All the President's Men - Movie Questions

Who are the following people?
-Carl Bernstein: Investigative journalist at the Washington Post.
-Ben Bradlee: Executive editor of the Washington Post.
-Patrick Buchanan: A speech writer and opposition researcher for Nixon.
-Archibald Cox: The first prosecuter in the Watergate scandal.
-H.R. "Bob" Haldeman: President Nixon's chief of staff.
-E. Howard Hunt: An intellgience officer; his job under Nixon was to fix things that were leaked from the White house.
-Leon Jaworski: Second special prosecuter in the Watergate scandal.
-G. Gordon Liddy: Chief operative in Nixon's "White House Plumbers." He refused to talk to the FBI.
-James McCord: Former CIA officer who served as an electronics expert before the Watergate scandal.
-Bob Woodward: Journalist for the Washington Post who exposed the Watergate scandal along with Carl Bernstein.

1. The date is June 17, 1972.
2. Five mean are about to be caught breaking into the Washington, D.C.  offices of the National Democratic Headquarters located in the Watergate building.
3. Their purpose for the break in: To plant bugs in the office building.
4. A Republican, Richard Nixon, is president. He was first elected in 1968, and is running for a second term. He wins.
5.  Thanks largely to the work of two reporters from the Washington Post newspaper, Nixon's administration is found guilty of a) unethical and illegal campaign activities, b) the misuse of hundreds of thousands of dollars of unaccounted for campaign donations, and c) a political espionage campaign headed by the Committee to Re-Elect the President, and involving the White House, campaign officials, and the Justice department.
6. By the time it's all over in the summer of 1974, many White House officials and others are charged and convicted of felonies, and do serious jail time, and, faced with impeachment, President Nixon resigns.

Vocab:
1. Bugging - Planting listening devices in a room
2. Canuck letter - forged letter to the editor of the Manchester Union leader
3. Committee to Re-elect the President (CREEP) - fundraising committee of Nixon's administration
4. Cover up - trying to hide something
5. Covert operations - undercover operations
6. Deep background - information that isn't included in the article but is used by the journalist to enhance the story.
7. General Accounting Office - investigates how the federal government spends tax payers' money.
8. On the record - Said with knowing consent that your words will be used
9. Set up - introductory statement
10. Slush fund - a reserve of money for illegal purposes
11. Verbatim notes - Word for word notes

1. By the statement that Ben Bradlee made, he meant that the things at stake on their journalistic piece was the right to free speech, being able to write without the fear of punishment, and the future of the country to have an honest leader.
2. "Follow the money" is important because by following who would benefit from a scandal, you are able to find out who is behind the illegal or inappropriate actions.

Police Shoot Man at U.S. Capital

Police at U.S. Capitol Shoot Man With Gun at Screening Point

By: Nicholas Fandos and Michael S. Schmidt

On Monday a man tried to open fire at the security screening point of the U.S. Capitol. As a result, the man and an innocent bystander were shot by the police. Employees and visitors were told to remain wherever they were. The gunman was Larry R. Dawson. Chief Matthew Verderosa stated that he did not believe this was an act of terrorism, rather it was simply a criminal act. 

This shooting is alarming, especially in the wake of the Brussels attack. The U.S. Capitol Police acted  both appropriately and quickly. The police chief said that because of new security measures that the Capitol has taken, the armed man was able to be quickly apprehended. 

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Third Bomber in the Brussels Attack is Arrested

Man Arrested as ‘Third Bomber’ in Brussels Attack Is Freed; Hunt Is Renewed

By: Andrew Higgins and Kimiko De Freytas-Tamura

Fayçal Cheffou was arrested last week as he was thought to have been involved in the Brussels attack, however he was released on Monday, since he was mistakenly identified by one of the bombers by the witness. Eric Van der Sijpt, a spokesperson for the Brussels prosecutor's office said that although Mr. Cheffou has been released from prison, his charges are not being dropped; there is not enough evidence yet to continue holding him in prison. 

After the Brussels attack occurred, many were reasonably upset. Officials released a video of three men pushing carts as a way to seek help from the public in identifying the three men that they believed to be involved in the airport bombing. Because the officials were so quick to release the video, perhaps they excited the public in a way that would cause the public to over react, perhaps causing an innocent person to be charged with a crime. Time will tell whether or not this man is innocent. 

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Wag The Dog - Questions

1) Explain the metaphor 'wag the dog'. What does the title of the film suggest?

