that win it, I’m just kind of steering the ship.”

While Elon has a talented roster, Leonard might have a little more influence than he’s letting on.

One of the main areas he makes players focus on is the mental side of the game – something extremely important in tennis. Players are sometimes alone on the court for hours, and matches can often become a battle of mental toughness. This style of coaching especially helps the younger players.

“He has made me stronger mentally and makes a big emphasis on the attitude and the effort you put onto the court,” sophomore Alberto Rojas said. “He’s pushing all the time, trying to make us give our best and be competitive.”

But that doesn’t mean he lets his players off the hook physically. On a normal weekday afternoon in the spring, players can be seen running back and forth across the courts at Elon’s Jimmy Powell tennis center.

Bob Owens, the assistant head coach, praises Leonard’s style as well.

“We’ve got a good symbiotic relationship,” Owens said. “He knows what my strengths are and just leaves those responsibilities to me. He knows where his strengths lie and runs with those.”

Leonard was a graduate of Elon University in 1991.  In his senior year playing for the Elon team, Leonard was the South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year and earned Stein H. Basnight Outstanding Athlete honors.   He was inducted into the Elon Sports Hall of Fame in 2001.

Before coaching the Phoenix squad, Leonard was the Tennis Director for the prestigious Raleigh Racquet Club from 1995 to 2004.  During his time there, he coached many juniors, including two national champions.

Over his five years coaching at Elon, Leonard has amassed an impressive 85-40 record.

Leonard is impressive off the court as well.  Owens spoke about his personal relationship with the head coach and how that has impacted the team.

“His girls Olivia and Julia and my grandson Brody are great friends and playmates,” Owens said. “My wife, Wanda and Micheal’s wife, Amy are close and this seems to make the professional relationship work even better than normal.”

Last weekend, Elon unfortuneatly fell short in the finals of the SoCon tournament.   Despite the loss, however, the team is looking strong again next year and hopes to add a second conference title.

“Learn from and it can help you,” Leonard said about the disappointing loss. “If you don’t learn from it you go out and do it again, time’s gonna run out on you.”

Using Numbers for Reporting – Part 2

By Scott Van Dorn

Polls and Surveys

Polls and surveys are interesting ways to gain insight into public opinion.  However, it is important to remember, it is only a slice of the overall public sentiment, and they can often be misrepresented.  This possible misrepresentation is something journalists must be aware of at all times.

Selecting Samples

While, in a perfect world, everyone in the population would be interviewed about a question, it is impossible to do.  Therefore, samples of the population must be created.  The sample must be as large and as unbiased as possible.

Margin of Error

The margin of error represents how accurate a survey is based on set standards.  It is expressed as a percentages and takes into account the size of the sample.  The more people polled – the less margin of error.  For example, with a sample size of 50 with a 95% confidence level, the margin of error is 13.9%.  However, with a sample size of 5,000 at the same confidence level, the margin of error is 1.4%.

The confidence level is the percentage that the pollers have confidence in their results, or the probability of getting the result shown randomly.

Census

In the Census, which tries to get an idea of the entire popluation, figures have to be adjusted to compensate for missing data.  The U.S. census releases both the adjusted and unadjusted figures.  City planners use the census to make maps.

Z and t scores

A z score is how much a figure is far from the mean based on the standard deviation.  The formula for z scores is: (Raw score – mean)/standard deviation.

T scores are only used for smaller samples, and a table is needed to find them for each sample size.

-Example: A study done surveys 50 people about their favorite news anchor.  What is the margin of error with a 95% confidence level?

A: 13.9%

Business

Business news is very important, with company quarly updates and annual reports.  Journalists need a basic understanding of these as well.

Financial statements

Financial statements are documents that are sent to people interested in how the company is doing.  They are normally found in the annual report.

Profit and Loss

This document is one of the most important.  It tells whether the company is making or losing money.  It is determined through subracting expenses from the income, but companies have different ways of calculating these figures.

Expenses include “wholesale” expenses, which is the money spent to buy the materials needed, and the “overhead” expenses, which include everything not related to the product being made.  Examples of “overhead” expenses include company salaries and rent.  The difference between the “wholesale” expenses and what the product is selling for is the “gross margin.”  Then, subtract the overhead and taxes from the gross margin times the number of goods sold to get the “net income.”

