Monday, February 05, 2007
Monday, December 11, 2006
Business Examples
2006 Digital Camera Sales to Rise 17%
For this article, it briefly discusses the expected growth of the digital camera business. Thety say that revenue will increase by 8% and sales of cameras will rise 17%. This article didn't really do much besides present data. It was more or less just a summary of expected market sales.
http://news.digitaltrends.com/article9728.html
Mid-season report: Stores ply shoppers with discounts.
For this article, a discussion of how many people go to the stores in search of the ultimate bargain are successful or come up empty. Several company heads and market anaylists provided information and quotes throughout the article. They said that flat screen plasmas, video game consoles, and digital cameras were in high demand.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/custom/newsroom/sns-ap-holiday-shopping,1,5865433.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
More Camera, More Style, Modest Price
This article, above all the rest, I found the most interesting. It discussed the best cameras that consumers can get for under $300. More than that, however, it broke down the differences between features and talked about the pros and cons about each camera. I thought that this was the most thorouh and interesting article to read. The lead was also humerous in that in made digital camera purchasing seem like a life-changing decision.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/07/technology/07pogue.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Black Friday Consumer Technology Sales Post Double Digit Increase But Growth Slows
In this article, I found the information that I was most seeking for my own article. It talked about how digital cameras scored a good portion of Black Friday Sales and that it increased over last year. This is information that I needed. As a whole, the article was very informative but wasn't very lively to read.
http://www.tekrati.com/research/News.asp?id=8217
Must-Have Holiday Gifts Not Easy to Find
This article, though not really focused too much on digital camerasa, mentioned briefly the difficulty of finding certain digital cameras, namely ones marketed to children this season. This bit of information gave me the tip that digital cameras are even being marketed to young ages now. The bulk of the article, however, focused more or less on other things like not being able to find Elmo dolls, etc.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-holiday-gifts-must-haves,1,2571263.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
I want to do my article on digital camera sales this year.
For this article, it briefly discusses the expected growth of the digital camera business. Thety say that revenue will increase by 8% and sales of cameras will rise 17%. This article didn't really do much besides present data. It was more or less just a summary of expected market sales.
http://news.digitaltrends.com/article9728.html
Mid-season report: Stores ply shoppers with discounts.
For this article, a discussion of how many people go to the stores in search of the ultimate bargain are successful or come up empty. Several company heads and market anaylists provided information and quotes throughout the article. They said that flat screen plasmas, video game consoles, and digital cameras were in high demand.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/custom/newsroom/sns-ap-holiday-shopping,1,5865433.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
More Camera, More Style, Modest Price
This article, above all the rest, I found the most interesting. It discussed the best cameras that consumers can get for under $300. More than that, however, it broke down the differences between features and talked about the pros and cons about each camera. I thought that this was the most thorouh and interesting article to read. The lead was also humerous in that in made digital camera purchasing seem like a life-changing decision.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/07/technology/07pogue.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Black Friday Consumer Technology Sales Post Double Digit Increase But Growth Slows
In this article, I found the information that I was most seeking for my own article. It talked about how digital cameras scored a good portion of Black Friday Sales and that it increased over last year. This is information that I needed. As a whole, the article was very informative but wasn't very lively to read.
http://www.tekrati.com/research/News.asp?id=8217
Must-Have Holiday Gifts Not Easy to Find
This article, though not really focused too much on digital camerasa, mentioned briefly the difficulty of finding certain digital cameras, namely ones marketed to children this season. This bit of information gave me the tip that digital cameras are even being marketed to young ages now. The bulk of the article, however, focused more or less on other things like not being able to find Elmo dolls, etc.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-holiday-gifts-must-haves,1,2571263.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
I want to do my article on digital camera sales this year.
Final business article
A war is brewing. A war that has been in the making for over 20 years. It is a war of two Japanese super powers and both sides will stop at nothing to step on their opponents throat. But this is not a political war or a governmental dispute. This is the war between Sony and Nintendo.
On the third weekend in November, the Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii were launched. The release of these consoles mark each companies first foray into the world of next-generation entertainment.
The PS3, which launched in North America on Nov. 17, offers consumers high-definition graphics, blue-tooth connectivity, Wi-Fi, and other home theater options. Sony’s goal with the PS3 is to deliver the ultimate multimedia/home theater experience in one box.
However, even with the myriad of options the PS3 encompasses, many industry analysts frown upon Sony’s chances of winning the next-gen war. This negative outlook can be attributed to the $600 price tag that comes with the PS3. However, not everyone views the steep price tag as an area of concern.
“People that want a PS3 are going to buy a PS3” says an Oshkosh Game Crazy rep. Gamers just don’t care. It’s a technically, impressive machine that, to them, is worth the cash.”
Its competition, the Nintendo Wii, launched Nov 19. Nintendo’s focus for the Wii lies not within superior visuals and multi-functionality but with innovation and the ability to have a truly immersive gaming experience. Nintendo strives to revolutionize game play by creating a system and controller unlike anything the industry has seen before, and their doing it all for only $250.
The Wiimote is the controller to the Wii and acts as an extension of the player. By using sensors inside the Wiimote, players are able to simulate real-life motions. Players can aim the Wiimote like a gun, swing it like a baseball bat and hold it over their heads like an umbrella. The Wii console recognizes these motions and makes the characters perform the same motion as the player. With the Wiimote, the possibilities are endless.
Both the Wii and PS3 faced vast amounts of initial hype. Stores across the country started to allow pre-orders uncharacteristically early. Some stores even opened up pre-order options a year in advance.
Wisconsin stores were no different, as many game retailers sold out of preorders within minutes.
“We started dealing with pre-orders a month before each consoles release,” said a Wausau Gamestop rep. “There were people waiting in line just to pre-order them. They were literally gone within an hour.”
So with these two systems each offering their own respective strengths and at such high demand, who would come out on top this holiday season?
Before the launch Sony had promised consumers 400,000 units in North America and 100,000 units geared toward the Japanese market. The company had also made promises of having one million consoles worldwide by the end of the year.
After the smoke from launch weekend cleared, it appears that Sony has come up short. While both the Japanese and American launches saw the PS3 selling out within hours of it’s release,
Sony was not able to produce the units to fill out their projected figures.
In America, Sony sold 197,000 PS3’s. This is well short of their 400,000 unit goal. Even though Sony sold out of their console behemoth across the country, the launch can not be viewed as a success. Numerous manufacturing problems kept Sony from attaining their goal. And while Sony is standing behind its promise to ship one million consoles by the end of 2006, many analysts say that such a goal is highly unlikely.
PS3 shortages have affected stores in the Oshkosh area as well, leaving many gamers to go home empty handed.
“We initially had eight PS3’s and 18 Nintendo Wii’s” said a Fond du Lac Target sales rep. “ Since the launch, we had another shipment of 18 Wii’s but only four additional PS3’s”.
Daniel Van Rooy, an associate receiver at Sears in Oshkosh, shares similar concerns.
“We only received two Nintendo Wii’s and we never got any PS3’s,” Van Rooy said. “We were suppose to get a couple of PS3’s but when the truck came there was nothing there.”
All of these problems, coupled with the initial success of the Wii, finds Sony quickly falling behind in the next-gen race.
If the initial launch figures are any indication of the final result, then Nintendo has a lot to be excited about. The Wii sold 476,00 units in the United States alone and within the first eight days of its release, Nintendo reported sales figures of 600,000 units worldwide.
Another aspect that favors the Wii are its reviews. While critics are not saying overwhelmingly bad comments on the PS3, many are finding trouble trying to justify its steep price tag. The innovation, playability and price that the Wii console brings to the table is garnering rave reviews from critics around the globe.
While Nintendo seems to be the victor thus far in the console race, it is only the beginning. Console cycles typically reach a span of four-to-five years and most consoles do not peak until the third or fourth years. So while Sony currently may be down, they are far from out.
Despite the problems Sony has faced within the last month and the ever-increasing competition from the Wii and Microsoft’s Xbox 360, they have little reason to be scared. Sony has faced many of these problems before with the Playstation 2.That console is currently on top of the sales charts and has outsold all of the next-generation offerings that have made their debuts thus far. Not bad for a console that was released over five years ago.
On the third weekend in November, the Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii were launched. The release of these consoles mark each companies first foray into the world of next-generation entertainment.
The PS3, which launched in North America on Nov. 17, offers consumers high-definition graphics, blue-tooth connectivity, Wi-Fi, and other home theater options. Sony’s goal with the PS3 is to deliver the ultimate multimedia/home theater experience in one box.
However, even with the myriad of options the PS3 encompasses, many industry analysts frown upon Sony’s chances of winning the next-gen war. This negative outlook can be attributed to the $600 price tag that comes with the PS3. However, not everyone views the steep price tag as an area of concern.
“People that want a PS3 are going to buy a PS3” says an Oshkosh Game Crazy rep. Gamers just don’t care. It’s a technically, impressive machine that, to them, is worth the cash.”
Its competition, the Nintendo Wii, launched Nov 19. Nintendo’s focus for the Wii lies not within superior visuals and multi-functionality but with innovation and the ability to have a truly immersive gaming experience. Nintendo strives to revolutionize game play by creating a system and controller unlike anything the industry has seen before, and their doing it all for only $250.
