Winter Season brings heavy burden to Montreal.

One of the winter’s best activities became deadly late last week, when a Montreal man was buried alive in a snow fort he built outside his home in Chamblay last Friday.

Last Friday Yan Lavallière, 26, died when the snow fort he built in his backyard collapsed. According to a local neighbour who witnessed the entire event unfold, they said that they watched the younger son try and dig him out and quickly rushed over to help. Within a couple minutes, they dug Lavallière out but he was not breathing.

Building snow forts in your backyard or a friend’s backyard is an activity that every child takes part in when it snows, it’s one of the best childhood memories I have in the winter season. But it is absolutely terrifying to consider how lucky children are to not have this happen to them. Despite the odds of this happening in recent times, are not too high, it is a risk that every child and family take when allowing these forts to be built.                                                                                                                                                                      Photo taken from CBC.CA

The last few weeks all of Eastern Canada including Ontario and Quebec has been experiencing unusual weather patterns. It fluctuates from heavy snow and cold temperatures, to rain and mild weather. This fluctuation is a huge concern for local police, who are all issuing warnings to all citizens when playing with snow or even just walking outside. This is what the police were indicating was the cause of the heavy being so heavy on Lavallière, because of the moisture the snow becomes very heavy and thick.  Quebec authorities cautioned that with heavy snow being in the forecast for the next few days that parents should be extra vigilant and take extra precautions when dealing with snow forts and igloos. They mentioned that if you do build a fort, make sure it has at least several exists.

Although what makes this particular issue worse is where Lavallière built his fort, he built it between two sheds, which made it quite difficult to escape and ultimately led to his death. These events really hits home with practically anybody and everybody, most people can recall some sort of memory in the winter time with self built igloos.

The most unbelievably incredible event occured in Longueil, Quebec this week  when a seven year old boy was buried alive by a snowplow and survived! Although  the snowplow driver did not see the small boy  playing he continued to dump over  four feet of snow on top of him. His disappearance was noticed and although he was  no where to be found. After a frantic search, neighbours spotted him and was  immediately rushed to hospital. He was released a few hours later and his now in  good condition.

Photo Taken from CTV.CA

Miraculously, the boy survived three hours buried alive, when a  grown man died after a few minutes of being trapped on a collapsed fort. It is clear  that the young boy had some sort of guardian angel or a horseshoe in his pocket.

The winter havoc appears to have no end as  today four people were killed in an accident in ST-Victor, Quebec from a collision of two vehicles. Although because this accident is so immediate, it is still too early to determine the actual cause of the accident, but the weather was pretty bad from snowy conditions.

Let us hope that this is the end of the dangerous winter season, and that spring could not come any faster. Stay safe out there in the Igloos Canadians.

Sincerely,

Your Media Watchdog

Remembering the Infamous Regime of Idi Amin Dada

Idi Amin Dada (1925-2003) was the President and military leader of  Uganda from  1971 to 1979. Those eight years have come to be recognized as one of the most infamous periods of havoc and domestic destruction the world has seen.

Prior to his anogoration as Uganda’s leader, Idi Amin joined the British Colonial regiment, The King’s African Rifles. He then became a military leader in January 1971 and then was self-promoted to field marshl while also being Head of the State.
Despite not being as highly recognized as his fellow infamous leaders like Hitler, his reign of power may be characterized but not limited to political abuse, human rights abuse, ethnic persecution, extra judicial killings, and corruption to name a few.  But what headlines Idi Amin’s villainous regime, is the number of people killed as result of it. It has been estimated by human rights groups and worldly observers that between 100,o00 and 500,000 people were slaughtered.

Towards the end of his reign, Idi Amin declared himself the “Uncrowned King of Scotland” he also referred to himself as the last King of Scotland. There was also a movie made a few years ago to document his reign from a Hollywood perspective. In 1977 Britain had broken off all ties with Amin and his regime due to the fact that he had announced that he conquered the British Empire, and had self promoted himself as the “Conqueror of the British Empire.”
Idi Amin is also allegedly known as a cannibal. He was subjected to a number of rumours and different myths that were circulating about him. The basis of these rumours were his alleged mutilation of his very own wife. This unfortunately is not a proven fact, just pure rumour.

In 1979 after Amin’s army fled and abandoned him, he was sent to exile in Libya for a year until 1980, where he then fled and sled to Saudi Arabia. Many years later, the BBC tracked him down for his first interview since he was exiled.                                                                                             Photo taken from Google Images

He had claimed that he does not feel remorseful for his actions, and he felt that Uganda desperately needed him. On August 16, 2003 Idi Amin Dada died in a hospital in Jeddah Saudi Arabia. It was confirmed that on  July 20, 2003 by one of Amin’s wives, Medina, that he was in a coma and near death in Jeddah suffering from kidney failure. In his last days, Medina had made an arrangement with the Uganda President, Yoweri Museveni for Amin to spend his remaining days in Uganda. President Museveni replied to Medina, by making notion that if he were to return back to Uganda he would have to pay for his sins. Idi Amin died a month later.

In these recent times, with all the destruction happening in the far East, fearless and notorious leaders like Idi Amin are remembered for the havoc and hardship they brought upon this earth.

