Marketing Environment Essay Example

Marketing Environment Essay | 2012/13| | Id: 1180654 Allan raisin | [Firms can do more than simply anticipating and responding to both macro and micro environment:-]| Market research is the function that links the consumer, customer, and public to the marketer through information | â€Å"Marketing environment includes all the forces that directly or indirectly influence marketing operations by affecting an organization acquisition of inputs/creation of outputs such as human, financial and natural resources and raw material, information, goods, services or ideas. Sometimes a distinction is more between macro and micro factors of environment† The Structure of the Marketing Environment The consumer occupies the core/central position of all business activities and hence occupies the Centre of the marketing environment. The organization with its resources and having a policy and structure surrounds the consumer with its particular market offering as do its competitors, suppliers and other intermediaries. This microenvironment of marketing is again affected by the macro environment, which consists of the government, technical, political, social, economic factors. This is graphically represented by below 1. The major external and uncontrollable factors that influence an organizations decision making, and affect its performance and strategies. These factors include the economic factors; demographics; legal, political, and social conditions; technological changes; and natural forces. 2. Specific examples of macro environment influences include competitors, changes in interest rates, changes in cultural tastes, disastrous weather, or government regulations. PESTLE Macro Environmental Analysis PESTLE We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Environment specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Environment specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Marketing Environment specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The PESTLE Analysis is a framework used to scan the organization’s external macro environment. The  letters stand for Political, Economic  Socio-cultural, Technological, Legal and Environmental. Some approaches will add in extra factors, such as International, or remove some to reduce it to PEST. However, these are all merely variations on a theme. The important principle is identifying the key  factors from the wider, uncontrollable external environment that might affect the organization. The PESTLE Factors We start with the Political forces. First of all, political factors refer to the stability of the political  environment and the attitudes of political parties or movements. This may manifest in government  influence on tax policies, or government involvement in trading agreements. Political factors are  inevitably entwined with Legal factors such as national employment laws, international trade  regulations and restrictions, monopolies and mergers’ rules, and consumer protection. The difference  between Political and Legal factors is that Political refers to attitudes and approaches, whereas Legal  factors are those which have become law and regulations. Legal needs to be complied with whereas  Political may represent influences, restrictions or opportunities, but they are not mandatory. Economic factors represent the wider economy so may include economic growth rates, levels of  employment and unemployment, costs of raw materials such as energy, petrol and steel, interest rates  and monetary policies, exchange rates and inflation rates. These may also vary from one country to  another. Socio-cultural factors represent the culture of the society that an organization operates within. They  may include demographics, age distribution, population growth rates, level of education, distribution of  wealth and social classes, living conditions and lifestyle. Technological factors refer to the rate of new inventions and development, changes in information and  mobile technology, changes in internet and e-commerce or even mobile commerce, and government  spending on research. There is often a tendency to focus Technological developments on digital and internet-related areas, but it should also include materials development and new methods of  manufacture, distribution and logistics. Environmental impacts can include issues such as limited natural resources, waste disposal and recycling  procedures. Additional Considerations A newer force which is gaining in importance is ethics. These can be defined by the set of moral  principles and values that govern the actions and decisions of an individual or group. Ethics and morals  serve as guidelines on how to act rightly and justly when individuals are faced with moral dilemmas. This force could include corporate social responsibility, fair trade, affiliation between corporations and  charities. A particular problem may exist with how ethical factors relates to legal forces as they may be  at different stages in development. Something may be ethical but not protected by law, whereas other activities may not be ethical, but are legal. A PESTLE analysis should feed into a SWOT analysis as it helps to determine the threats and  opportunities represented by macro-environment forces that the organization usually cannot control. On an international basis, it is best to perform the analysis on a country-by-country basis because  factors can differ greatly between countries (or even regions). Marketing Environment – Micro Marketing Environment – Micro The micro marketing environment consists of certain forces that are part of an organizations marketing process, but remain external to the organization. This micro marketing environment that surrounds organizations can be complex by nature; however the company has an element of control over how it operates within this environment. Marketing helps you to manage and make sense of this complexity. The illustration above summarizes the order of the immediate external marketing environment that businesses operate in. Current and Potential Customers Your customers are vital to the growth and sustainability of your company. In order to grow you must locate customers, understand their needs and then satisfy those needs both efficiently and profitably. Competitors Your competitors however have the same remit as you when it comes to sourcing and satisfying the needs of the customer. They will make it difficult to liaise with customer groups, as by definition they are largely pursuing the same sets of customers as you. As a marketer, you must therefore not only monitor what competitors are doing in the external marketing environment today, but to also anticipate their likely response to your campaigns and to predict what they will do tomorrow. Intermediaries (Distributors/Wholesalers/Retailers) Your business may require a network of wholesalers, distributors and/or retailer. These ‘intermediaries’ provide an invaluable service in getting your products to the customer. You must therefore think carefully about how best to distribute your goods and build relationships. This area can be fierce in competition as not everyone can get access to the channels of distribution that they want. Suppliers One other important area to consider in the external marketing environment is your suppliers. A key supplier can be an important part of your business and may even attribute to your competitive advantage. Losing important suppliers can interrupt production flow or your competitive edge and prevent you from getting your product to your customers. Choice of suppliers, negotiation of terms and relationship building all become important tasks of the marketer. The wider marketing environment, discussed in a separate knowledge sheet, covers all other influences that might provide opportunities or threats to the organization. These include technological development, legal constraints, the economic environment and sociocultural changes. This brief overview of the world in which companies operate in demonstrates that there are many relationships that matter. These need to be managed if the company is to conduct its business successfully. The main responsibility for managing these relationships lies within the marketing department. Using a SWOT SWOT is an important tool in auditing the external and internal environment of the organization. A SWOT Analysis should be more than a basic listing of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Most organizations have the same, common-sense type of threats, such as competitors, technological changes, regulation and deregulation, or weaknesses such as high price, but these are all very general, hard to control elements meaning the utility can be quite limited. As Cranfield’s Professor Malcolm McDonald puts it, real SWOTs should be more concise and specific. STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES, AND THREATS Strengths, in the SWOT analysis, are a companys capabilities and resources that allow it to engage in activities to generate economic value and perhaps competitive advantage. A companys strengths may be in its ability to create unique products, to provide high-level customer service, or to have a presence in multiple retail markets. Strengths may also be things such as the companys culture, its staffing and training, or the quality of its managers. Whatever capability a company has can be regarded as strength. A companys weaknesses are a lack of resources or capabilities that can prevent it from generating economic value or gaining a competitive advantage if used to enact the companys strategy. There are many examples of organizational weaknesses. For example, a firm may have a large, bureaucratic structure that limits its ability to compete with smaller, more dynamic companies. Another weakness may occur if a company has higher labor costs than a competitor who can have similar productivity from a lower labor cost. The characteristics of an organization that can be strength, as listed above, can also be a weakness if