The Wiimote is the controller to the Wii and acts as an extension of the player. By using sensors inside the Wiimote, players are able to simulate real-life motions. Players can aim the Wiimote like a gun, swing it like a baseball bat and hold it over their heads like an umbrella. The Wii console recognizes these motions and makes the characters perform the same motion as the player. With the Wiimote, the possibilities are endless.
Both the Wii and PS3 faced vast amounts of initial hype. Stores across the country started to allow pre-orders uncharacteristically early. Some stores even opened up pre-order options a year in advance.
Wisconsin stores were no different, as many game retailers sold out of preorders within minutes.
“We started dealing with pre-orders a month before each consoles release,” said a Wausau Gamestop rep. “There were people waiting in line just to pre-order them. They were literally gone within an hour.”
So with these two systems each offering their own respective strengths and at such high demand, who would come out on top this holiday season?
Before the launch Sony had promised consumers 400,000 units in North America and 100,000 units geared toward the Japanese market. The company had also made promises of having one million consoles worldwide by the end of the year.
After the smoke from launch weekend cleared, it appears that Sony has come up short. While both the Japanese and American launches saw the PS3 selling out within hours of it’s release,
Sony was not able to produce the units to fill out their projected figures.
In America, Sony sold 197,000 PS3’s. This is well short of their 400,000 unit goal. Even though Sony sold out of their console behemoth across the country, the launch can not be viewed as a success. Numerous manufacturing problems kept Sony from attaining their goal. And while Sony is standing behind its promise to ship one million consoles by the end of 2006, many analysts say that such a goal is highly unlikely.
PS3 shortages have affected stores in the Oshkosh area as well, leaving many gamers to go home empty handed.
“We initially had eight PS3’s and 18 Nintendo Wii’s” said a Fond du Lac Target sales rep. “ Since the launch, we had another shipment of 18 Wii’s but only four additional PS3’s”.
Daniel Van Rooy, an associate receiver at Sears in Oshkosh, shares similar concerns.
“We only received two Nintendo Wii’s and we never got any PS3’s,” Van Rooy said. “We were suppose to get a couple of PS3’s but when the truck came there was nothing there.”
All of these problems, coupled with the initial success of the Wii, finds Sony quickly falling behind in the next-gen race.
If the initial launch figures are any indication of the final result, then Nintendo has a lot to be excited about. The Wii sold 476,00 units in the United States alone and within the first eight days of its release, Nintendo reported sales figures of 600,000 units worldwide.
Another aspect that favors the Wii are its reviews. While critics are not saying overwhelmingly bad comments on the PS3, many are finding trouble trying to justify its steep price tag. The innovation, playability and price that the Wii console brings to the table is garnering rave reviews from critics around the globe.
While Nintendo seems to be the victor thus far in the console race, it is only the beginning. Console cycles typically reach a span of four-to-five years and most consoles do not peak until the third or fourth years. So while Sony currently may be down, they are far from out.
Despite the problems Sony has faced within the last month and the ever-increasing competition from the Wii and Microsoft’s Xbox 360, they have little reason to be scared. Sony has faced many of these problems before with the Playstation 2.That console is currently on top of the sales charts and has outsold all of the next-generation offerings that have made their debuts thus far. Not bad for a console that was released over five years ago.
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Rough Shopping Draft
It was 1 p.m. at the local Target retail store in Oshkosh. A steady flow of people walked in and out of the building. Lines are ten deep, and it hasn’t even hit the crazy part of the day. All signs that sales are up and local citizens are going about holiday shopping as usual.
Through all of the negatives that have been discussed about the U.S. economy recently, sales and shoppers attitudes haven’t been affected, for the most part. “I know the economy isn’t in the best of shape right now,” Samantha Podd, who traveled from over an hour away in Franklin, Wis., to shop in Oshkosh, said. “I haven’t been slowed down one bit. If anything I am spending more money this year than I have in the past.”
This year’s hot items are electronics. According to a recent report, retail technology sales have increased over 12 percent to more than $2 billion dollars compared to last year. Of the hottest items sold on Black Friday were flat panel television sets. LCD televisions showed almost 300 percent gross improvement from last year’s numbers on the craziest shopping day of the year.
Along with the increased sales of flat panel televisions, other electronics sales have increased as well. Digital cameras, gaming systems, cell phones and mp3 players have been among the top selling items this holiday season.
“iPods are really hot right now,” Ryan Sanders said. “It seems like we have been selling a lot more than we have in past years.”
The Staples store on South Koeller Avenue had an extraordinary day of sales on Black Friday. Last year Staples hauled in around $65,000 in revenue on Black Friday, and set their goal for $67,000 this year. By 2 p.m. their goal for sales had already been met.
“I went into work and I asked my boss if we were busy,” Staples sales associate Nathan Bartel said. “He said ‘yes’ and that we had already sold what we were aiming for and the rest of the money we brought in that day would be icing on the cake.” By the end of the day Staples had brought in over $77,000 in retail sales for the day, surpassing their goal by $10,000.
Although stores that deal largely with electronics are faring extremely well this holiday season some stores’ sales are down. The Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store at Prime Outlets in Oshkosh that couldn’t surge past a crazy Black Friday with lots of traffic was one of those businesses.
“Our sales are down a little bit from last year,” Manager Melissa (she wouldn’t tell me her last name, what do I do?) said. “I think it is because of location in the mall and the lack of traffic we get as opposed to our lower sales being the economy’s fault.”
Some businesses sales are down from last year, but as a whole it seems sales are up around the Oshkosh area. With two weeks left until Christmas, this holiday season is shaping up to be a very good one for consumers and businesses alike.
As Podd said, “One thing is for sure, I am not going to change my spending habits this year. It is Christmas time and bring on the holiday cheer.”
Through all of the negatives that have been discussed about the U.S. economy recently, sales and shoppers attitudes haven’t been affected, for the most part. “I know the economy isn’t in the best of shape right now,” Samantha Podd, who traveled from over an hour away in Franklin, Wis., to shop in Oshkosh, said. “I haven’t been slowed down one bit. If anything I am spending more money this year than I have in the past.”
This year’s hot items are electronics. According to a recent report, retail technology sales have increased over 12 percent to more than $2 billion dollars compared to last year. Of the hottest items sold on Black Friday were flat panel television sets. LCD televisions showed almost 300 percent gross improvement from last year’s numbers on the craziest shopping day of the year.
Along with the increased sales of flat panel televisions, other electronics sales have increased as well. Digital cameras, gaming systems, cell phones and mp3 players have been among the top selling items this holiday season.
“iPods are really hot right now,” Ryan Sanders said. “It seems like we have been selling a lot more than we have in past years.”
The Staples store on South Koeller Avenue had an extraordinary day of sales on Black Friday. Last year Staples hauled in around $65,000 in revenue on Black Friday, and set their goal for $67,000 this year. By 2 p.m. their goal for sales had already been met.
“I went into work and I asked my boss if we were busy,” Staples sales associate Nathan Bartel said. “He said ‘yes’ and that we had already sold what we were aiming for and the rest of the money we brought in that day would be icing on the cake.” By the end of the day Staples had brought in over $77,000 in retail sales for the day, surpassing their goal by $10,000.
Although stores that deal largely with electronics are faring extremely well this holiday season some stores’ sales are down. The Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store at Prime Outlets in Oshkosh that couldn’t surge past a crazy Black Friday with lots of traffic was one of those businesses.
“Our sales are down a little bit from last year,” Manager Melissa (she wouldn’t tell me her last name, what do I do?) said. “I think it is because of location in the mall and the lack of traffic we get as opposed to our lower sales being the economy’s fault.”
Some businesses sales are down from last year, but as a whole it seems sales are up around the Oshkosh area. With two weeks left until Christmas, this holiday season is shaping up to be a very good one for consumers and businesses alike.
As Podd said, “One thing is for sure, I am not going to change my spending habits this year. It is Christmas time and bring on the holiday cheer.”
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Business Article Examples
Marathon on the move to Lambeau Field area
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061206/GPG03/612060527/1247/GPGbusiness
This article had to due with the annual Cellcom Green Bay Marathon being moved from it's current location next to the KI Convention Center to the "stadium district" of Green Bay near Lambeau Field. The article talks about a scheduling conflict that led to the decision to move the marathon. More importantly though, the article goes into detail about the effect on businesses that the marathon has had ($1.2 million) on local economy, the consequences of moving the event, and how the move to the Lambeau Field area will help market the run more. Finally, the article also mentions the other events going on around the city that weekend (dart tournament, etc.) that will also help fuel hotels, restaraunts, and other businesses.
Oshkosh Truck base to remain in Oshkosh
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061206/GPG03/612060538/1247/GPGbusiness
This article explained how the Oshkosh Truck Corp. is deciding to keep it's offices based in Oshkosh for the time being. After many aquiring many other large and small businesses, Oshkosh Truck has grown a lot over the past decades and is starting to feel its office space is too confining. They have been looking at places in Neenah to relocate to gain greater space. Oshkosh is trying to keep the trucking company based here because of the jobs it creates.