Wag the dog means that the dog is smarter than its tail. The dog controls the movement of its tail rather than he tail controlling the dog. The title of the film suggests that the media (being the tail) controls the American society (the dog). This is ironic because it should be the other way around. 

2) Who is Mr. Fix-it? What does he do?

Mr. Fix-it is Conrad Breen who produces the war to distract the American public. 

3) What is the significance of the producer's house being bigger than the White House? What message does that relay?

The significance of the producer's house being bigger than the White House is that the producer has more wealth than the President of the U.S. This message relays that producing entertainment gains more recognition than the person who runs our country. 

4) Explain the significance of ' We remember the slogans, but we don't remember the war,' in terms of media's effectiveness.

This quote means that slogans remain in our memory, even if we don't remember the actual timeline of events. Media takes over significant events with 24 hour news coverage, and we usually remember the reporters remarks more so than the actual information that they deliver.

5) Explain the significance of “Of course there’s a war; I’m seeing it on TV!” in terms of media’s effectiveness. 

The significance is that the majority of people believe what they see on the TV. If they see it, they believe it. In theory, the media could make up a whole story and many people would believe it without questioning it. 

6) Who seems more powerful, the producer, or the President? Why?

The producer seems more powerful because we see the producer more than the President, the producer provides all of the input regarding the war, and the producer also puts the President on hold. 

7) The merchandising of products such as the “303 Burger” which Schuman “ate” behind enemy lines is often reflected in our society today. Provide another example of this type of merchandising. 

Another example of this type of merchandising is Gatorade being consumed  by players at football games which are televised. Another example would be when Apple iPhones or other products are used in movies. 

President Obama makes Executive Order on Gun Control

Tearful Obama Outlines Steps to Curb Gun Deaths

By: Eric Lichtblau and Michael D. Shear

On Tuesday, President Obama delivered a message regarding gun violence. He said, "“In this room right here, there are a lot of stories. There’s a lot of heartache. There’s a lot of resilience, there’s a lot of strength, but there’s also a lot of pain.” Obama announced that he planned to take executive action to tighten gun control. However, Obama faces a battle as Congress, a majority of it being Republican, can reject his actions. Obama's plan is to better define who can be a gun dealer, who are then required to do background checks. 

Gun control continues to be a huge issue in the U.S. Mass shootings continue to occur, and the question is: would tighter gun control decrease these occurrences? Congress and the President have not been able to agree upon much of the proposed legislation, so President Obama took executive action. I worry that even if there is striker gun control, people who want weapons will find a way to obtain them regardless of the strict laws which is why I believe better access to mental health care is just as crucial as stricter gun control. 

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Bernie Sanders Sues Democratic Party

Bernie Sanders' Presidential Campaign Sues the DNC Over Clinton Data Breach 

By: Alex Seitz-Wald and Monica Alba

On Friday, Bernie Sanders sued the Democratic National Committee (DNC) for a breach of contract. On Wednesday, it was discovered that Sanders' staffers were using a bug that allowed them to access data from Hilary Clinton's campaign. They were able to access this information for approximately 40 minutes. The Sanders' campaign claims that the DNC favors the Clinton campaign, and that the "DNC's move violates an agreement signed by the committee and the candidates on data usage, and says it is "hamstrung" without access to voter data." 

This presidential campaign has been a crazy one so far, filled with twists in turns. The Republican party has caused much of the drama, however with this lawsuit, the Democratic party is now drawing some attention. It is hard to tell in this case what really happened. I would hope that Bernie Sanders was not behind the data breach. Also, I am curious as to what exactly this campaign was hoping to do with the acquired data. It will be interesting to see how this affects the upcoming Democratic debate. 

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The Vatican Sends an Environmental Message

An Environmental Message, From and On the Vatican

By: The New York Times

During the week of December 4, 2015, St. Peter's Basilica went dark, causing some to worry. However the Basilica was simply preparing for Fiat Lux: Illuminating Our Common Home - a showing of artwork about climate change which coincided with the climate talks in Paris. Officials assured people not to worry about the blackout, for the projection show would not disappoint. The show was meant to show the beauty of the world, and what is happening to our world because of climate change. 

When I watched this projection show, I was amazed at how beautiful it was. The world is incredible, and it's hard to remember that when crazy things such as wars and terrorist attacks are happening. Climate change is not always at the forefront of our minds, and although it does not necessarily pose an immediate threat, if we don't make a change, future generations are in deep trouble. Hopefully the projection show on St. Peter's Basilica will be a reminder to everyone of what is at stake if we do not change. 

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Some of the Projections that were shown on the Basilica