the company does not do them well. Opportunities provide the organization with a chance to improve its performance and its competitive advantage. Some opportunities may be anticipated, others arise unexpectedly. Opportunities may arise when there are niches for new products or services, or when these products and services can be offered at different times and in different locations. For instance, the increased use of the Internet has provided numerous opportunities for companies to expand their product sales. Threats can be an individual, group, or organization outside the company that aims to reduce the level of the companys performance. Every company faces threats in its environment. Often the more successful companies have stronger threats, because there is a desire on the part of other companies to take some of that success for their own. Threats may come from new products or services from other companies that aim to take away a companys competitive advantage. Threats may also come from government regulation or even consumer groups. A strong company strategy that shows how to gain competitive advantage should address all four elements of the SWOT analysis. It should help the organization determine how to use its strengths to take advantage of opportunities and neutralize threats. Finally, a strong strategy should help an organization avoid or fix its weaknesses. If a company can develop a strategy that makes use of the information from SWOT analysis, it is more likely to have high levels of performance. Nearly every company can benefit from SWOT analysis. Larger organizations may have strategic-planning procedures in place that incorporate SWOT analysis, but smaller firms, particularly entrepreneurial firms may have to start the analysis from scratch. Additionally, depending on the size or the degree of diversification of the company, it may be necessary to conduct more than one SWOT analysis. If the company has a wide variety of products and services, particularly if it operates in different markets, one SWOT analysis will not capture all of the relevant strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that exist across the span of the companys operations. LIMITATIONS OF SWOT ANALYSIS One major problem with the SWOT analysis is that while it emphasizes the importance of the four elements associated with the organizational and environmental analysis, it does not address how the company can identify the elements for their own company. Many organizational executives may not be able to determine what these elements are, and the SWOT framework provides no guidance. For example, what if a strength identified by the company is not truly strength? While a company might believe its customer service is strong, they may be unaware of problems with employees or the capabilities of other companies to provide a higher level of customer service. Weaknesses are often easier to determine, but typically after it is too late to create a new strategy to offset them. A company may also have difficulty identifying opportunities. Depending on the organization, what may seem like an opportunity to some may appear to be a threat to others. Opportunities may be easy to overlook or may be identified long after they can be exploited. Similarly, a company may have difficulty anticipating possible threats in order to effectively avoid them. While the SWOT framework does not provide managers with the guidance to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, it does tell managers what questions to ask during the strategy development process, even if it does not provide the answers. Managers know to ask and to determine a strategy that will take advantage of a companys strengths, minimize its weaknesses, exploit opportunities, or neutralize threats. Some experts argue that making strategic choices for the firm is less important than asking the right questions in choosing the strategy. A company may mistakenly solve a problem by providing the correct answer to the wrong question. USING SWOT ANALYSIS TO DEVELOP ORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGY SWOT analysis is just the first step in developing and implementing an effective organizational strategy. After a thorough SWOT analysis, the next step is to rank the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats and to document the criteria for ranking. The company must then determine its strategic fit given its internal capabilities and external environment in a two-by-two grid (see Figure 1). This fit, as determined in the grid, will indicate what strategic changes need to be made. The quadrants in this grid are as follows: * Quadrant 1 —internal strengths matched with external opportunities; * Quadrant 2 —internal weaknesses relative to external opportunities; * Quadrant 3 —internal strengths matched with external threats; and * Quadrant 4 —internal weaknesses relative to external threats. Quadrant 1 lists the strategies associated with a match between the companys strengths and its perceived external opportunities. It represents the best fit between the companys resources and the options available in the external market. A strategy from this quadrant would be to protect the companys strengths by shoring up resources and extending competitive advantage. If a strategy in this quadrant can additionally bolster weaknesses in other areas, such as in Quadrant 2, this would be advantageous. Quadrant 2 lists the strategies associated with a match between the companys weaknesses with external opportunities. Strategies in this quadrant would address the choice of either improving upon weaknesses to turn them into strengths, or allowing competitors to take advantage of opportunities in the marketplace. Quadrant 3 matches the companys strengths and external threats. Strategies in this quadrant may aim to transform external threats into opportunities by changing the companys competitive position through use of its resources or strengths. Another strategic option in this quadrant is for the company to maintain a defensive strategy to focus on more promising opportunities in other quadrants. Quadrant 4 matches a companys weaknesses and the threats in the environment. These are the worst possible scenarios for an organization. However, because of the competitive nature of the marketplace, any company is likely to have information in this quadrant. Strategies in this quadrant may involve using resources in other quadrants to exploit opportunities to the point that other threats are minimized. Additionally, some issues may be moved out of this quadrant by otherwise neutralizing the threat or by bolstering a perceived weakness. Once a strategy is decided on in each quadrant for the issues facing the company, these strategies require frequent monitoring and periodic updates. An organization is best served by proactively determining strategies to address issues before they become crises. An example of how a firm can develop strategies using these quadrants is as follows. Generic Corporation produces high-quality; high-priced specialty kitchen items in a catalog and in stores and is known for their excellent customer service. This strength has been able to offset its major weaknesses, which are having few stores and no current capabilities for Internet sales. Its major opportunities come from the explosion of Internet shopping, and its threats are other more high-profile competitors, operating primarily on the Internet, and the concerns of identity theft in Internet sales that many customers ha ve. Matching Generics strengths to its opportunities (Quadrant 1), the firm may choose to enhance its Internet site to allow online purchases, still providing its excellent 24-hour telephone customer service. Ideally, this strategy will offset the weakness of not having an Internet presence, which addresses the concerns of Quadrant 2. Additionally, by bolstering the strength of excellent customer service by applying it to the online shopping site, the company may be able to alleviate customer concerns about identity theft (Quadrant 3). A strategy for Quadrant 4, which matches the companys weaknesses and threats, is that Generic may consider selling its online business to a competitor. Certainly, the Quadrant 4 strategy is the least preferred, but a proactive strategy that plans for managing such a situation is favored over a crisis situation in which the company is forced to sell with no planning. A SWOT analysis is a first, but critical, step in developing an organizational strategy. By examining the companys internal capabilities—its strengths and weaknesses and its external environment—opportunities and threats, it helps to create strategies that can proactively contend with organizational challenges. The changing and uncertain marketing environment deeply affects the organization, instead of changing slowly and predictably, the environment can produce major surprises and shocks, how many managers at â€Å"Heinz† foresaw that the baby-boom numbers would fall so rapidly? How many were able to predict that the Internet will enable not only real-time personal communication but that will also provide a way for business process improvement and new industries would be formed. How many were able to predict that mobile phone SMS and MMS services would add significant value for the customers, some said ‘who would want to type text on the phone or even snap pictures , telephone are only for talking’ To conclude I would say that Marketing research is the function that links the consumer, customer, and public to the marketer through information – these information used to identify and define marketing opportunities and problems; generate, refine, and evaluate marketing actions; monitor marketing performance; and improve understanding of marketing as a process. Marketing research specifies the information required to address these issues, designs the methods for collecting information, manages and implements the data collection process, analyzes, and communicates the findings and their implications. †