MySpace acts to boot entries by convicted sex offenders
http://www.baltimoresun.com/technology/bal-bz.myspace06dec06,0,2176586.story?coll=bal-business-headlines
This article talks about how MySpace is now launching a database in thirty days that will help comb its sites for convicted sex offenders. This is being implemented in response to criticism and recent fears about sex predators on the website. MySpace is teaming up with the Sentinel Tech Holding Corp. to undertake this operation.
Taco Bell Removes Green Onions
http://www.latimes.com/business/nationworld/wire/ats-ap_business11dec06,1,283250.story?coll=la-wires-business&ctrack=1&cset=true
In this article, it explained that Taco Bell is currently removing all green onions from their stores for the time being. This is in response to the chain being linked to E. Coli cases in three states. As a precation, they are eliminating the onions from their menu in order to find out if, like spinach earlier this year, the vegetable is to blame. The article also talks about the various Taco Bells that have shut down completely for a few days because of the scare, and also gave a few quotes from consumers about the impact of this decision (one mother told her son not to eat there for awhile.)
Yahoo, Aiming for Agility, Shuffles Executives
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/06/technology/06yahoo.html?ref=business
This article talked about how Yahoo was trying to reinvent itself from within because of growing criticism that it had become "too bureaucratic to compete effectively against nimbler rivals." In summary, by March of next year, their management and operating unit setup will have fully transformed from its current state into three different branches. One aspect will deal with its audience, one with advertisers, and one with technology. This is being done in an effort to regain some of the lost revenue that MySpace and other websites are taking away. Two new chairmen are being put in place to try to close the gap, citing that Yahoo has lost touch with some of the internet world because of its reliance on its earlier success.
For my business article, I would like to focus on #1. I wil talk about Christmas shopping in the Oshkosh area.
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061206/GPG03/612060527/1247/GPGbusiness
This article had to due with the annual Cellcom Green Bay Marathon being moved from it's current location next to the KI Convention Center to the "stadium district" of Green Bay near Lambeau Field. The article talks about a scheduling conflict that led to the decision to move the marathon. More importantly though, the article goes into detail about the effect on businesses that the marathon has had ($1.2 million) on local economy, the consequences of moving the event, and how the move to the Lambeau Field area will help market the run more. Finally, the article also mentions the other events going on around the city that weekend (dart tournament, etc.) that will also help fuel hotels, restaraunts, and other businesses.
Oshkosh Truck base to remain in Oshkosh
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061206/GPG03/612060538/1247/GPGbusiness
This article explained how the Oshkosh Truck Corp. is deciding to keep it's offices based in Oshkosh for the time being. After many aquiring many other large and small businesses, Oshkosh Truck has grown a lot over the past decades and is starting to feel its office space is too confining. They have been looking at places in Neenah to relocate to gain greater space. Oshkosh is trying to keep the trucking company based here because of the jobs it creates.
MySpace acts to boot entries by convicted sex offenders
http://www.baltimoresun.com/technology/bal-bz.myspace06dec06,0,2176586.story?coll=bal-business-headlines
This article talks about how MySpace is now launching a database in thirty days that will help comb its sites for convicted sex offenders. This is being implemented in response to criticism and recent fears about sex predators on the website. MySpace is teaming up with the Sentinel Tech Holding Corp. to undertake this operation.
Taco Bell Removes Green Onions
http://www.latimes.com/business/nationworld/wire/ats-ap_business11dec06,1,283250.story?coll=la-wires-business&ctrack=1&cset=true
In this article, it explained that Taco Bell is currently removing all green onions from their stores for the time being. This is in response to the chain being linked to E. Coli cases in three states. As a precation, they are eliminating the onions from their menu in order to find out if, like spinach earlier this year, the vegetable is to blame. The article also talks about the various Taco Bells that have shut down completely for a few days because of the scare, and also gave a few quotes from consumers about the impact of this decision (one mother told her son not to eat there for awhile.)
Yahoo, Aiming for Agility, Shuffles Executives
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/06/technology/06yahoo.html?ref=business
This article talked about how Yahoo was trying to reinvent itself from within because of growing criticism that it had become "too bureaucratic to compete effectively against nimbler rivals." In summary, by March of next year, their management and operating unit setup will have fully transformed from its current state into three different branches. One aspect will deal with its audience, one with advertisers, and one with technology. This is being done in an effort to regain some of the lost revenue that MySpace and other websites are taking away. Two new chairmen are being put in place to try to close the gap, citing that Yahoo has lost touch with some of the internet world because of its reliance on its earlier success.
For my business article, I would like to focus on #1. I wil talk about Christmas shopping in the Oshkosh area.
Monday, December 04, 2006
Russ' business examples
http://www.keepmecurrent.com/Community/story.cfm?storyID=28801
This article focuses on one shopping mall. It interviews the shoppers and goes in depth about their shopping strategies and thoughts about Black Friday. I like the quote from the Hickory Farm kiosk worker because it shows the amount of money Black Friday brings to businesses. I think interviewing workers at GameStop was a good idea because videogames will once again be the big gift for the holidays.
http://www.sheboygan-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006612040570
I like how this article focuses on the kiosks found within the mall. I think people overlook kiosks. The reporter talked to owners of two kiosks and one shopper. I thought the article was rather informative and covered a unique topic.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/4378912.html
This story addresses "Cyber Monday." I have heard of this term before, but I learned that it is actually not real and was used to build hype. I think the best part of the article is, "Financial analyst Deloitte & Touche says that more people did Internet shopping on the recent Black Friday than on Cyber Monday. Furthermore, only one in four of the Cyber Monday customers did their buying from work. The vast majority shopped from home."
http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlebusiness.aspx?type=businessNews&storyID=2006-12-05T091629Z_01_L04377757_RTRUKOC_0_UK-BRITAIN-SALES-BRC.xml
This article is about the decrease in sales for winter wear. It is a topic I never really thought about, but the warm weather would affect sales of clothes as Christmas gifts. I think this is informative, but I would like quotes from customers and shopkeepers. The average person might think sales would be about the same with people buying for the upcoming cold weather. In addition, people might not need warmer clothes if they are lazy and stay indoors.
http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061125/APC0101/611250464/1979
This article is about "Black Friday." However, the focus is on our area. The article interviews analysts and shoppers. I thought the most informative part was that Black Friday is not the biggest shopping day of the year, but a day when the most people pass through stores and see the new items.
This article focuses on one shopping mall. It interviews the shoppers and goes in depth about their shopping strategies and thoughts about Black Friday. I like the quote from the Hickory Farm kiosk worker because it shows the amount of money Black Friday brings to businesses. I think interviewing workers at GameStop was a good idea because videogames will once again be the big gift for the holidays.
http://www.sheboygan-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006612040570
I like how this article focuses on the kiosks found within the mall. I think people overlook kiosks. The reporter talked to owners of two kiosks and one shopper. I thought the article was rather informative and covered a unique topic.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/4378912.html
This story addresses "Cyber Monday." I have heard of this term before, but I learned that it is actually not real and was used to build hype. I think the best part of the article is, "Financial analyst Deloitte & Touche says that more people did Internet shopping on the recent Black Friday than on Cyber Monday. Furthermore, only one in four of the Cyber Monday customers did their buying from work. The vast majority shopped from home."
http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlebusiness.aspx?type=businessNews&storyID=2006-12-05T091629Z_01_L04377757_RTRUKOC_0_UK-BRITAIN-SALES-BRC.xml
This article is about the decrease in sales for winter wear. It is a topic I never really thought about, but the warm weather would affect sales of clothes as Christmas gifts. I think this is informative, but I would like quotes from customers and shopkeepers. The average person might think sales would be about the same with people buying for the upcoming cold weather. In addition, people might not need warmer clothes if they are lazy and stay indoors.
http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061125/APC0101/611250464/1979
This article is about "Black Friday." However, the focus is on our area. The article interviews analysts and shoppers. I thought the most informative part was that Black Friday is not the biggest shopping day of the year, but a day when the most people pass through stores and see the new items.
business links
1) The first article I read was an article on how shoppers are more bargain-driven than ever. The article , which was on CNN. com used polls and statistics from America's Research Group (ARG) to show interesting data. The statistics show that a third of American shoppers polled are waiting until the day before christmas to do their shopping. One other statistic that they concentrate on is that a large majority of shoppers are waiting until discounts become as large as fifty percent to purchase some of thier items.
http://money.cnn.com/2006/12/04/news/economy/holiday_sales/index.htm?postversion=2006120412
2) The second article I read is on Playstation 3's being stolen in Japan. The 180 consoles, which wer a part of a 1,560 shipment were stolen on Friday Dec. 5. The consoles which were stored at Meitetsu Golden Aircargo appearently just "dissapeared" when a employess went to check on them and found that they were missing. There was $82,500 worth of PS3's stolen from the aircargo storage area.
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162774.html?tag=latestnews;title;2
3) The third article I read was about the about the console release of the Nintendo Wii in Japan. the console sold 372,00 units in just two days which was just short of Nintendo's projected 400,00 unit goal. While both the playstation 3 and the Wii sold out in Japan the Playstation 3 topped out at 80,000 units.