Sincerely,

Your Media Watchdog

Looking at the Titanic: Information Graphic

This information graphic, I came across on the internet.

It establishes the amount of people on the famous ship Titanic, before it sank on April 14, 1912.  This graphic also visually represents the number of people per class, being first, second or third class, and where they were situated on the ships.

This information graphic was basically added to demonstrate how numbers can easily be visualized, particularly to a concept we are all quite familiar with, being the sinking of the Titanic.

While I do believe that the websites inability to include information to what the graphic literally represents, I still feel it worked because I like all the detail the author had included. For instance, having the two half’s of the ship separated.

The graphic is consistent with archaeological and historical evidence that supports how the ship sunk and how many people per class were on each level at the time the Titanic sank. Also little detail like the sea floor, fish, as well as the percise detail of the ship itself.

I still wish that this graphic would have more of a story line to it in order for me to base my judgement of the graphic itself. But I liked this graphic and it caught my attention, because I too am quite familiar with the sinking of this great ship. And my familiarity with it is not entirely based on the movie.

Information Graphic taken from: Caring About the Data: Eagereyes

 

Sincerely,

Your Media Watchdog

Death’s in Afghanistan Cause Reprucussions for Canadian Journalists

This past December was the one year anniversary of the death of Canadian journalist Michelle Lang.
Michelle Lang was a reporter for the Calgary Herald, when her armoured vehicle that contained four other Canadian soldiers was hit by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan on December 30, 2009.

A year later, the death of Lang still remains an “open wound” in the newsroom of
the Calgary Hereld. Not only because Lang was a fellow reporter, but also because
she represents the first Canadian journalist to be killed in Afghanastan.
According to Lorne Motley, the managing editor of the Calgary Herald, the newspaper has made a decision to not allow anymore of their journalists and reporters to be sent over to Afghanistan .                                                                (Photo of Michelle Lang in Afghanistan)

While it is clear that the removal of journalists from events occuring overseas has consequences, it is obvious that the consequences of allowing journalists to go there can be much worse, and debts could be paid in blood.                                                                                                                                               

The tragic death of Reporter Lang may be the first death of a Canadian journalist in Afghanistan to this date, but I fear it definitely will not be the last.  This may have an effect for future reporters and free lance journalists to be sent overseas. 
In my current studies of journalism I have learned that journalists who have embedded themselves with the Canadian forces, on their military bases, (not only Canadian journalists but all journalists) may be susceptible to slanted reporting. But unfortunately, these are the measures that need to be taken for the safety of the journalist.

Now, I have learned that  Herald Reporter Lang,  was not one of the common embedded reporters, for she went overseas with the intention to report on stories that she felt were being silenced, and untold by journalists from all over the world, who are reporting in Afghanistan.

 Below are a few links to blogs and articles written by reporters from the Calgary Herald, in memorial for their fallen employee.

Remembering Michelle Lang

Unfortunately this is not the first time a journalist has been killed during the war on terror. The initial report below, was the original article written by the Calgary Herald following the explosion that occured in Kandahar airfield, Afghanistan, including the death of one of their own. According to the article, the device that killed the Herald  reporter and 4 other Canadian soldiers was deliberately placed in an underground tunnel under the road.

Massive explosion killed Canadian journalists, four soliders

As much as I would like to have Canadian journalists and other worldly journalists abroad convering the War on Terror, as well as how much I myself, would love to go and report in Afghanistan. I feel that times like these, when we see the price that is paid to have readily and instant information, I feel that lives, being Canadian, Iraqi, American, British etc., I feel that no life is worth it.

–(Photo of Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan taken from The Calgary Herald).

Sincerely,

Your Media Watchdog.

OR AND 

– All taken from Google Images

Documentary: “Outfoxed”

If you are like me, and do not really understand or you are not familiar with the Fox News Network.

Then I suggest you watch this hour and a half documentary on Fox News. I guarantee your opinion of them after you watch it will not be the same.

This documentary was shown in my journalism media class last semester, it was very interesting and I honestly could not believe that they call this actual journalism practice. Their slogan is ironic.. Don’t miss that.

Check it out:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6737097743434902428#

 

Sincerley,

Your Media Watchdog

Welcome to the Mainstream Media Watchdog Blog

Hello everybody and welcome to the Mainstream Media Watchdog

Here I will be investigating whether or not the Mainstream Media is fair and balanced. I will be investigating broadcast news mediums from all around the world.  I will be mainly looking at Fair and balanced networks against their unbalanced and bias counterparts. Will be focusing on the FOX NEWS NETWORK In the United States, as well as The Canadian Broadcast Corporation in Canada. The Al Jazeera Network In Iraq.
Will be looking at audiences these broadcast companies are writing and broadcasting for. Whether or not these companies are fair and balanced. In order to do so, I will be posting videos from broadcasts, linking other blogs from these companies.

Since I am a journalism student, I have learned that objectivity, neutrality and balanced reporting is at the core of journalism.

Another question I will be investigating is:

Should a global ethics of journalism be implemented for all journalism concentrations around the world?

If I have caught your interest.. you haven’t seen anything yet.
I guarantee you will be astonished and shocked to see how one sided journalists can be.

Sincerlely,

Your Media Watchdog.