Italian Excursion essays

Italian Excursion essays My initial motivation for traveling to Italy is my mother. Years ago she took a trip with her father to revisit the villages that he had fought for in World War II as a part of the 10th Mountain Division. She is always telling stories about the food, landscape and people that they encountered. The more powerful drive for my desire to tour this country is its beauty and culture. I have always loved the mountains and for this precise reason, Italy appeals strongly to me. Also, Italians have an ancient, deep-rooted culture that fascinates me. Plainly put, I am drawn to Italy through curiosity. In this fantasy trip of mine, I would want to travel with those dearest to me. For obvious reasons, I would request the company of my mom and grandma, for reminiscent purposes. In order to preserve my own enjoyment, Anna, Eleanor and Sabrinah would be my accomplices in evaluating the beauty of Italian men. Traveling in a pleasant group of six will keep things exciting without feeling burdened by too many people. Our trip will begin with our flight to Florence, as everyone already has passports and Traveler's Checks will be secure in our bags. We will depart from DIA at 6:45am, transfer in Atlanta to depart a second time at 1:30pm, and finally arrive in Florence at 2:30pm local time, 10:30pm our time. Now $1,059.00 poorer and very exhausted, we will take a taxi to our hotel, Le Cappellette, where will nap until ready to tackle the streets of Italy. After perusing the shops, we will gladly fall to the customary late and long hour of eating enormous amounts of food. The next two days will be filled with touring museums, browsing galleries and people watching. To pick up the pace, we will blaze down to the political and religious capital, Rome. The train down will cost about $57 per person, our cheapest payment yet since the rooms were $179 a night. I think that the most we will be able to take of this vivacious city is about 2 days. After the cr...

1984 By George Orwell Character Sketch Essay

1984 By George Orwell: Character Sketch Essay, Research Paper1984 by George Orwell: Character Sketchby Jeffrey Bowerman.The two chief characters in 1984 are Winston Smith and Julia. Winston has hisbeliefs. It is really difficult to do him believe in person else # 8217 ; s thoughts or prevarications.He is a small paranoid about people watching him. In the narrative 1984, people canbe watched through TVs ( telescreens ) . Because of this paranoia, he found atopographic point in his flat were he could sit without being seen. He spends much ofhis clip sitting in this corner composing in his journal. In his journal, he writesthings that could easy hold him killed. Winston is a quiet individual who has afew friends. He has a strong feeling about how the universe is and a strongerexperiencing about how it should be.Here is my illustration from the book that shows Winston # 8217 ; s character: # 8220 ; Just now I held up the fingers of my manus to you. You saw five fingers. Makeyou remembe r that? # 8221 ; # 8220 ; Yes. # 8221 ;O # 8217 ; Brien held up the fingers of his left manus, with the pollex concealed. # 8220 ; There are five fingers at that place. Make you see five fingers? # 8221 ; # 8220 ; Yes. # 8221 ;And he did see them, for a fleeting blink of an eye, before the scenery of his headchanged. He saw five fingers, and there was no malformation. Then everything wasnormal once more, and the old fright, the hate and the obfuscation came herdingback once more. But there had been a minute? he did non cognize how long, 30seconds, possibly? of aglow certainty, when each new suggestion of O # 8217 ; Brien # 8217 ; shad filled up a spot of emptiness and had become absolute truth, and when twoand two could hold been three as easy as five, if that were what was needed.It had faded out before O # 8217 ; Brien had dropped his manus ; but though he could nonrecapture it, he could retrieve it, as one remembers a graphic experience at somedistant period of one # 821 7 ; s life when 1 was in consequence a different individual.Earlier in that subdivision O # 8217 ; Brien had tortured him into believing two plus twopeers five.Julia # 8217 ; s feelings are non about every bit strong as Winston # 8217 ; s. She is slightlysneaky, and she is really good at evading The Thought Police. Julia is quiet, andshe likes to believe of the hereafter and the yesteryear instead than the present. Sheenjoys little things that are old and simple. Julia is slightly interested inthe manner the universe is turning. She enjoys nature and animate beings.Here is my illustration from the book that shows Julia # 8217 ; s character:She fell to her articulatio genuss, threw unfastened the bag and tumbled out some wrenchs and ascrewdriver that filled the top portion of it. Underneath was figure of orderly paper packages. The first package that she passed to Winston had a unusual and yetfamiliar feelings. It was filled with some sort of heavy, sand-like material whichyielded wherever you touched it. # 8220 ; It isn # 8217 ; t saccharify? # 8221 ; he said. # 8220 ; Real sugar. Not cloying, sugar. And here # 8217 ; s a loaf of staff of life? properwhite staff of life, non our bloody material? and a small pot of jam. And here # 8217 ; s a Snof milk? but look! This is the 1 I # 8217 ; m truly proud of. I had to wrap a spotof plundering unit of ammunition it, because? ? ? # 8221 ;But she did non hold to state him why she had wrapped it up. The odor wasalready make fulling the room, a rich hot odor which seemed like an emanation fromhis early childhood, but which one did on occasion run into with even now, blowingdown a passage-way before a door slammed, or spreading itself cryptically in acrowded street, sniffed for an blink of an eye and so lost once more. # 8220 ; It # 8217 ; s java, # 8221 ; she murmured, # 8220 ; existent coffee. # 8221 ;Julia had more interesting things in her bag after the java, this illustrationshows her involvement in old and simple things.If Winston had a level tyre, he would likely sit in his auto for a piece.After possibly one half hr, he would acquire out of the auto and trade with it. Whenhe was covering with it, he would non believe about the work really much. Winstonwould decidedly compose a batch about it in his journal.In 1984, all the dish lavation is done by the cooks. If Winston had to makethe dishes, he would likely non be really good at it. He would take a long clip.He likely would non interrupt really many dishes. If he had the option to utilize adishwasher, he would decidedly make it. Winston would likely hold a few dishesthat he liked utilizing and would utilize merely them. Before he met Julia, he would eatwithout much appetency and was skinny.If Winston were faced with a bully, he would respond with choler. After hisfirs t reaction, he would look the individual over. If he thought the individual werestronger, he would go afraid and huffish. Winston would get down to state theindividual that he was right, in hope of get awaying hurting. Winston does non wishproblem ; but if he has to cover with it, he does it with force.If Winston had to travel food market shopping, he would be every bit speedy as possible. Hewould likely non make the best possible occupation, and he would likely bury things.Winston would non utilize any vouchers or travel to certain shops because they werecheaper. He would non bask shopping. Winston would seek to acquire other people tomake the shopping for him.