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162702.html?tag=latestnews;title;4
4) This next article I looked at was an article pertaining to the concerns of Nintendo outdoing itself. There was fear of the amazing Wii sales overshadowing the Nintendo DS which is its handheld giant. However the president of Nintendo, Satoru Iwata, is not worried and the sales predictions for 2007 remian strong. In total,Nintendo expects their two consoles to earn them over 1 billion in 2007.
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162728.html
5) The last article I read was on sony's new technology; the blu-ray player. It was an article about how the high-defintion dvd player is at war with another format of hd-dvd and it doesn't look good for sony. The model sony is realeasing is priced at around 500 dollars more than other hd-dvd players and does not provide much over thier competition.
http://blogs.business2.com/utilitybelt/2006/12/sonys_1000_blur.html
http://money.cnn.com/2006/12/04/news/economy/holiday_sales/index.htm?postversion=2006120412
2) The second article I read is on Playstation 3's being stolen in Japan. The 180 consoles, which wer a part of a 1,560 shipment were stolen on Friday Dec. 5. The consoles which were stored at Meitetsu Golden Aircargo appearently just "dissapeared" when a employess went to check on them and found that they were missing. There was $82,500 worth of PS3's stolen from the aircargo storage area.
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162774.html?tag=latestnews;title;2
3) The third article I read was about the about the console release of the Nintendo Wii in Japan. the console sold 372,00 units in just two days which was just short of Nintendo's projected 400,00 unit goal. While both the playstation 3 and the Wii sold out in Japan the Playstation 3 topped out at 80,000 units.
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162702.html?tag=latestnews;title;4
4) This next article I looked at was an article pertaining to the concerns of Nintendo outdoing itself. There was fear of the amazing Wii sales overshadowing the Nintendo DS which is its handheld giant. However the president of Nintendo, Satoru Iwata, is not worried and the sales predictions for 2007 remian strong. In total,Nintendo expects their two consoles to earn them over 1 billion in 2007.
http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162728.html
5) The last article I read was on sony's new technology; the blu-ray player. It was an article about how the high-defintion dvd player is at war with another format of hd-dvd and it doesn't look good for sony. The model sony is realeasing is priced at around 500 dollars more than other hd-dvd players and does not provide much over thier competition.
http://blogs.business2.com/utilitybelt/2006/12/sonys_1000_blur.html
5 Business Stories
1. http://www.thenorthwestern.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061122/OSH06/611220386/1190/OSHopinion
The author challenges Oshkosh citizens to keep their spending in the city of Oshkosh for the holiday season. He/she explains why companies ask for your zip code when you buy things. It is to gague whether or not money is flowing in from a different city, so that the company can decide if they should build a store in a certain place. If we dont travel to other cities to buy from Best Buy or other stores like that, they may be more inclined to set up a store in the Oshkosh area (I thought the opposite, I thought if we bought more from a store, then they would want to move up here to make it more accesible to us).
2. http://www.thenorthwestern.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061122/OSH06/611220386/1190/OSHopinion
the story is about the San Antonio area post-Thanksgiving Day sales. The story goes very little into the money, but reflects how satisfied the customers are at the stores they visited. The people rave about the amazing deals they got and how happy they were that they showed up early to the stores. It also paints a picture of the chaos that comes with the sales on Black Friday at the retail stores. the writer got a lot of good information and a lot of good quotes on the story.
3. http://www.thenorthwestern.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061125/OSH03/611250353/1128/OSHnews
This is a similar story to the San Antonio one. The only major difference is this story is about local Oshkosh businessess on Black Friday. I think it was creative for the writer to have the lead being a man is hunting, but not for an animal. It was unique, but still a little cheesy and left a bad taste in my mouth. But,hey, he tried. It gave a local look at the line of 150 people outside of target before it opened at 6 am and other stories showing the shoppers' devotion to getting a good deal. One line that sticks out for me is a quote from a guy who said the crowds are getting meaner, not larger. That was agood quote to put it, I think it added a good dimension to the story, and got me to forget about the whole hunting lead.
4. http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061125/APC0101/611250464/1979
This story is about how Appleton business owners are pleased with the turnout on Black Friday. The writer adds an interesting element which I have never heard before. Black friday isnt the biggest day of the year in terms of sales, it is only in traffic. The biggest day of the year in sales for retailers is the Saturday before Christmas. Black Friday is such a big deal for the businessess, however, because they get a chance to showcase some of their new products that people will be shopping for throughout the year. The second part of the story is just the run-of-the-mill how crazy it is shopping on Black Friday.
5. http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20061204005434&newsLang=en
this article goes over how electronics are the hot thing to get this holiday season. electronic sales are up over 11 percent from last year. This story doesnt really have a human side, just reports on what items were hot and what sold how much. LCD tvs and plasma TVs were the hot item of the year. They produced the best sales of any other electronic, as a whole.
I am doing a story on local retail sales, possibly comparing a larger company like a place in the outlet mall compared to a ma and pop store. Either that or I will focus on Oshkosh retail sales as a whole.
The author challenges Oshkosh citizens to keep their spending in the city of Oshkosh for the holiday season. He/she explains why companies ask for your zip code when you buy things. It is to gague whether or not money is flowing in from a different city, so that the company can decide if they should build a store in a certain place. If we dont travel to other cities to buy from Best Buy or other stores like that, they may be more inclined to set up a store in the Oshkosh area (I thought the opposite, I thought if we bought more from a store, then they would want to move up here to make it more accesible to us).
2. http://www.thenorthwestern.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061122/OSH06/611220386/1190/OSHopinion
the story is about the San Antonio area post-Thanksgiving Day sales. The story goes very little into the money, but reflects how satisfied the customers are at the stores they visited. The people rave about the amazing deals they got and how happy they were that they showed up early to the stores. It also paints a picture of the chaos that comes with the sales on Black Friday at the retail stores. the writer got a lot of good information and a lot of good quotes on the story.
3. http://www.thenorthwestern.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061125/OSH03/611250353/1128/OSHnews
This is a similar story to the San Antonio one. The only major difference is this story is about local Oshkosh businessess on Black Friday. I think it was creative for the writer to have the lead being a man is hunting, but not for an animal. It was unique, but still a little cheesy and left a bad taste in my mouth. But,hey, he tried. It gave a local look at the line of 150 people outside of target before it opened at 6 am and other stories showing the shoppers' devotion to getting a good deal. One line that sticks out for me is a quote from a guy who said the crowds are getting meaner, not larger. That was agood quote to put it, I think it added a good dimension to the story, and got me to forget about the whole hunting lead.
4. http://www.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061125/APC0101/611250464/1979
This story is about how Appleton business owners are pleased with the turnout on Black Friday. The writer adds an interesting element which I have never heard before. Black friday isnt the biggest day of the year in terms of sales, it is only in traffic. The biggest day of the year in sales for retailers is the Saturday before Christmas. Black Friday is such a big deal for the businessess, however, because they get a chance to showcase some of their new products that people will be shopping for throughout the year. The second part of the story is just the run-of-the-mill how crazy it is shopping on Black Friday.
5. http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20061204005434&newsLang=en
this article goes over how electronics are the hot thing to get this holiday season. electronic sales are up over 11 percent from last year. This story doesnt really have a human side, just reports on what items were hot and what sold how much. LCD tvs and plasma TVs were the hot item of the year. They produced the best sales of any other electronic, as a whole.
I am doing a story on local retail sales, possibly comparing a larger company like a place in the outlet mall compared to a ma and pop store. Either that or I will focus on Oshkosh retail sales as a whole.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Final Profile Draft
Katie Amber Bunnow took the last name of Eric Raquet on Sept. 9, 2006. Her father attended the event even though the scars remained from his burns and one of his ears was completely missing.
The one thing everyone attending the immaculate wedding noticed about her father was the large smile on his face.
At the age of 17, Katie Raquet spent about one year living and bickering with her older brother Stevie Bunnow after a car accident left her father in Chicago’s intensive care unit, with their mother by his side.
Katie Raquet’s father, Steve Bunnow, took a part-time job driving a semi truck to earn enough money to buy snowmobiles for him and his son. Bunnow was driving in Chicago when a car cut him off, leading to his semi hitting a pillar of a bridge. The truck he was driving exploded and launched him through the windshield.
Suffering severe burns and broken bones, Katie Raquet said her father spent about one year in Chicago and an additional six months in Milwaukee recovering. During that period, her mother was a factory worker and spent the majority of her time by her husband’s side.
Katie Raquet said living without her father and mother was not only difficult financially, but that her brother was going through a “bad stage” in his life. She said he became a “big drinker” and a “pot head” at the age of 18 and would invite friends, sometimes exceeding 30, to party in their home while their mother was in Chicago.
However, the hardships and unhappiness of the past were washed away once she met, dated and married Eric Raquet.
“She is beautiful and funny,” Eric Raquet, 24, said. “That is a rare combination.”