Balance sheet

The balance sheet shows figures about the companies assets, liabilities and equity to see how the company is performing.  Assets are the resources owned by the company that have economic value, and is always equal to the liabilities plus the equity on the balance sheet.

Other Figures

The ratio analysis determines the company’s cash situation, profitability, operating efficiency and market value.  It is often used to compare companies with similar interests.

The current ratio delves into to how well the company is able to meet its liabilities.  The formula for current ratio is: current assets/current liabilities.

The debt-to-asset ratio is similar to the current ratio, but includes all liabilities.  The formula is: total liabilities/total assets.

There are other figures that go into businesses as well that a journalist may need to research to determine how to analyze them.

Example: A merchant is selling a rocking chair for $150.  The nails, wood and other materials cost him $50.  He also hired an employee to work on the chair for $15/hr.  The employee worked two hours on the chair.  What is the gross margin?

A: $100.  The gross margin does not include the overhead, which is the employees salary.

Stocks and Bonds

Businesses need to make money somehow.  Stocks and bonds are one way they do it.  Again, it is important for a journalist to understand the basic principles.

People buy stocks from companies as an investment, and the individual becomes part owner of the company.  The price of the stock fluctuates with how many people want to buy it.  The more demand, the higher the price.  Futures expectations and publicity also have roles in determining a stocks value.

Mutual funds are slightly different.  They are companies people invest in that in turn invest in a variety of companies.

Bonds, however, are more like loans.  They don’t have much risk of fluctuation, and gain interest at a set rate.  When the bond matures over time, the investor will get the “face value” of the bond.  The “current yield” of a bond is: (interest rate*face value)/price.  The bond cost is: amount*rate*years.

Market Indexes

Market Indexes created after investment analysts analyze the market.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average is one type of index.  It takes the total value of one share of 30 select stocks and divides it by the divisor.  The divisor figure takes a few different types of market analyzing figures into account.

NASDAQ, which is an acronym for National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations, reports the trading of stocks and bonds not listed in regular stock markets.  It takes into account over 5,000 securities.

Example: John bought a bond for $400 with a 1.6% interest rate.  He has had the bond for three years.  How much accumulated interest does he have?

A: $72

Property Taxes

Property taxes is a large part of how the local government gets money, and are therefore important to know how to calculate.  The rate is determined by taking the amount of money needed divided by the property holders in the area.  The more value an owner has, the more he or she pays.  The value of a property is also usually assessed by the government, and not how much the house would actually sell for.

One of the biggest issues a journalist might have to deal with is reappraisal, which is when property values are updated in accordance with the current market value.  This can happen at any specified period of time depending on the area.  To prevent corruption by local government, state governments often regulate the process of reappraisal.

Property taxes are measured in units called mills, which is 1/10 of a cent.

The formula for the mill levy is: Taxes to be collected by the government/assessed valuation of all property in the taxing district.

The appraisal value is based on the property’s use, the property’s characteristics such as location and age, current market conditions and a visual inspection by trained appraisers.

The formula for assessed value is: Appraisal value*rate.

The formula for tax owed is: Tax rate*(assessed value of the property/$100).

Example: A town’s budget is $150,000.  What is the tax rate if all the assessed value of property in the town is $30 million?

A: 5 mills

Elon students react to Obama’s first 100 days

Obama ran a large portion of his campaign on hope of a better future for America.

But hope, by definition, is “the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.”

So, after Obama’s first 100 days in office, how have things turned out?

At Elon University, students and faculty were mostly very supportive.

“I think he’s got a lot on his plate, and I think he’s managing it very well,” said Ross Wade, Elon assistant director of career services for the School of Communications.  “I’m very optimistic about the administration he’s putting together,”

“I’m happy about Guantanamo Bay,” Elon student Elizabeth Dobbins said about Obama’s crackdown on torture. “He’s bettered the U.S. image, but obviously it will take a long time.”

Dobbins remained undecided on her overall feeling about Obama, but said it was definitely at least an improvement.

“I’m overjoyed compared to Bush,” she said.

There were, however, some negative sentiment about his first 100 days as well.