Human Resource Reflecting Paper - on The Cane Mutiny Article Essay - 1

Human Resource Reflecting Paper - on The Cane Mutiny Article - Essay Example verage age of German population was on a steady rise, and what effect it would have on the personnel of a midsize pharmaceutical firm like Medignostics. Frank’s other proposal which was to open day care centers for the children of young employees were also met with skepticism from Erwin. Frank wanted to emphasize the need of day care centers to facilitate young parents since the options of changing schools of children would make them join rival firms. Erwin saw this proposal as increased cost that would be detrimental to the company (Geissler, 2005). I feel that Frank should have consolidated his proposal with sufficient data and facts. In order to convince the executive management about personnel matters it is necessary for HR manager to present his argument in a manner that is comprehendible for the top team. If Frank wanted his HR strategy to be considered, then he should have given a clear picture of the negative consequences if a business enterprise ignores the demographic issue. He should have clearly stated how the growing average age of population would affect hiring of personnel, their costs, performance and innovation. A problem appeared among the older employees who are near retirement age when Part-Time Statute for the Elderly was implemented which paved the way for easy retirement of older workers so that there would be job vacancy for the younger aspirants. This program was subsequently scrapped since proved to be costly to the company and this directly affected older personnel. For instance, Matthias Hausmann who was 58 years old had worked for the company for over 20 years. He regularly made himself absent in office which resulted in his unavailability during decisions to be made or when clients needed him. This was proving to be a loss to the company as clients were moving their business elsewhere thus hurting productivity. Also, the salary structure indicated that older employees receive more than the younger group, and this must be

Israeli-Iran Conflict Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Israeli-Iran Conflict - Research Paper Example A wide range of threats are evident with the current nuclear production in Iran that includes even asymmetric warfare. Iran acts strategically in this conflict and by gaining her support from Iraq and Afghanistan, she posses even a greater threat to other countries. Global economy runs at a risk if Iran would target the Gulf area, which is the main hub of all petroleum exports to global market. Thus, the Iran-Israeli conflict puts into picture other players such as the United States, Iraq and the southern gulf (Cordesman, 2011, 1). Israel has threatened to strike the nuclear energy plants in Iran for what she calls a bleach of the policy of international sanctions, in which Iran was prohibited from furthering her nuclear weapon production. This was confirmed by a report released by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on 14 September 2012 (Racimora, 2012, 1). Unconfirmed rumors indicate that Israel might be planning a preemptive air strike to the nuclear states in Iran. Much has been speculated on a possible collaboration of Israel and the United States in the preemptive strike mission. This has been discussed in details, spilling over even to the recent presidential polls in the U.S. Speculations showed a possible erupt of a war between the two countries during this time and this was a key campaign issue over the two presidential contenders; Mitt Romney and the newly elected president Barrack Obama

Sport in Society Essay Example for Free

Sport in Society Essay In this assignment I will be introducing and explaining how sport effects the economy in the U. K and how important the sport industry is; focusing on Football and tennis. The definition of economy is: â€Å"The state of a county or region in terms of the production and consumption of goods and services and the supply of money† (Oxford dictionary) My definition of economy in sporting terms is: When I read the above definition I interpret it as; the production is the development of players both tennis and football. I also see it as the development of the club and the merchandising of all the products linked with football and tennis. I interpret consumption as the use of player, this can be the buying and selling of players in football, the amount of money that is brought in by tennis players is then put back into the development of young players. My overall understanding of economy is that clubs buy and spend the money that they gain from selling players (football). Each year the government put a certain amount of money into sport, to pay for facilities; equipment and much more. Since London won the bid to hold the 2012 Olympics the government have pumped in a lot of money into it; however the budget for the Olympics has just increased. â€Å"Culture secretary Tessa Jowell has announced an increased budget for the London 2012 games of ? 9. 3bn. The funding will now include ? 6. 75m more from the national lottery, bringing its contribution to ? 2. 2bn. The arts council England, heritage lottery fund and sports England were among groups who were disappointed at the increase. Ms Jowell said she planned to transfer 3425million from the big lottery fund and ? 250 million from other good causes after 2009. Sport England, which will lose ? 55. 9m in funding, said the decrease was a ‘real blow to community sport in England’ (BBC news). There are two types of different sporting people; professionals and amateurs. Professionals: Is an athlete that receives money for their performance, this is a set payment for the year, or however long their contract is for. In the last couple of years professional women have started getting paid the same as professional men. An example of a professional in football is David beckham who gets ? 16. 9 million a year. (Guardian 19/1/07) It was announced that â€Å"premiership footballers are to pocket a record ? 1. 1million average wage next session. † (Daily mirror, Thursday may 31st 2007). Amateurs: Is an athlete that takes part in sport out of pure passion. Amateurs get paid for winning a competition unlike a professional. An example of an amateur in tennis is Naomi Cavaday she got paid $100,000 for winning a tournament in Mumbai. (British tennis Lta) The split between professionals and amateurs happened in the Victorian period (1830- 1901) (class notes) Consumer spending: Consumer spending is a huge part to sport and advertising the club. Football is one of the biggest sellers of all time; they sell anything that you can think of. When looking on the official Liverpool F. C site, I was able to have a look at everything that you can buy for the team there is; the teams home and away kit; t-shirts/ bottoms/hoodies for men, women and babies; badges and key rings; books; flags and pennants; subscriptions; scarves; glassware; jewellery; mugs; stationary; toys and games; DVD/video/audio; footballs; caps and hats; bedroom (such as bedding, carpets, lamp shades etc); watches/clocks; bags; bathroom (towels and flannels); car accessories; pictures; baby accessories (bottles, dummies, rattles etc); gifts and misc (golf balls, dog bowl and lead, socks, phone charms, I-pod covers, and much more.) (Liverpool F. C shop. ). â€Å"For the United Kingdom as a whole in 2001, consumer spending on sport was ? 14. 98billion which represented 2. 4% of total consumer spending. † (Pch) When comparing this to consumer spending in 2006 there is a very big difference. â€Å"U. K consumers spent an estimated ? 9. 7bn on sport in 2006. This figure covers the cost of participation (including club sub-subscriptions), sports equipment, sports clothing, sports footwear and admissions to live sporting events. The ? 9. 7bn is only 1. 2% of total consumer spending. † (Market research) This consumer spending is set to rocket between 2007-2011, due to the football world cup, rugby world cup and the 2012 Olympics. Gambling: Although gambling is linked to consumer spending, as it accounts to how much each household is sending each year. There is a massive gambling market in the U. K, this accounts for mega events such as the F. A cup, the football / rugby world cup and Wimbledon. â€Å"Screen digest forecasts that U. K consumers spending online gambling will increase from the ? 660million to ? 1. 6bn in 2010. At the same time the number of active U. K clients will grow from 1. 1m in 2005 to 2. 1m in 2010. † (Screen digest. ) Sponsorship: Is a commercial deal that brings itself or a product to the attention of consumers. Advertising is the most frequent method used. It announces the availability of a product and creates a good image for a brand. It also provides information on a product, quality, characteristics, prices and performance. Sponsorship is important as not only does it give the sponsor recognition but it also provides money for the athlete and the sponsor. The Oxford mail newspaper sponsors the local boy’s league, which includes local football teams such as the Cholsey bluebirds, Didcot and Abingdon A. (Cholsey blue birds, pageys) â€Å"the total value of Premiership football shirt sponsorship[ deals is set to hit 370m a year next season, up 25% from the current season and about tenfold since the league’s inaugural season in 1992-93. † (Football economy) Andy Murray gets ? 200k in sponsorship: ?1m from David Lloyd ?1m for his left sleeve/cm2 ?250k for his racket (head) ?1m for his watch (tag hever) ?4m for his right sleeve (R. B. S)?1m for wearing Fred Perry. (Guardian Dec. 30 ’06) Private clubs: The United Kingdom’s leading health-club operators include David Lloyd, fitness first and Holmes place. (Market research) The closest David Lloyd centre is Oxford, for both tennis and football they hold regular clubs and training sessions. Tennis: world class facilities; ladder league; men’s and women’s teams; regular club nights, coaching and match play sessions. Football: on a Monday night at 7 o’clock our outdoor courts convert into excellent 5-a-side pitches for which we have weekly competitions for teams or individuals. (David Lloyd. ) Income received by participation sports activities in the private sector is ? 133 million (sport England PDF) Funding: Funding is money which is raised from various sources to help pay for new ventures such as new facilities and equipment in sport. Funding is a big part of sport, because if we didn’t have funding then we wouldn’t be able to play sports as there would be no facilities, equipment etc. â€Å"The south east receives about ? 120m in sport related grants; about ? 13 per person of this ? 106m comes from local and central government. About ? 14m is from the lottery. (Sport England 2000 PDF) Funding from the F. A is based on an 11 side team, how many teams enter the league, and is based on ? 10 per 11 aside team. The minimum grant is ? 200 and the maximum is ? 800. (The F. A) Since sport England lottery fund began in 1995, tennis has received 568 awards, totalling in excess of ? 87million towards improving tennis playing facilities in the community. (Sport England PDF). Previous funding: YearNationalCommunity 1995-1996? 0? 6,013,989 1996-1997? 0? 5,395,101 1997-1998? 0?4,441,582 1998-1999? 37,188? 12,911,549 1999-2000? 0? 30,821,126 2000-2001? 0? 4,852,807 2001-2002? 0? 14,052,789 2002-2003? 0? 8,154,732 2003-2004? 0? 2,453,348 Note: national funding is a total of Exchequer funding and the world class programme. Community funding is a total of the following programmes: Community Capital, safer sports grounds, active communities development fund, all active sports programmes, community athletics refurbishment programme, football youth development, school sport coordinators, sport action zones and awards for all. (Sport England tennis PDF) Retail and merchandising: Retail and merchandising account for everything that a household may buy each year, this can be anything from tickets, T. V fees, internet fees, the clothes industry and personal sports which go towards equipment and match fees. â€Å"In total households are estimated to have spent around ? 2. 1bn on sport related goods and services in 2000. This was some 2 ? % of total household spending. The main categories of spending are subscriptions and fees (? 560m), sportswear (? 435m) and gambling (? 375m). Only around ? 125m was spent by those in the region on admissions to spectator sports. (Sport England PDF) Media / T. V: There is a wide range of media that covers sports such as: television, radio, newspapers, magazines, adverts and much more. Sports in newspapers varies as to what paper you read, for example; in the Sunday times from May 20th 2007, there was 4 stories inside the paper about sport however also included in the paper was 32 page paper dedicated to what has gone on over the weekend, it also includes stories as to what will be happening later on in that week. In the daily mirror from June 7th 2007, there is a section on the front page about the England game against Estonia, from then on to page 59 there is nothing about sport; from page 60 which is horse racing results etc, it starts talking about sports, altogether there is 13 pages of sport in which football dominates 8 of the pages which includes the back page. There is no mention of tennis in that paper, this may be because there isn’t a tennis event happening at the moment. Along with newspapers there is also a huge amount of T. V channels that are dedicated to sports: sky sports 1 -3 sky sports news sky sports extra British Eurosports Eurosports 2 Premiership plus PPV Events 1-2 Extreme sports Manchester United TV NASN Sport At the races Racing U. K Setanta 1-2 Celtic TV Rangers TV Set golf Motors TV Chelsea TV Participation: There are so many different sports clubs to take part in, whether they are at school or at the local leisure centre each year more and more people are joining sports clubs in a bid to keep fit. â€Å"Around 863,000 people participate in organised sports clubs, which have an annual income of around ? 550 million. † (Sport England PDF) In 2005 USTA and the tennis industry association said: â€Å"24. 7m Americans are playing tennis, the most since 1992. Participation grew by 1. 1m players, up 4. 1% vs. 2004† â€Å"5. 8m new players began playing the game in 2005. † (Nrpa, tennis) In 2000 60% of males under 16 took part in football, 17% of females over 16 took part in football and 6% of all adults took part in football. (Football academy) Employment: There are so many sports related jobs in the U. K, when the class was asked how may of them worked in a sports related or non sports related job the results were: Sport related jobNon sport related jobNo-job 5101 (Table taken from class notes) There are so many different things that you can be employed for in both football and Tennis, the players themselves, officials, mangers, couches, doctors. â€Å"74,900 people are employed in sport related activities in the south east, some 2% of all employment in the region. † (Sport England PDF).