Now Katie Raquet, 24, can be found wearing her pajamas, complimented by fuzzy slippers as she softly moves about the kitchen of her three-bedroom ranch house located in Howards Grove, Wis. At the height of 5 feet 4 inches, Katie Raquet needs to stretch her arms to reach the cupboards.
Her hands guide her brown bangs away from brown eyes when she throws her head back, her gleaming white teeth revealed when she lets out a good laugh. Friends of the couple are often found within the home, enjoying a drink and exchanging jokes.
“She is pretty funny…for a girl,” family friend Dave Royer said.
A former member of the Catholic Church, she now attends the United Church of Christ. Katie Raquet considers herself to be a “hardcore Republican” and enjoys a comfortable lifestyle as she continues to work.
She became a medical assistant at the age of 18 for the Wisconsin Department of Veteran Affairs without any experience. The position she holds requires a degree and she joked they must have hired her “just for fun.”
Even though she enjoys the life she lives, Katie Raquet said she does feel disappointed that she never enrolled in a four-year college. Her voice softens and her eyes look towards the ground when she speaks about dropping out of Lakeshore Technical College during the process of becoming a dental hygienist.
With all her credits earned and only the dental program to complete, Katie said her current job of being a medical assistant was too good to let go. However, she still has ambitions to finish what she started.
Katie Raquet said her relationship with her family is much better. Both she and her brother have grown up and put their qualms aside, her father is healthy and happy to be alive, and she continues to better know the new members on her husband’s side.
The one thing everyone attending the immaculate wedding noticed about her father was the large smile on his face.
At the age of 17, Katie Raquet spent about one year living and bickering with her older brother Stevie Bunnow after a car accident left her father in Chicago’s intensive care unit, with their mother by his side.
Katie Raquet’s father, Steve Bunnow, took a part-time job driving a semi truck to earn enough money to buy snowmobiles for him and his son. Bunnow was driving in Chicago when a car cut him off, leading to his semi hitting a pillar of a bridge. The truck he was driving exploded and launched him through the windshield.
Suffering severe burns and broken bones, Katie Raquet said her father spent about one year in Chicago and an additional six months in Milwaukee recovering. During that period, her mother was a factory worker and spent the majority of her time by her husband’s side.
Katie Raquet said living without her father and mother was not only difficult financially, but that her brother was going through a “bad stage” in his life. She said he became a “big drinker” and a “pot head” at the age of 18 and would invite friends, sometimes exceeding 30, to party in their home while their mother was in Chicago.
However, the hardships and unhappiness of the past were washed away once she met, dated and married Eric Raquet.
“She is beautiful and funny,” Eric Raquet, 24, said. “That is a rare combination.”
Now Katie Raquet, 24, can be found wearing her pajamas, complimented by fuzzy slippers as she softly moves about the kitchen of her three-bedroom ranch house located in Howards Grove, Wis. At the height of 5 feet 4 inches, Katie Raquet needs to stretch her arms to reach the cupboards.
Her hands guide her brown bangs away from brown eyes when she throws her head back, her gleaming white teeth revealed when she lets out a good laugh. Friends of the couple are often found within the home, enjoying a drink and exchanging jokes.
“She is pretty funny…for a girl,” family friend Dave Royer said.
A former member of the Catholic Church, she now attends the United Church of Christ. Katie Raquet considers herself to be a “hardcore Republican” and enjoys a comfortable lifestyle as she continues to work.
She became a medical assistant at the age of 18 for the Wisconsin Department of Veteran Affairs without any experience. The position she holds requires a degree and she joked they must have hired her “just for fun.”
Even though she enjoys the life she lives, Katie Raquet said she does feel disappointed that she never enrolled in a four-year college. Her voice softens and her eyes look towards the ground when she speaks about dropping out of Lakeshore Technical College during the process of becoming a dental hygienist.
With all her credits earned and only the dental program to complete, Katie said her current job of being a medical assistant was too good to let go. However, she still has ambitions to finish what she started.
Katie Raquet said her relationship with her family is much better. Both she and her brother have grown up and put their qualms aside, her father is healthy and happy to be alive, and she continues to better know the new members on her husband’s side.
Monday, November 27, 2006
Profile Final Draft
As she sits down in her living room, preparing herself for an interview, Jessica Jane Beightol admires the art that covers the walls of her house.
She focuses on a charcoal drawing of a gasmask that she recently handed into her professor. While she thought it was one of her best works of the semester, her professor liked the drawing for other reasons.
“ I really liked the drawing,” Beightol said. “And then my professor came up to me and told me that it was one of the coolest looking dogs he’s ever seen.”
By displaying this painting, Beightol proves that art mimics life. Beightol is a girl who is not always understood by people and throughout the course of her life has been viewed many different ways. But just like a work of art, the more time a person spends trying to figure out the artist’s true intentions, the more rewarding their understanding of the work will be.
Standing 5 feet 8 inches tall, Beightol shows off her artistic mind on the canvas that is her body. Multiple piercings cover her ears and she mentions that even more can be seen underneath her clothes. Her hair (which seems to change on a weekly basis) is currently red and flows down to shoulder length. Tattoos also help to cover the skin. Blue stars creep up the right side of her right foot and stop abruptly at her ankles and she is sure to show off a tattoo of two angles circling each other on her lower back in dedicated to her grandparents.
Whether it was growing up in the small town of Monroe, Wis. or the time she currently spends at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, Beightol has always held an artistic view on life.
Born Sept. 30, 1984, in Superior, Wis., Beightol never got to know her biological parents. She was adopted when she was six months old and immediately moved to Monroe to live her life with a new family.
“A question people always ask me is if I’d ever really want to find out who my parents are,” she said. “ It’s like yeah it would be good to know who my parents are for biological reasons but I don’t have much of a desire beyond that.”
While her parents adopted her at a very early age, it was Beightol’s grandparents who took care of her throughout most of her life. Struggling to make ends meet, Beightol’s parents were constantly working to be able to pay off the bills. So she spent the majority of her time growing up in her grandparent’s home.
“I pretty much lived there all the way through high school,” she said. “ When I was young my grandparents always picked me up from school and when I got older I ended up getting a job at the local country club, which is where my grandpa also worked. Basically I was always around them.”
During her time with her grandparents, Beightol became strongly attached to her grandfather. She always looked toward her grandfather for knowledge and insight. Some of her fondest memories were the times when he would teach her how to play dice and cards.
She grew closest to him because her family is primarily conservative and share little enthusiasm for viewpoints that are not similar to theirs. With her laid back liberal views on many things in life, Beightol found it easiest to associate with her grandfather.
Last year Beightol faced the hardest time of her life when her grandfather would teach her one more lesson, how to deal with death. Not only did she have to deal with the loss of her first close family member but with loss of one of her greatest friends as well.
“Out of anyone in my family I am most like my grandpa and that means a lot to me,” she said. “It was one of the most tragic things in my life and it was really hard because he was the coolest family member I could relate to.”
Finding ways to relate to other people was hard for Beightol during certain periods in her life. With the coming of high school Beightol found herself not hanging out with the popular crowd.
“I was kind of like the Goth kid in high school or I was at least labeled with that clique,” she said. “A lot of the times I would just sit and read books because I wanted to get good grades and kids would not really give me the time of day.”
It was during her high school years that Beightol would first experiment with drugs. She started to smoke marijuana and while she says she has no regrets, her drug use did temporarily set her back.
“I just wanted to see what it was all about,” Beightol said. “But one day these two stoners ratted on me so they could make a quick fifty bucks and I got expelled for one semester of school.”
That event would be the catalyst for one of the darker times in Beightol’s life. That day she had to go home, face her parents and tell them the truth about what happened at school.
“My mom started crying and instantly made me go see a psychiatrist,” Beightol said. “And then when my mom told my dad what had happened he said that they should let me sit in jail.”
However, time would eventually heal all wounds and things would smooth over between Beightol and her family. Beightol is now able to look at the past situation with a sense of humor.
“It’s just one of those things the family doesn’t talk about anymore,” Beightol joked. “Luckily one of my cousins has become a huge drug addict, so everyone in the family has pushed my situation under the rug.”
Since attending UWO, Beightol has found it much easier to fit in. And while she definitely enjoys the life that college provides her, she still misses her closest friends from high school.
“All my friends now are in college and there really are no cliques anymore,” Beightol said. “But I met some people in high school that I know I’ll never meet people like that again. I really miss them.”
In 2008, Beightol will get to chance to make her parents proud when she hopes to graduate from UWO with a degree in film. Currently in her fourth year, Beightol is focusing hard on her film major and art minor. She hopes to someday be a cinematographer and work behind the scenes on big-budget films.
“I want to work on the artistic aspects of a scene,” Beightol says. ”I’d also like to do anything with Tim Burton. Anything with that really crazy claymation stuff I think I would find really interesting.”
Beightol is looking forward to fulfilling her potential in the future and hopefully someday landing the job of her dreams. With some of the obstacles she has already had to face in life, Beightol’s success seems like a very attainable goal.
Six way different
1) Gender
2) Adopted
3) Ethnicity-Hispanic/Caucasian
4) Different Majors- Journalism/Film
5) Divorce- My parents are separated hers are not
6) Expulsion-She has been I have not.