“I think he’s muddled some issues, on torture especially,” Elon student Chad Smith said.  “Not that he had bad policies, more that he could have communicated better.”

Wade also had a few doubts.

“The whole bailout thing, he’s doing it and I understand why, but it’s still kind of a little hard to swallow,” he said.  “But it’s what we would have to do with any president – trusting in his judgment and hoping for the best and hopefully things will turn out the way that he sees them.”

Using Numbers for Reporting – Part one

By Scott Van Dorn

Numbers are very powerful tools for journalists.  However, the must be used correctly.

There are certain style tips that are important to remember. For example, make sure to write out single digit numbers and use numerals for multiple digit numbers.   However, numerals are always used for addresses, dates, highway designations, percentages, speeds, temperatures, times and weights.

When using numbers, its usually best to limit the number of numbers to no more than three and only one number in the lead.  Make sure the math (like a percentage increase over time) is done for the reader and also remember a reader can relate better if the numbers are illustrated through analogies or graphics.

There are also tips when using numerical language.  For example, “among” is best used when describing a group of things and “between” is best used when describing two things.  Another example is using “under” when describing a physical relationship, but “less than” when describing a smaller quantity.

Percentages

Percentages are an important tool for journalists.  They are able to provide interesting insight to which the reader can relate.

Journalists must be able to calculate percentage increases and decreases by using this formula: (new figure – old figure)/old figure.

There is also a simple formula to get the percentage of a whole: subgroup/whole group (then move decimal point two points to the right).

It is also very important to distinguish a percentage from a percentage point.  A percentage point, for example, is saying a company lost one percentage point. This number, however, can be different from the actual percentage of marketshare it lost.

There area also formulas for interest that can be easily found online.

The average temperature in Morris County, New Jersey last summer was 88 degrees.  The figure is up from 84 degrees the year previous.  How much percent increase is this?

(88-84)/84 = 0.047

4.7%

15 out of the 28 students in the Elon University ethics class got A’s.  What percentage is this?

15/28 = 0.536

53.6%

Statistics

Statistics are the usually second-most commonly used numbers reporters use besides percentages.  They are used with stories involving sports, crime rates and much more.

There are different ways reporters can use statistics.  One is the mean, or “average.”  This is the sum of the figures divided by the number of figures.

Another is the Median, or the midpoint in a group of numbers.  In order to find the mean, a reporter must rewrite the numbers from lowest to highest.

There is also the mode, or the number that appears most frequently in a set of numbers.

It is important to know when to use and not use these math tools.  For example, if there is one outlier (a number much larger than the rest in a group), it would not be as accurate to use the mean.

One figure commonly seen in scientific reports is standard deviation, which indicates how much a group varies from the norm.  A low standard deviation usually means an experiment is valid and corresponding to a bell curve, while a high standard deviation usually means inaccurate results.

There is also a formula for determining probability.  For example, determining number of deaths per 100,000 people would be: (total deaths/total population) * 100,000.

Examples:

Players on the Yankees starting lineup Wednesday had home run totals of: 5, 5, 4, 4, 3, 3, 3, 2, 1.  What is the mode?

3.

In a flu pandemic, if 10 million people are infected and 800,000 die, what is the probability per 100 that people will die?

(800,000/10,000,000) * 100 = 8

8 per 100 people die.

Federal Statistics

The federal government provides many statistics a reporter needs to know how to use.

One of these is unemployment statistics.  Every month, the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics issues a report on the unemployment situation.  The unemployment rate is determined by this formula: (unemployed/labor force) * 100.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) deals with the inflation rate, and is an important issue for journalists.  The GDP is also important to analyze the country’s economy.

Calhoun discusses interactive media at Elon

By Scott Van Dorn

There are many new and different ways to tell stories through different types of media in today’s world.  In order to sort through all the clutter, Elon University Professor Ken Calhoun spoke to a reporting class about which directions to take.

“What’s going to tell the moment of this story best?” he asked the class.

Ken Calhoun talks interactive media

Interactive media has become a conversation, instead of just a story being told from one person to another.  It is important to find the best delivery method to your story or “extend your reach,” as Calhoun said.  The storytelling experience therefore become more immersible, and increases the connection between the viewer and the story.