Risk Taking Behaviour in Adolescence Essay -- Adolescent Behavior

Adolescence is a venerable and unstable time of adjustment in which a child transcends into adulthood (Casey, 2008). During adolescence there are examinable changes in various areas of life. These changes occur physically as the adolescent goes through puberty, as well as psychological changes where high emotional reactivity emerges, and social development is at its height (Casey, 2008). Adolescents are more likely than adults or children to engage in risky behaviour that can subsequently lead to death or illness by drunk driving, carrying weapons, using illegal drugs, and engaging in unprotected sex, which in turn can lead to STD’s and teenage pregnancies (Eaton, 2006). The prior is proof that adolescents do engage in risky behaviour. Through this essay we will explore the various theories of why risky behaviour is at its height during adolescence. An Examination of Adolescence During adolescence emotional reactivity is heightened, and the social environment is changing as adolescents spend more time with their peers than adults (Casey, 2008). To an adolescent, the value of positive information, as well as negative information may be exaggerated which leads to greater emotional reactivity and sensitivity during this growth period (Casey, 2008). This can heighten the incidence of addiction and the onset of psychological disorders (Casey, 2008). There are various theories that attempt to explain why adolescents engage in risky behaviour. One of these theories by Yurgelun-Todd stems from human adolescent brain development, and proposes that cognitive development during the adolescent period is associated with increasingly superior efficiency of cognitive control and affective modulation (Casey, 2008). This theory also suggest... ...odel since some of the studies done may not be accurate. For example, with concern to the study Casey’s discussed concerning delay of gratification study, there was too much variability. Their hunger levels prior to the study should have been recorded, as well as their favourite cookie type because these details may influence how likely the children are to control their impulses. But, overall this model did contribute greatly to the field of adolescent risk taking. Works Cited Casey, B. J., Jones, R. M., & Hare, T. (2008). The adolescent brain. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1124, 111–126. Eaton Reyna, V.F. and Rivers, S.E. (2008). Current theories of risk and rational decision making. Developmental Review, 28, 1–11. Steinberg, L. (2004). Risk taking in adolescence: What changes, and Why? Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1021, 51-58.