She focuses on a charcoal drawing of a gasmask that she recently handed into her professor. While she thought it was one of her best works of the semester, her professor liked the drawing for other reasons.
“ I really liked the drawing,” Beightol said. “And then my professor came up to me and told me that it was one of the coolest looking dogs he’s ever seen.”
By displaying this painting, Beightol proves that art mimics life. Beightol is a girl who is not always understood by people and throughout the course of her life has been viewed many different ways. But just like a work of art, the more time a person spends trying to figure out the artist’s true intentions, the more rewarding their understanding of the work will be.
Standing 5 feet 8 inches tall, Beightol shows off her artistic mind on the canvas that is her body. Multiple piercings cover her ears and she mentions that even more can be seen underneath her clothes. Her hair (which seems to change on a weekly basis) is currently red and flows down to shoulder length. Tattoos also help to cover the skin. Blue stars creep up the right side of her right foot and stop abruptly at her ankles and she is sure to show off a tattoo of two angles circling each other on her lower back in dedicated to her grandparents.
Whether it was growing up in the small town of Monroe, Wis. or the time she currently spends at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, Beightol has always held an artistic view on life.
Born Sept. 30, 1984, in Superior, Wis., Beightol never got to know her biological parents. She was adopted when she was six months old and immediately moved to Monroe to live her life with a new family.
“A question people always ask me is if I’d ever really want to find out who my parents are,” she said. “ It’s like yeah it would be good to know who my parents are for biological reasons but I don’t have much of a desire beyond that.”
While her parents adopted her at a very early age, it was Beightol’s grandparents who took care of her throughout most of her life. Struggling to make ends meet, Beightol’s parents were constantly working to be able to pay off the bills. So she spent the majority of her time growing up in her grandparent’s home.
“I pretty much lived there all the way through high school,” she said. “ When I was young my grandparents always picked me up from school and when I got older I ended up getting a job at the local country club, which is where my grandpa also worked. Basically I was always around them.”
During her time with her grandparents, Beightol became strongly attached to her grandfather. She always looked toward her grandfather for knowledge and insight. Some of her fondest memories were the times when he would teach her how to play dice and cards.
She grew closest to him because her family is primarily conservative and share little enthusiasm for viewpoints that are not similar to theirs. With her laid back liberal views on many things in life, Beightol found it easiest to associate with her grandfather.
Last year Beightol faced the hardest time of her life when her grandfather would teach her one more lesson, how to deal with death. Not only did she have to deal with the loss of her first close family member but with loss of one of her greatest friends as well.
“Out of anyone in my family I am most like my grandpa and that means a lot to me,” she said. “It was one of the most tragic things in my life and it was really hard because he was the coolest family member I could relate to.”
Finding ways to relate to other people was hard for Beightol during certain periods in her life. With the coming of high school Beightol found herself not hanging out with the popular crowd.
“I was kind of like the Goth kid in high school or I was at least labeled with that clique,” she said. “A lot of the times I would just sit and read books because I wanted to get good grades and kids would not really give me the time of day.”
It was during her high school years that Beightol would first experiment with drugs. She started to smoke marijuana and while she says she has no regrets, her drug use did temporarily set her back.
“I just wanted to see what it was all about,” Beightol said. “But one day these two stoners ratted on me so they could make a quick fifty bucks and I got expelled for one semester of school.”
That event would be the catalyst for one of the darker times in Beightol’s life. That day she had to go home, face her parents and tell them the truth about what happened at school.
“My mom started crying and instantly made me go see a psychiatrist,” Beightol said. “And then when my mom told my dad what had happened he said that they should let me sit in jail.”
However, time would eventually heal all wounds and things would smooth over between Beightol and her family. Beightol is now able to look at the past situation with a sense of humor.
“It’s just one of those things the family doesn’t talk about anymore,” Beightol joked. “Luckily one of my cousins has become a huge drug addict, so everyone in the family has pushed my situation under the rug.”
Since attending UWO, Beightol has found it much easier to fit in. And while she definitely enjoys the life that college provides her, she still misses her closest friends from high school.
“All my friends now are in college and there really are no cliques anymore,” Beightol said. “But I met some people in high school that I know I’ll never meet people like that again. I really miss them.”
In 2008, Beightol will get to chance to make her parents proud when she hopes to graduate from UWO with a degree in film. Currently in her fourth year, Beightol is focusing hard on her film major and art minor. She hopes to someday be a cinematographer and work behind the scenes on big-budget films.
“I want to work on the artistic aspects of a scene,” Beightol says. ”I’d also like to do anything with Tim Burton. Anything with that really crazy claymation stuff I think I would find really interesting.”
Beightol is looking forward to fulfilling her potential in the future and hopefully someday landing the job of her dreams. With some of the obstacles she has already had to face in life, Beightol’s success seems like a very attainable goal.
Six way different
1) Gender
2) Adopted
3) Ethnicity-Hispanic/Caucasian
4) Different Majors- Journalism/Film
5) Divorce- My parents are separated hers are not
6) Expulsion-She has been I have not.
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Russ' rough draft
Katie Amber Bunnow took the last name of Eric Raquet on Sept. 9, 2006, but her new lifestyle has not erased her experiences of feuding with her only brother, making an attempt at attending college and spending a year in sadness while her father recovered in a hospital room.
At the age of 17, Katie Raquet spent about one year living and bickering with her older brother Stevie Bunnow after her father had to spend that time in Chicago’s intensive care unit after being involved in a car accident.
Raquet’s father took the job of a part-time semi truck driver to earn enough money to buy snowmobiles for him and his son. Bunnow was driving in Chicago when a car cut-off him off, leading to his semi hitting a pillar of a bridge. The truck he was driving exploded and launched him through the windshield.
Suffering severe burns and broken bones, Raquet said her father spent about one year in Chicago and an additional six months in Milwaukee recovering. During that period, her mother was a factory worker and spent the majority of her time by her husband’s side.
Raquet said living without her father and mother was not only difficult financially, but that her brother was going through a “bad stage” in his life. She said he became a “big drinker” and a “pot head” at the age of 18 and would invite friends, sometimes exceeding 30, to party in their home while the siblings’ mother was in Chicago.
However, the hardships and unhappiness of the past were washed away once she met and married Eric. Raquet’s father attended the wedding of the two, and even though the scars remained from his burns and one of his ears was completely missing, the one thing everyone attending the immaculate wedding noticed about him was the large smile on his face during the event.
Now Raquet lives inside of a three bedroom ranch house located in Howards Grove, Wis. She is a former member of the Catholic Church and now attends the United Church of Christ. Raquet considers herself to be a “hardcore Republican” and enjoys a comfortable lifestyle as she continues to work and her husband holds a degree in engineering.
She became a medical assistant at the age of 18 for the Wisconsin Department of Veteran Affairs without experience. The position requires a degree and she joked they must of hired her “just for fun.”
Even though she enjoys the life she lives, Raquet said she does feel disappointed that she never enrolled in a four-year college. She even stopped attending Lakeshore Technical College during the process of becoming a dental hygienist.
With all her credits earned and only the dental program to complete, Katie said her current job of being a medical assistant was too good to let go. However, she still has ambitions to finish what she started.
At the age of 17, Katie Raquet spent about one year living and bickering with her older brother Stevie Bunnow after her father had to spend that time in Chicago’s intensive care unit after being involved in a car accident.
Raquet’s father took the job of a part-time semi truck driver to earn enough money to buy snowmobiles for him and his son. Bunnow was driving in Chicago when a car cut-off him off, leading to his semi hitting a pillar of a bridge. The truck he was driving exploded and launched him through the windshield.
Suffering severe burns and broken bones, Raquet said her father spent about one year in Chicago and an additional six months in Milwaukee recovering. During that period, her mother was a factory worker and spent the majority of her time by her husband’s side.
Raquet said living without her father and mother was not only difficult financially, but that her brother was going through a “bad stage” in his life. She said he became a “big drinker” and a “pot head” at the age of 18 and would invite friends, sometimes exceeding 30, to party in their home while the siblings’ mother was in Chicago.
However, the hardships and unhappiness of the past were washed away once she met and married Eric. Raquet’s father attended the wedding of the two, and even though the scars remained from his burns and one of his ears was completely missing, the one thing everyone attending the immaculate wedding noticed about him was the large smile on his face during the event.
Now Raquet lives inside of a three bedroom ranch house located in Howards Grove, Wis. She is a former member of the Catholic Church and now attends the United Church of Christ. Raquet considers herself to be a “hardcore Republican” and enjoys a comfortable lifestyle as she continues to work and her husband holds a degree in engineering.
She became a medical assistant at the age of 18 for the Wisconsin Department of Veteran Affairs without experience. The position requires a degree and she joked they must of hired her “just for fun.”
Even though she enjoys the life she lives, Raquet said she does feel disappointed that she never enrolled in a four-year college. She even stopped attending Lakeshore Technical College during the process of becoming a dental hygienist.
With all her credits earned and only the dental program to complete, Katie said her current job of being a medical assistant was too good to let go. However, she still has ambitions to finish what she started.