The best example of this was a site called “Filmmaker in Residence,” which uses many different formats.  There is sound, interactivity, video and text all compiled together to tell the story in an interesting fashion.

Other cool sites that showcase interactivity are Starbucks, which provides a video and text time line of the coffee-making process, and Second Story, which has a map of Monticello.

“Maps are really hot right now,” Calhoun said.  “As humans we like to be spatially situated in the story.”However, it is also important to keep this kind of interactivity simple.  The New York Times’ web site puts emphasis on this simplicity.  For example, there is no learning curve with their interactive time lines.  It is evident what to do just by looking at the page.

But it is just one technique to get readers involved.  It is important to understand, like in any business, what the consumer enjoys.

“Make it so people want to touch and play and explore,” Calhoun said.  “People like bells and whistles, they want to get lured in.”

In this way, the creator of these sites is not “hosting” a conversation, but actually “trapping” people in a conversation.

One of the most amusing examples Calhoun used to show this was the “Whopper Sacrifice.”  The promotion gave anyone who dropped five of their Facebook friends a free Whopper at Burger King.  It caused some controversy, but ultimately the kind of unique and creative type of idea that will become necessary in an technologically expanding future.

A failed union of faith, logic: Christian Frank Turek speaks at Elon

By Scott Van Dorn

It’s a good thing Frank Turek wasn’t around in the 15th century, or we all might still think the world is flat.

Turek spoke at Elon Thursday night in a room overflowing with eager students and Burlington residents, many desperate to hear his evidence for Christianity. He bragged about his ability to speak 150 words per minute, and then dazzled the audience with an onslaught of scientific words, theories and clever jokes.

But there was a problem.

When carefully examined, the presentation was merely the work of a professional apologetic, peppered with logical flaws, misquoted information and marketing ploys. It was actually a carefully-manipulated piece of Christian propaganda for Turek’s own personal benefit.
What his argument boiled down to was this: Because a world was created with things we can’t currently explain, God must exist.

This is simply an argument from ignorance. In mathematics, it would be like saying if a solution is nine, the problem that created the solution must be seven plus two.

But what about five plus four, three times three or 153 divided by 17? There are many possibilities, claiming that one is “the truth” and polarizing audiences with ignorance for personal profit is unethical and harmful to society. It comes as no surprise that Turek has appeared on such shows as “The O’Reilly Factor.”

But, as Turek states in his presentation, there can be only one right answer in this case. He said that it is important to be open minded until you have “enough evidence to close your mind around it.”

So where is his evidence?

He claims that because the universe is so complex, there must have been a creator. While this is one possibility that could explain it, what it actually does is raise a much bigger question: How was the creator created? If the universe’s complexities require an explanation, why doesn’t the much more complex being that created it?

Even if there was “something” that created the universe, it is illogical to give it other attributes without any proof, as Turek does. In actuality, he has “closed his mind” around a concept with extremely little evidence — making him the definition of ignorance.

Turek promoting his book during his presentation

To someone with very little background on the scientific nature of the universe, Turek’s words might sound like the word of God.

When talking about his major competitors, most notably famous atheist Richard Dawkins, he resorted to jokes when dismissing their ideas. He also blatantly misquoted Stephen Hawking, asserting the famous scientist believes there was a single point in time when everything was created. Hawking’s theories are much more complex and do not suggest this.

But how is anyone in the audience supposed to know?

In the Q-and-A session, junior Mike Kleinman tried to call Turek out on some of the major logical flaws. Turek, with his doctorate in apologetics, kept the crowd on his side with a few jokes and ultimately avoided the question. When Kleinman brought up some of Hawking’s real theories on time, Turek tried to discredit the question by joking, “I don’t have time for this.”
But after another joke during his presentation that lamely discredited the multi-verse theory, “It looks like a demented French horn,” Turek may have made a slip-up that undermined his entire presentation when talking about what he believed.

“That’s what it seems to be at this point, anyway,” he said.

The statement proves his speech is a classic argument from ignorance. Older civilizations thought solar eclipses were the work of God, but we now know eclipses can be scientifically explained by the position of the sun and the moon.

Turek claims to be proving God with science, but what he’s actually doing is using an all-powerful being to fill in the gaps of science we haven’t figured out yet — and making a profit doing it.