Case Closed: A short Story

Jackie dropped her blue fountain pen and relaxed her aching wrist. She had been reading and adding to the notes of her client's case for the last two hours. It was taking place the next day and she hadn't even read halfway through yet. Laying back in the comfy black office chair she let out a long yawn and stretched out her legs under the desk. Her neck and back were as stiff as a board and she let out a low moan as she turned her head from side to side. Jackie loved her job as a lawyer. Eating, sleeping and drinking her work she would often receive criticism telling her that there was more to life than just work and that you where supposed to work to live not live to work. She was so bored of hearing it. That's why she lived alone, she was able to get on with extra work and block people out. She knew that they just didn't understand how passionate she was about her job. Well for most aspects of it. She hated doing all the written work and the notes on the cases. After hours of relentless writing, her skinny arm felt as if it was about to drop off. She slowly unhinged her sore arms and stretched up towards the ceiling letting out another deep yawn. She new she would need motivation if she was going to continue with her work. She rose from her warm, moulded seat and dragged herself over to her immaculate, open plan kitchen. Although Jackie's job took up most of her life she had always been a bit of a clean freak. She couldn't bear the sight of untidiness and she always found herself putting things away and cleaning up. Her indolent arms reached up to the wooden shelf and she grabbed a wine glass. Filling the glass up to the brim Jackie took a long gulp and returned back to her study. As she sat back down in her cosy chair she was disturbed by the irritating ring of her telephone. Sighing and reluctantly getting up again, she walked across the room to the phone and clearing her sore throat she picked it up. â€Å"Hello?† No answer. â€Å"Hello?† she repeated herself rolling her exhausted eyes. Still silence. Slamming the phone down she returned back to her desk feeling annoyed that someone had disturbed her. She took another sip of her wine and unwillingly picked up her fountain pen again. Jackie sat in her warm office in deep concentration. She had no longer sat down that she was bothered again. But this time it wasn't her annoying telephone. The noise that filled her ears made her jump out of her skin. It sounded like a lost soul shrieking from the depths of hell. It was her car alarm. Jackie strided through the narrow hallway and wrenched open the front door causing a gust of icy wind to hit her and enter the house. She cautiously walked down the footpath, biting her dry lips, her once warm feet slapping against the smooth glacial pavement. Pushing her tangled curly hair out of her face she bent down and checked underneath her car. Nothing. She glanced across the drive and not wanting to catch a cold for her big day tomorrow she hopped back up the footpath and back into her heated house. Turning the heating up on the wall she returned back to her work filled desk. She picked up her glass and stopped. The glass that she had left on the desk to go and investigate her car alarm going off had been half full. Now it was empty. She stood up, heart racing and stared around the room. She looked back at the glass suspiciously and rubbed her weary eyes. â€Å"I'm going mad† she muttered to herself. Jackie tried to dismiss that somebody had drank from her glass but she couldn't stop thinking about the fact she was sure she hadn't drank it all. She glided over to the front door and pulled across the top lock. She felt slightly easier and safer now. Positioning herself in her chair she went to begin her work. Again she stopped. Her fountain pen that she always kept on top of the mountainous piles of work had gone. Puzzled, Jackie began moving her papers out of the way and searching the whole desk work top for the pen. Giving up and becoming very stressed out because of all her disturbances she furiously got up again and went in search of another pen. She stomped in to the kitchen opened the white sliding draw looking for a biro or something of that sort that she could carry on scrawling her notes with. With no look she slammed the drawer shut and spun back around to have a look in the sitting room. She froze. There was her fountain pen propped up against her porcelain vase on the corner table. The hairs on the back of Jackie's neck stood up. She was positive she hadn't even been in the sitting room all night. She attentively moved across the room towards the pen. When she got there she stopped for a moment and just looked at it, it had been balanced against the vase. She was so bewildered that her heart started to race. She heard a deep breathing sound coming behind her. She couldn't move as her legs had gone numb with terror. Slowly she turned her head but before she could catch sight of her intruder she felt a sharp pain in the back of her head. Jackie fell forward knocking over the vase and hitting her face against the solid wall. She fell to the floor in a state of shock. The stranger dragged Jackie up by her long, blood-soaked hair. Without thinking she grabbed the man's thick, hairy arm and sunk her teeth deep into his flesh. His grip loosened on her hair and she stumbled across the room falling against her desk. Hitting the floor again Jackie began to crawl towards the door in hope to get away from the attacker. She lunged for the handle and tried to turn it. It didn't move. She remembered she had locked it minutes before. Frantically trying to unlock it she could hear him breathing behind her. The lock clicked open but it was too late. She felt another piercing blow to her head, then darkness. Jackie woke up with a start. The pain in her head was unbearable. She was trying to catch her breath but she couldn't, her lungs felt as if they were about to explode. She attempted to sit up, but hit her head on what seemed like a wooden surface that was inches in front of her face. She was terrified; she needed to know where she was. She hated not being in control of situations. She tried to move her arms. They were pressed tightly to her sides. She was in some sort of box. She let out a long, high pitched scream. Little did she know that there was no chance any living person would ever hear her.