Very Rough Profile
Linda Ling Ting was born into a very strict Asian culture and upbringing, which helped her become the woman she is today.
The 26-year-old, sports fanatic, shop-a-holic, video game playing Ting, or “TingLing” as her friends call her, was born in Brookfield, Wis., on Sept. 27, 1980 to two Chinese immigrants. Ting grew up in a very structured and incredibly strict environment, which instilled many of the values she still lives by today.
Ting and her older brother, enter name, lived very frugally throughout their entire childhood. Ting’s parents moved to the United States in the early 70s and always believed it was necessary to save all the money they could. Although her father is a chemist for Miller Brewing Company and Ting’s mother a biochemist, they never flaunted their wealth and even refused to allow cable television in their home.
The Hollister-clad Ting felt she was always pushed and pressured by her parents to be the best in school and at anything else she would participate in or she wouldn’t survive.
“If I brought home an A-minus on my report card from school, my parents would yell at me,” Ting said. “Small things like that have led me to always feeling pressure in my everyday life. Even in relationships and friendships I feel pressured to be accommodating and the perfect girl.”
Through all of their faults Ting’s parents were not a bad influence on her. They taught her to work hard now so she could taste the sweets of her success later in life. Being the youngest girl, Ting was the more spoiled of the two children. The extent of her spoiled life was limited only to materialistic things. “I got more stuff than my brother did, but my parents were always more strict on me because I was a girl,” Ting said.
Ting inadvertently uses some words wrong partly because she only speaks fluent Mandarin at home and never developed good grammatical skills. She also drives a Toyota Camry because her parents taught her that in Asia people work harder and take more pride in their work than they do in America.
She may have been taught that life was based on work and not fun, but Ting still loves to enjoy a nightlife of going out to Milwaukee bars and hanging out with her friends and boyfriend of one year, Brady, who she met at Kennedy’s in Milwaukee. It is not uncommon to see Ting stumble into work on a Friday morning with her brown hair frizzy, a redness surrounding her brown eyes, slumped posture, moving slowly and completely hung over because she was out a bit too late the night before with her friends.
I have to call her and acouple of other people tomorrow to add some more detail to the story.
The 26-year-old, sports fanatic, shop-a-holic, video game playing Ting, or “TingLing” as her friends call her, was born in Brookfield, Wis., on Sept. 27, 1980 to two Chinese immigrants. Ting grew up in a very structured and incredibly strict environment, which instilled many of the values she still lives by today.
Ting and her older brother, enter name, lived very frugally throughout their entire childhood. Ting’s parents moved to the United States in the early 70s and always believed it was necessary to save all the money they could. Although her father is a chemist for Miller Brewing Company and Ting’s mother a biochemist, they never flaunted their wealth and even refused to allow cable television in their home.
The Hollister-clad Ting felt she was always pushed and pressured by her parents to be the best in school and at anything else she would participate in or she wouldn’t survive.
“If I brought home an A-minus on my report card from school, my parents would yell at me,” Ting said. “Small things like that have led me to always feeling pressure in my everyday life. Even in relationships and friendships I feel pressured to be accommodating and the perfect girl.”
Through all of their faults Ting’s parents were not a bad influence on her. They taught her to work hard now so she could taste the sweets of her success later in life. Being the youngest girl, Ting was the more spoiled of the two children. The extent of her spoiled life was limited only to materialistic things. “I got more stuff than my brother did, but my parents were always more strict on me because I was a girl,” Ting said.
Ting inadvertently uses some words wrong partly because she only speaks fluent Mandarin at home and never developed good grammatical skills. She also drives a Toyota Camry because her parents taught her that in Asia people work harder and take more pride in their work than they do in America.
She may have been taught that life was based on work and not fun, but Ting still loves to enjoy a nightlife of going out to Milwaukee bars and hanging out with her friends and boyfriend of one year, Brady, who she met at Kennedy’s in Milwaukee. It is not uncommon to see Ting stumble into work on a Friday morning with her brown hair frizzy, a redness surrounding her brown eyes, slumped posture, moving slowly and completely hung over because she was out a bit too late the night before with her friends.
I have to call her and acouple of other people tomorrow to add some more detail to the story.
Monday, November 20, 2006
Profile (Black Pearl)
The article I found for a profile was on Sacha Baron Cohen. (He's the actor playing Borat in the current popular movie).
Though a lot of media spotlight is on this man, I thought the following quote really brought out a new side of the ever-daring and shameless actor:
"I remember, when I was in university I studied history, and there was this one major historian of the Third Reich, Ian Kershaw. And his quote was, 'The path to Auschwitz was paved with indifference.' I know it's not very funny being a comedian talking about the Holocaust, but I think it's an interesting idea that not everyone in Germany had to be a raving anti-Semite. They just had to be apathetic."
The subsequent observation by the writer also shed new light on the man:
Baron Cohen doesn't make this grand statement with confidence. He makes it shyly, as if he's speaking out of turn. It's interesting to watch Baron Cohen get bashful, because it is the exact opposite of the characters he portrays.
I felt, overall, that this was one of the most intersting things to see, read or here about Sacha since his movie came out. He seems to be so silly and foolish, yet this article and quote really showed a more intelligent, calculating persona. It made me appreciate that he had a method to his comedy and actually was serving to prove things about racism instead of just using it for a cheap laugh. The part about him being shy was also a black pearl because no one who saw his movie or live interviews would ever, ever get that impression. The article did a great job of showing just how little people really know about a man who is seemingly everywhere in the media.
I mean, I guess it shows a more human side to the reader, kind of like the "man inside the clown outfit" type of information.
The writer did a good job of informating people about the movie and Sacha's thoughts about the movie. This catored to the broad public interest. However, he also did a good job of shedding light and going deeper into who Sacha really was. The writer did this by inserting deeper tidbits inbetween summaries about the movies and explanations of outside events. It didn't seem like the writer pressed any issues either. He more or less allowed Sacha to naturally and aimlessly tell his story and reveal things without being pressured.
These are things I hope I can duplicate in my story.
For my profile article that I'm going to write, it will be on Michael Lawerence, he's a friend of mine who is also a student here (same age) and a community advisor on campus. He is a black student from Milwaukee, WI.
Facebook: Yes
Myspace: No
NoBlogger: No
Google: Yes, Advance Titan article
Google Images: No
Youtube: No
CCAP: No
Though a lot of media spotlight is on this man, I thought the following quote really brought out a new side of the ever-daring and shameless actor:
"I remember, when I was in university I studied history, and there was this one major historian of the Third Reich, Ian Kershaw. And his quote was, 'The path to Auschwitz was paved with indifference.' I know it's not very funny being a comedian talking about the Holocaust, but I think it's an interesting idea that not everyone in Germany had to be a raving anti-Semite. They just had to be apathetic."
The subsequent observation by the writer also shed new light on the man:
Baron Cohen doesn't make this grand statement with confidence. He makes it shyly, as if he's speaking out of turn. It's interesting to watch Baron Cohen get bashful, because it is the exact opposite of the characters he portrays.
I felt, overall, that this was one of the most intersting things to see, read or here about Sacha since his movie came out. He seems to be so silly and foolish, yet this article and quote really showed a more intelligent, calculating persona. It made me appreciate that he had a method to his comedy and actually was serving to prove things about racism instead of just using it for a cheap laugh. The part about him being shy was also a black pearl because no one who saw his movie or live interviews would ever, ever get that impression. The article did a great job of showing just how little people really know about a man who is seemingly everywhere in the media.
I mean, I guess it shows a more human side to the reader, kind of like the "man inside the clown outfit" type of information.
The writer did a good job of informating people about the movie and Sacha's thoughts about the movie. This catored to the broad public interest. However, he also did a good job of shedding light and going deeper into who Sacha really was. The writer did this by inserting deeper tidbits inbetween summaries about the movies and explanations of outside events. It didn't seem like the writer pressed any issues either. He more or less allowed Sacha to naturally and aimlessly tell his story and reveal things without being pressured.
These are things I hope I can duplicate in my story.
For my profile article that I'm going to write, it will be on Michael Lawerence, he's a friend of mine who is also a student here (same age) and a community advisor on campus. He is a black student from Milwaukee, WI.
Facebook: Yes
Myspace: No
NoBlogger: No
Google: Yes, Advance Titan article
Google Images: No
Youtube: No
CCAP: No
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Russ' black pearl
1) I found an article about Tony Bennett in Time magazine. The profile was about Bennett turning 80 years old and how he is still performing. The “black pearl” was that his son helped him rejuvenate his career 15 years ago.
2) The incident is that Tony Bennett’s son said he needed to pair with newer artists to feel fresh. However, his famous style still had to survive. There is even a quote from Danny Bennett in the first paragraph describing his involvement in keeping his dad fresh.
3) I think the reporter might have met Tony Bennett to just do an article about him turning 80 and to promote is upcoming musical endeavors. I think the reporter might have asked why Tony started collaborating with artists before and he might have mentioned his son’s involvement. Then the reporter must have sought out his son for an interview.