Think about it. In the 15th Century, it probably “seemed” like the world was flat too.

Elon students environmentally aware… right?

By Scott Van Dorn

Justine Schulerud sat in the passenger seat of a car in Harden parking at Elon University, when she talked about how she believed she was environmentally aware.  She commented on how everyone should do their part to help prevent global warming.

“Just trying to make our footprint, each individually, less,” Justine Schulerud said.  “If everyone worked on that it would be good.”

Too bad the idle car she was in was left running.

Being environmentally aware is nice to say, but how many students actually follow what they preach?

Out of 131 Elon University students polled, 90 percent of participants said that they were environmentally aware.

That seems like a lot of people, but Elon does encourage this type of behavior.

This week is Elon’s second annual “Earth Week.”  The Green Club and the Sierra Club are raising awareness about the environment through a series of events.  Earth Day itself is April 22.

There are recycle bins in every classroom, and the trams are run on biofuel.  Dining halls are also trying to eliminate the amount of water they use to wash dirty dishes by taking away trays.

Classes also play a major role, especially in regards to global warming.

“I’m not overly concerned (about global warming), but since I’ve come to Elon a few of the classes I’ve taken have taught me a few facts I didn’t know before,” student Oscar Pedlewski said.  “Definitely now I’m thinking about it more.”

Current sophomores at Elon were even required to read Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth before coming to campus last year.

But while you can lead a horse to water, you can’t always make it drink.

The best example?

Waste bins in Elon classrooms are often full of plastic cups, with the proper recycling bin just feet away.

Investigating Health Care

By Scott Van Dorn

At the scene of the accident, paramedics misdiagnosed Marsha Hayward and forced her to walk on two broken legs.

Nearly a decade later, she still is unable to walk without the aid of crutches.

While mistakes happen all the time, it is the investigative reporter’s job to make sure everything is up to standard – especially when it comes to health care.

In case’s like Marsha’s, it is the journalist’s job to investigate the ambulances of the area and how efficient they are.  Journalists should determine which areas are covered by which services, and make sure no location is dangerously out of reach.  They should also check out ambulance response times, which should be around eight minutes.  The Hartford Courant went as far as matching addresses with death records to see who might have died waiting for an ambulance.

There is also the issue of whether the ambulance driver and paramedics are properly trained.  Some ambulance drivers could have bad driving records or a history of substance abuse.

Here is just one example of why some ambulance systems need to be investigated.

However, ambulances are only one aspect of health care that need to be severly scrutinized.  Hospitals need to be accredited, charge the right amounts and avoid mistakes at all costs.  There are many different variables that deal with life and death situations, which makes it very important to look for errors.

Investigating Company Corruption

By Scott Van Dorn

In the early 1900’s they were called “muckrackers” by Theodore Roosevelt.

Today, journalists who investigate businesses may not have any special nicknames, but they are equally, if not more, important.

Business has grown to hold a tremendous amount of power, and sometimes the journalist is the only thing standing in the way of potential corruption.

One issue that has been prevalent today is safety in the workplace.

Companies sometimes cut back on necessary safety measures in the workplace in order to gain a profit.  This situation sometimes lead to life-threatening situations.

In the Investigative Reporters’ Handbook describes one incident where a military plane crashed, and it was later revealed the company had fired all of its quality-control inspectors to save money.

Safety in the workplace is governed under the Occupational Safety and Health Administration of the U.S. Labor Department.  Safety and health inspectors from this department check on the safety of the enviroment.

In the case of an accident, journalists should obtain an OSHA inspection report that will give them the inspector’s hand-written notes.  But investigative journalists can also research a workplace that has not had an accident, and can request reports or visit the site itself.

This article describes a Pulitzer-prize winning article in 1998 that discovered dangerous working conditions for ship breakers.

Wage enforcement is another aspect of potential corruption.  Companies sometimes cheat their employees out of minimum wage and other benefits to get ahead.

Journalists can find possible illegal activity in reports from the U.S. Labor Department’s Wage and Hour division.  Journalists should also investigate local employers who want to pay less then minimum wage to workers who cannot produce at the same rate as  “normal” workers, like the mentally retarded.  There are many details of the law that allow for many possible areas of abuse.