Existence of God Argumentative Paper Essay

There are many different types of arguments for the existence of God. With each argument there is a conception presented of God. For each argument there are different approaches. I will be focusing on the Cosmological and Teleological Arguments. Teleological Arguments are known to be arguments from divine, arguing from order in the universe to the existence of God (1).With the ordering of the universe, created by an intelligent being, they hold that it is ordered towards a purpose or an end. The Cosmological Argument â€Å"is the argument that the existence of the world or universe is strong evidence for the existence of a God who created it. It is a first caused argument where the existence of the universe, the argument claims, stands in need of explanation, and the only adequate explanation of its existence is that it was created by God† (1). Behind this argument, it holds that though the universe still needs explanation for its existence, the existence of God Himself does not. In the article McCloskey is critical of these arguments for God’s existence supporting his stance by offering the problem of evil as reasoning to not believe. He believes the belief in the existence of God is not a source of strength and security (2). However, if we are to use the Cumulative Case approach we can have successive truths. This case cumulates the Cosmological, Teleological, as well as, the Moral Arguments together. It gives us the conclusion of a personal, moral, intelligent creator of the universe as the best explanation for the universe we experience (3). McCloskey maintains that the Teleological Argument is not satisfactory and that it can be rejected simply by rejecting its premise. The premise holds that there is in fact evidence of purpose and design. McCloskey says though, that there were many things that were considered evidence or proof, prior to evolution, but those very things are now not being considered as so. Thus, in order to be a proof, there has to be given indisputable examples. Given that the Teleological Argument, presenting disputable examples, says McCloskey, there is no proof. There can be no form of argument with evidence of an intellectual design and/or designer. I would have to argue with McCloskey by using the â€Å"fine-tuning argument.† Within the universe is nothing short of precision, not only of natural laws, but the beginning stages and state of the universe. These both are pointers to an intelligent Creator. The universe is finely-tuned maintaining physical constants of nature (5).The strength of gravity should be considered. With the occurrence of the Big Bang. The gravity had to have precision because even with a little more force used on either side, it would not have occurred as the Big Bang, but the Big Crunch. Even with the slightest change in gravity, it could change the world into something completely other than what we know. That which is being offered as evidenced cannot be questioned. If we were to give to evolution as truth, there is still no grounds for believing it is true. It does nothing but in the end support the theist position, and shows that evolution needs teleology. McCloskey’s main objection to theism is the presence of evil in the world, â€Å"No being who was perfect could have created a world in which there was unavoidable suffering or in which his creatures would(and in fact could have been created so as not to) engage in morally evil acts, acts which very often result in injury to innocent persons† (1). With this problem on McCloskey’s mind, he holds it to the theists. He still wonders how the theist does not take this to mind seeing that it goes against the perfection of the divine purpose. There can be no grounds in a belief of a perfect being. Even if all reason was thrown out, he says the theist at best could only present a pool of beings full of â€Å"concern, dismay, and anxiety, rather than comfort and security† (1). There is a logical problem of evil and there is logical inconsistency when there is both the existence of God and of evil. The atheist holds that there is severe contradiction between claiming God is good, yet evil exists. Mackie, an atheist, says â€Å"†¦the contradiction does not arise immediately; to show it we need some additional premises†¦these additional principles are that good is opposed to evil, in such a way that a good thing always eliminates evil as far as it can, and that there are no limits to what an omnipotent thing can do. From these it follows that a good omnipotent thing eliminates evil completely, and then the propositions that a good omnipotent thing exists, and that evil exists, are incompatible†(8). There exists two kinds of evil. There is â€Å"human evil,† and â€Å"natural evil† in which atheist claim are both forms of needless suffering. The logical problem of evil claims the â€Å"tension† between simultaneously having evil in the world, while also having a perfect God. This would without a doubt be a logical contradiction according to the atheist. There is also the evidential problem of evil. With this claim, there is not contradiction, but the fact that evil exists, if give grounding evidence for being able to reject that God is all-powerful. It is a weaker version of the former, and claims that it is highly unlikely that an all-perfect God exists. Plantinga responds with trying to defend that it is reasonable to believe in God, even without evidence. His positio n is known as â€Å"Reformed Epistemology†. In order for his view to hold he would have to reject the Evidentialist Credo., which he claims rests on Classical Foundationalism. This led him to his positive view, or â€Å"Reformed Epistemology.† This holds that a belief in God is â€Å"properly basic.†Some object to these claims, saying that evil is logically required for good and is needed for us to see the good. Evil is a means and will cause good. There is given the â€Å"free will† defense that is meant to try and answer the problem of evil. Either this would come about by humans free will resulting in a greater good and that evil is ascribed the humans and not God. However, those who oppose this, bring up the issue of natural evils. Mackie stands his ground that God should have given human beings free will in such a way that we always chose the good. The atheist propose God did not create men to choose between right and wrong, and that God is morally inconsistent. In response, the free will theodicy attempts to defeat the former by claiming the suffering of the innocent is justified because of the existence of free will. We as humans have misused our free will, thus what is known as ‘moral evil.’ Other sufferings from evil come from the natural evils. While McCloskey challenges the free will defense, Plantinga proposes the law of non-contradiction. He argues for there could be logically possible affairs whereby God would be unable of creating a world of both evil and autonomous humans (9). Evans puts it simply, â€Å"It does not seem to be true that a good being always eliminates evil as far as it can. What is true, perhaps, is that good being always eliminates evil as far as it can without the loss of a greater good or the allowance of a worse evil† (1). McCloskey objects to the cosmological argument claiming, â€Å"mere existence of the world constitutes no reason for believing in such a being†(1). There has been great objection to this however because of the fact of contingent objects. God is the â€Å"first cause,† the one who began it all. Because there is not explanation for contingent beings, if God is a necessary being, He is the necessary cause of the existence of creation and we as beings. God has no cause, otherwise He would not be God. It is the very existence of the world that implies the existence of God. The â€Å"laws of nature† imply the existence of a lawgiver, God. This position was held by Aristotle, holding firmly against the possibility of infinite regress. The argument from contingency suggests that it is possible the universe might not have existed, thus needing explanation of why it does in fact exist. In essence, it must have a cause. This leads to the belief in â€Å"necessary being,â⠂¬  meaning a being that needs no explanation. The temporal cosmological argument holds that the beginning of the universe was either caused or uncaused. However, objectors to this say we cannot actually claim whether the universe â€Å"had to exist.† Also, a â€Å"necessary being† comes into question. The refuters say this line of argument does not give enough explanation of why there could not be more than one cause. There is no ground for putting God as the first cause or prime mover. Time and causality as we know it cannot be grounds for explaining the beginnings of the universe. However, those objecting to McCloskey, hold if there were a being like the universe, then he would exist in time, thus he himself came into existence. But, the ultimate cause must not have come into existence. For it to be an ultimate cause, the ultimate Creator must be outside of time. (10).What McCloskey fails to realize, is that not every argument is going to capture every aspect of God. There are many different arguments that go abo ut doing that. If God does not exist, then all has no hope of immortality. Life, the world, and everything in it is meaningless. There would be no purpose or significance to anyone or anything. This leaves us with no ultimate meaning without immorality and God. Would we be able to say there was any purpose or meaning to someone who lived just to die? To be born just to pass out of existence? Lane says that it is not just each individual person that is headed towards the grave, but the universe itself is headed for extinction. This all in all is hopeless. Dying man, in a dying world. If this is the case, the small details in life do not matter, it does not make a difference. Our behaviors, our choices do not matter. Dotoyevsky said â€Å"If there is no immortality then all things are permitted† (11). Without God, there is no accountability, morality, or sense of right and wrong. Even more so, in a universe without God, good and evil do not exist (11). However, if we were to say there were no God, we would still be without purpose because we would just be accidental. We would just be accidents of chance. The only view that can save the human race from itself is a theistic view (11). The only thing going for an atheist is living with the fact of the absurdity of life. Such a view makes it impossible to live a fulfilling, happy life. For the atheist, absurdity of life and creating meaning for one’s life is a contradiction. A major disadvantage of atheism is that no one has hope or faith for reward of good or and punishment of evil. A believer’s hope is this, Christ. Ephesians 3:11 tells us that God had a purpose I mind before He created. Man within his own voluntary will would be able to love and choose God. Nature alone points to God. Humanity and the universe itself does not have to exist. Both are not self-existent but caused. There is no explanation for their existence. Within a Christian world view, life is not meaningless and pointless ending at the grave. We have hope in the resurrection and of eternal life. God and immortality are both necessary for a meaning full life (11). Bibliography 11- Craig, William Lane. â€Å"The Absurdity of Life without God.† In Reasonable Faith: Christian Truth and Apologetics, by William Lane Craig, 71-90. Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2008. 1-Evans, C. Stephen, and R. Zachary Manis. Philosophy of Religion: Thinking About Faith. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2009. 8- Kunkle,Brett. â€Å"The Logical Problem of Evil.† Truth Never Gets Old. April 21, 2009 2- McCloskey, H. J. â€Å"On Being an Atheist.† Question (1968): 63-69. 5- Biologos. â€Å"What is the â€Å"fine-tuning† of the universe, and how does it serve as a â€Å"pointer to God?† 9- http://kevinfannystevenson.blogspot.com/2012/07/on-being-theist-response-to-h-j.html 10- http://www.existence-of-god.com/first-cause-argument.html