4) I will write my next article about a woman named Katie Raquet. While I have been attending UW-Oshkosh, she married a close friend of mine. She is different than me is six ways and I can use this article as an opportunity to know her better. We have never talked personally or privately before and I think I might be able to find that “black pearl” we are all looking for. I would prefer to talk to someone who is a different race than me on campus, but the Thanksgiving break and the hectic schedule before that makes it difficult. In addition, this interview could last for quite some time, so personally meeting with someone is preferred by me.
5) I am unsure of the correct spelling of her maiden name, so I will try her husband Eric Raquet and the name Katie Raquet for my searching.
• Both her and the husband have a clean record on CCAP.
• I checked everything listed on the sheet besides the websites involving UW-Oshkosh and I found nothing.
Eric Raquet’s current address is still not available online. I can find his parent’s home, but not his house in Howards Grove. Since they are both young and a new couple, I did not expect to find much. I still think she will be a good interview. Everybody has their own unique story.
Katie is a woman, she is Republican, older, shorter and a different weight, financially well off and she is married. Those are six things and I am sure I can think of more. I am pretty sure I can dig up something in her past.
2) The incident is that Tony Bennett’s son said he needed to pair with newer artists to feel fresh. However, his famous style still had to survive. There is even a quote from Danny Bennett in the first paragraph describing his involvement in keeping his dad fresh.
3) I think the reporter might have met Tony Bennett to just do an article about him turning 80 and to promote is upcoming musical endeavors. I think the reporter might have asked why Tony started collaborating with artists before and he might have mentioned his son’s involvement. Then the reporter must have sought out his son for an interview.
4) I will write my next article about a woman named Katie Raquet. While I have been attending UW-Oshkosh, she married a close friend of mine. She is different than me is six ways and I can use this article as an opportunity to know her better. We have never talked personally or privately before and I think I might be able to find that “black pearl” we are all looking for. I would prefer to talk to someone who is a different race than me on campus, but the Thanksgiving break and the hectic schedule before that makes it difficult. In addition, this interview could last for quite some time, so personally meeting with someone is preferred by me.
5) I am unsure of the correct spelling of her maiden name, so I will try her husband Eric Raquet and the name Katie Raquet for my searching.
• Both her and the husband have a clean record on CCAP.
• I checked everything listed on the sheet besides the websites involving UW-Oshkosh and I found nothing.
Eric Raquet’s current address is still not available online. I can find his parent’s home, but not his house in Howards Grove. Since they are both young and a new couple, I did not expect to find much. I still think she will be a good interview. Everybody has their own unique story.
Katie is a woman, she is Republican, older, shorter and a different weight, financially well off and she is married. Those are six things and I am sure I can think of more. I am pretty sure I can dig up something in her past.
Profile example
1) I used Ed Bradley's CBS interview with Tiger Woods because he discusses his school that he set up and I dont think many people know all the things Tiger does to help out kids, not only in his community but around the nation.
2) Bradley goes along wth Tiger on the first day in which the school is opened. I thought the article was intresting because Tiger explains that he set up this center because there were so many influential adults in his life and he wanted to be able to provide a safe haven for children to learn and play. A place in which they could call their own. People always hear about how much Tiger wins and how much money he makes but few realize how classy of a person he is and all the things he does to give back to children and the game of golf.
3) Bradley obviously knew about it before hand but but the I dont think the average person does. I believe that one of the purposes of this interview was to specifically ask questions about the school so that people would know what Tiger is doing to give back to his community.
4) I will be writing about my cousin Stacey Warner
5) Since I am going home for break I will have the chance to go talk and interview her. If I need any extra information I will find it on facebook or myspace.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/03/23/60minutes/main1433767.shtml
2) Bradley goes along wth Tiger on the first day in which the school is opened. I thought the article was intresting because Tiger explains that he set up this center because there were so many influential adults in his life and he wanted to be able to provide a safe haven for children to learn and play. A place in which they could call their own. People always hear about how much Tiger wins and how much money he makes but few realize how classy of a person he is and all the things he does to give back to children and the game of golf.
3) Bradley obviously knew about it before hand but but the I dont think the average person does. I believe that one of the purposes of this interview was to specifically ask questions about the school so that people would know what Tiger is doing to give back to his community.
4) I will be writing about my cousin Stacey Warner
5) Since I am going home for break I will have the chance to go talk and interview her. If I need any extra information I will find it on facebook or myspace.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/03/23/60minutes/main1433767.shtml
Profile example
1. I read the story "Size Matters" by L. Jon Wertheim in the Oct.9, 2006 issue of Sports Illustrated. It is about boxer Nikolay Valuev, and covers him leading up to his title fight that weekend.
2. The incident in his life which I feel is a black peral is how he "stumbled" his way into boxing. He wasn't a natural athlete and was uncoordianted, but his basketball coach's wife saw the size of him and asked him to lace up some boxing gloves and give the sport a try. He had never thought of boxing before and said he had never even punched anybody in his life. By meeting his coach's wife he got a start in his succesful career as a professional boxer.
3. I think the reporter came across the story semi-easily. He just had to ask a few questions about his childhood, what sports he was involved in and how he got his start in boxing. Valuev then, most likely, revealed to him how and when he had gotten his start as a boxer.
4. I am going to write my article on my boss at ESPN Radio Milwaukee, Linda Ting.
5. I can check where she lives, if she has any legal history like lawsuits or criminal offenses. I added her as my facebook friend, and I will be able to learn more things about her personal life when she adds me as her facebook friend. She does not have a myspace anymore because she thought it got too creepy. I found out some information about her job and how long she has worked as promotions director at ESPN Milwaukee. I am sure with some more research, I will be able to find more information about her.
2. The incident in his life which I feel is a black peral is how he "stumbled" his way into boxing. He wasn't a natural athlete and was uncoordianted, but his basketball coach's wife saw the size of him and asked him to lace up some boxing gloves and give the sport a try. He had never thought of boxing before and said he had never even punched anybody in his life. By meeting his coach's wife he got a start in his succesful career as a professional boxer.
3. I think the reporter came across the story semi-easily. He just had to ask a few questions about his childhood, what sports he was involved in and how he got his start in boxing. Valuev then, most likely, revealed to him how and when he had gotten his start as a boxer.
4. I am going to write my article on my boss at ESPN Radio Milwaukee, Linda Ting.
5. I can check where she lives, if she has any legal history like lawsuits or criminal offenses. I added her as my facebook friend, and I will be able to learn more things about her personal life when she adds me as her facebook friend. She does not have a myspace anymore because she thought it got too creepy. I found out some information about her job and how long she has worked as promotions director at ESPN Milwaukee. I am sure with some more research, I will be able to find more information about her.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
black pearl
Many of us know Miles Burke Maguire, the 51-year-old journalism professor that teaches at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. But few of us know the true story of the legendary Baltimore Sun journalist and the experiences he had while writing for the Sun.
Miles has worked at the university for six years and has been showing kids the way to journalism immortality ever since. However, before he was a teacher Miles worked at the Baltimore Evening Sun. He started his journalism career at the sun as a copy editor.
“I actually wanted to be a reporter,” Said Miles. “ Being a copy editor was boring.”
Miles would get his wish soon enough and would become the maritime reporter for the Baltimore Sun, and it was his times as a reporter at the Sun which would prove to the most memorable to him.
He recalled a time where a ship had come into port but was put under arrest due to illegal operations.
“Many people don’t know that a ship can be put under arrest,” Miles said. “But it can be put under arrest for things like not paying its bills and then there anchored at the port until things are cleared up.”
Miles knew he had to get the story but had no way of getting aboard the anchored vessel.
“I remember talking this coast guard officer into letting me bored his ship,” Miles said. “When we got close to the ship I suggested that we go aboard and take a look.”
After convincing the coast guard officer to go along with his plan, Miles climbed up the netting and boarded the ship.
“I knew there was a story there,” Miles said. “But I knew I needed an interview to have a story.”
Even though the chinese captain only spoke a small amount of english, Miles still got his story.
And after it's publication in the sun it had enough impact to be recognized by the Washington Post.
Miles has worked at the university for six years and has been showing kids the way to journalism immortality ever since. However, before he was a teacher Miles worked at the Baltimore Evening Sun. He started his journalism career at the sun as a copy editor.
“I actually wanted to be a reporter,” Said Miles. “ Being a copy editor was boring.”
Miles would get his wish soon enough and would become the maritime reporter for the Baltimore Sun, and it was his times as a reporter at the Sun which would prove to the most memorable to him.
He recalled a time where a ship had come into port but was put under arrest due to illegal operations.
“Many people don’t know that a ship can be put under arrest,” Miles said. “But it can be put under arrest for things like not paying its bills and then there anchored at the port until things are cleared up.”
Miles knew he had to get the story but had no way of getting aboard the anchored vessel.
“I remember talking this coast guard officer into letting me bored his ship,” Miles said. “When we got close to the ship I suggested that we go aboard and take a look.”
After convincing the coast guard officer to go along with his plan, Miles climbed up the netting and boarded the ship.
“I knew there was a story there,” Miles said. “But I knew I needed an interview to have a story.”
Even though the chinese captain only spoke a small amount of english, Miles still got his story.
And after it's publication in the sun it had enough impact to be recognized by the Washington Post.
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