Information Media Essays - Digital Media, Communication, News

Information Media Essays - Digital Media, Communication, News Information Media 6/13/2015 It all started with the newspaper. Every morning the paperboy or girl tossed the daily news on their usual paper route while the neighborhood patiently waited to see what was happening in the world around them. Now the news can be received right after it happens via television, internet, or the closest smartphone. Information media has evolved right along with technology and can now be accessed quickly and easily. Although the news can now be easily accessed and has evolved with the technology today, there are still flaws and room to grow. Information media has social responsibility because it provides news to everyone in the world. The importance of the accuracy of the news that is delivered to the public is serious. There is plenty of fake news that floats around on the internet that some people actually believe. There is a news station that makes fun of real news but actually is more entertaining and makes the news easier to watch. We recently launched in 2007 Onion News Network. And its doing extremely well. Its reached audiences that the newspaper and the online newspaper has never been able to reach through this whole viral thing (Randazzo). There are certain news outlets that the public turns to such as; CNN, Fox news, NBC news, and ABC news. Reporting false news or partial news will ruin a news outlets credibility. Reporting news that happens around the world that is not necessarily easy to obtain is information medias responsibility. By reporting the news, the public is informed of the things going on around. Therefore the news has taken on the responsibility of doing its public duty and reporting news that benefits everyone. People depend on the news for everything including what is going on with the government and the country. The only role the information and news media should play when it comes to politics is reporting information on what is going on. It does help that the media outlets sometimes show coverage of debates between political parties so that the public has an easier way to get information on the political parties they are choosing and maybe see what the other party has to offer. Information media should stay a neutral party when reporting information on politics. That way the public can decide for themselves. Information media is a lot easier to access on the go since technology has evolved. People can now view any story that was covered by a news outlet on their mobile devices anywhere they go. Because the news is more accessible, newspapers like The New York Times, can post online or on their mobile apps as soon as they receive the story. The newspaper companies used to have to wait until the story was finished then printed just to break the story to the public. For years, weve operated under the assumption that we just have to know whats going on by midnight when the press roles. And we have all day to work on that story. So we work and work and work on it. At midnight, you hit the button (Little). With the new technology, there is no more waiting and people can see what the news stations have reported on their mobile devices. People watch the news a lot more when it is more accessible and easier to access the exact story they want to know about instead of waiting. This makes news easi er for a new generation. A younger crowd is now more involved with what is going on in their community. With the new day and age, electronic media has become a part of everyday life. It has made accessing news coverage easier and is a way to get stories out to the public extremely easy. Newspapers may not eventually survive in the form theyre in (Campbell). Technology is slowly diminishing the newspaper and now the newspaper companies can still report news with a new found twist and the news stations can keep the public informed quickly, but just like anything that has to do with technology, the news is not perfect and the people that report it are not either. References Campbell, R. Little, David. Newspaper and the Internet: Convergence. http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1665856774001?bckey=AQ~~,AAABXVHBMdE~,bnY9CM55Z1MNHgPnTUdB-Gx-Vg4fpZHa&bctid=2607695059001&noCacheIE=1424363343654 Randazzo,

Meningitis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Meningitis - Essay Example s severe and resolves without specific treatment, while bacterial meningitis can be quite severe and may result in brain damage, hearing loss, or learning disability. Meningitis hearing loss typically appears after a bout with meningitis. Before the 1990s, Haemophilus influenzae Type B (Hib) was the leading cause of bacterial meningitis, but with new vaccines as part of routine immunizations, the occurrence of this invasive disease has reduced. Today, Streptococcus pneumoniae and N. meningitidis are the leading causes of bacterial meningitis. It can be caused by various infectious agents, including viruses, fungi, and protozoa, but bacteria produce the most life-threatening infection. Factors such as age, history of head trauma cerebrospinal fluid leaks, and immune status may help determine the causative agent. The bacteria that is responsible for meningitis are the meningococcus (N. meningitidis), most important because of its potential to cause epidemics; influenza bacillus (H. influenzae); and various strains of pneumococci, streptococci, or staphylococci. H. influenzae occurs in infants and young children but only rarely in the elderly, and its course and symptoms resemble those of N. meningitidis. In adults, the bacterium pneumococcus (S. pneumoniae) is a common cause of meningitis. Meningitis hearing loss can range in varying degrees, mild, moderate, severe, profound or total. Though meningitis is a cause of hearing loss, there are others which are congenital or acquired. Hearing loss can be classified by the auditory system that is defective. The causes can be divided into two basic types: conductive and sensorineural hearing loss. Conductive hearing loss is caused by anything that interferes with the transmission of sound from the outer to the inner ear. Possible causes include: middle ear infections (otitis media); collection of fluid in the middle ear ("glue ear" in children); blockage of the outer ear (wax); damage to the eardrum by infection or an

HP at a Strategic Crossroad Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

HP at a Strategic Crossroad - Assignment Example But, the company was not able to take up the challenge thrown up by the rapid advancements in technologies and some of the competitors. Fiorina had proved herself at AT&T by bringing about a successful spin-off at its equipment and research branch. With such a legacy she joined HP and started her mission to refurbish the image of HP and implementing the requisite changes. For introducing changes in an organization and its functioning, the manager is supposed to take into confidence the team leaders, departmental heads and other support staff. The CEO will be able to plan and execute the strategies effectively if she had fullest support from other managers and the governing board. In this case it appears that Carleton Fiorina didn't believe in collaborative or democratic type of functioning. Instead she took pride in imposing her decision and carrying through her plan irrespective of what others have to say on that particular decision. She gained notoriety for placing her interest ove r the interests of the organization. This is a serious shortcoming for being an able and acceptable leader. To manage an organization, the manager has to manage the human resources, the machinery and the strategies. The leader will be termed as successful, if she is able to take active cooperation of the human resources in managing the machinery and planning & executing the strategies. But in this case Fiorina resorted to 'ambush marketing' from the very beginning. Without caring for the tradition or conventions at HP, she started imposing her plans. It can very well be argued that in this era of cut-throat competition, an organization has to plan out its strategies according to the demand from market, but expecting the change to take place overnight, proves detrimental for the health of the organization. This is exactly what Fiorina did after joining HP. It is said that, companies and organizations are made for people and by the people, and obviously their effectiveness depends on the behavior and performance of the people running these companies. Howard Good (2006), the former president of Highland Central School Board in Highland, NY, says, "Being board president brings power and prestige, but you must inspire and help others to be successful". A team leader therefore plays the central role in making or breaking the team. It is the team leader who can synergize the efforts or just wither away the advantage, with his actions. A team leader is supposed to delegate the powers and responsibilities amongst his/ her team mates, inspire the team members by being an example and motivate his team with appropriate motivating factors. A leader can synergize the efforts by; Eliciting the contribution from all concerned Organizing the team members by assigning them the responsibilities, and Developing an information system for monitoring and coordination activities. It can very well be argued that HP had become a bureaucratic type of an organization and was on the verge of loosing the status of being a leader in innovation. World's first scientific calculator was given to the world by HP way back in 1967. The company has been a market leader in printing and imaging business solutions since 1985. But somehow the company could not keep pace with the changing technology and the competitors like IBM and Dell overtook it. The revenue figures started declining. A dynamic leader