American journalists have been banned from China and vice versa since early 2020. President Biden and President Xi Jinping met this week to overturn the ban and make traveling and reporting between the two countries more accessible for reporters. It was determined that three publications will be able to have journalists in China. These organizations are The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and The New York Times.

In the past, Chinese journalists were able to apply for a yearlong visa in the US, but in the last year, the visa time was cut down to 90 days. What isn’t clear in this agreement, is if the reporters who were stationed there prior to the ban and asked to leave will be able to return. This seems to be a step in the right direction when it comes to mollifying the tensions between China And US, especially since the inception of COVID-19. China has different rules about media and its limitations and has been making effort to keep American reporters from writing about the government poorly for years. It is no secret that recent administrations have butted heads with China over other economic issues in the past, but this agreement is progress or foreign media.

“We will continue to work toward expanding access and improving conditions for U.S. and other foreign media, and we will continue to advocate for media freedom as a reflection of our democratic values,” 

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/16/us/politics/us-china-journalists.html

Social media platforms have a history of censoring or preventing the spread of misinformation. YouTube tends to demonetize certain videos, and platforms like Instagram and Facebook have a fact-check pop-up that appears on suspicious posts claiming to be true. However, podcasting platforms such as Apple, Spotify, and iHeart Radio lack in censorship. The consequences are starting to creep in, but have not yet fully unfolded.

In the wake of COVID-19, on-air topics of importance have been its spread, its implications, protection, and most importantly, the vaccine. Prominent conservative podcasters have openly criticized the vaccine, spreading fear throughout their audiences. Hosts such as Jimmy De Young Sr. and Marc Bernier have stated that it is a “permanent altering of the immune system” and “not a vaccine”. Both hosts passed away from COVID-related complications a few months following.

Talk show hosts and podcasters with wide ranges of opinions often defend their claims from censorship with the freedom of speech. Granted, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. However, when information has the potential to harm others, critics look to the streaming platforms for action. A possible step that these platforms could take is demonetizing portions of the advertising that the content creators use. Of course, advertisers and the creators have immediately opposed this proposition.

One of the main reasons people listen to podcasts is to feel as though they are having a conversation with someone about something important, informative, or entertaining. Through this listening the audience maintains a dynamic with the podcaster that can potentially develop into a parasocial relationship. The voice of humans has a strong and lasting impact on listeners. If nothing is done to mitigate misinformation spread, then these close relationships can further harm listeners’ already worsening methods of determining truth.

A culmination of issues such as an economic downfall in newspapers and lack of access to digital news have caused efforts from emerging ethnic news outlets to fill the void. This void is known as a news desert, a term defined by Axios as an area where local newspapers have folded and communities have no coverage. These areas endanger the critical role that the press plays in dispersing accurate news coverage and encouraging a democracy.

There are many consequences of a news desert. Communities whose voices are less amplified are only reported on when something worthy of negative press occurs. In the past, systemic racism has played a strong role in prominent media organizations with the leverage to control the narrative.  Cheryl Thompson-Morton, director of CUNY’s Black Media Initiative expands on the documented history of news discrimination.

Some news organizations simply refused to cover most of the civil rights movement or didn’t run that news on the front page — so many readers didn’t know what was happening.

Ethnic news publishers have slowly appeared over time since the 1800’s in efforts to counter the status quo. Despite historically facing backlash, there has been an increase in new ethnic outlets, especially in the wake of George Floyd’s death.

Emerging digital technologies provide access and ease for new publishers seeking to found their own channels for news. These upstarts cater to communities that are often neglected in media, and are growing with friction. Yet, the need for community support is evident being that the news desert remains in many underserved areas.

On the morning of November 15th, right-wing extremist media star Alex Jones was named liable in a lawsuit involving the Sandy Hook Shootings. Jones had previously spread false theories about the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. The tragedy was a grave landmark in history, killing twenty first-graders and six teachers. Jones utilized his media platform popularly known as Infowars to spread conspiracies that the event was a hoax. He insisted that the parents of the victims were performing as paid actors in a scenario promoting gun control.

Jones fought to deny the allegations and argued that his claims were protected under first amendment rights. The families initiating the lawsuits have since claimed that fans of Jones have been subjecting them to harassment and death threats.

Extreme, time-consuming efforts to get Jones to comply have granted multiple family members of the victims reward in lawsuits against both Jones and Infowars. Judge Barbara Bellis ultimately issued a default ruling due to Jones’ inability to produce documents that show how he had profited from spreading misinformation. The amount owed to the families of the victims is in the hands of the jury.

Shortly after the Judge’s decision, Jones went on Infowars with claims that he was deprived of a fair trial.

Social media has undoubtedly become an important part of day to day life. Despite the fact that almost all of Gen Z uses social media, only about a third of them use it when looking for a job after graduation. A resume and cover letter are impersonal and leave the employer wondering who the candidate really is.  Social media is a way to set yourself apart from the competition and give yourself a sort of edge by having quality personal branding. This doesn’t just mean LinkedIn, but other video-based platforms such as YouTube and Instagram. These interfaces can be sparkplugs for careers and help reach people that may have never been otherwise accessible.

Many of us use these platforms for entertainment purposes, but others, such as Kahlil Greene, took this opportunity to try and educate a broad range of people. Greene was a Yale student at the time who used his TikTok account to educate people on Black culture. Unlike other social media platforms, TikTok gives the user the ability to go ‘viral’ overnight. In only a few weeks, he had a following of more than 500,000 people. He will now be working in consulting for a job in public education, a job opportunity that came as a result of his TikTok success.

“I think that’s the thing that people don’t realize, that social media is everywhere, and it’s congruent with every lifestyle you want,” says Greene.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/11/14/from-tiktok-to-instagram-how-students-use-social-media-to-find-jobs.html

According to research, half of employer’s report that they are less likely to choose a candidate who can’t be found online. Instead of exchanging business cards people are exchanging follow requests, so what you choose to put on your personal account is important. Staying connected with people in your field and using tools on these platforms to highlight accomplishments is a great way to build your personal brand.

The Second Amendment has become a widely discussed topic over the last few years. This issue has left the country divided and unsure how to get the problem under control. One thing is for certain and it’s that gun related violence has been on the rise. This article discusses the growing popularity of a new type of gun, often referred to as a ghost gun.

The result of this new loophole is more fatalities amongst those who may have been unaware of its legitimacy in the first place. 12-year-old Max Mendoza fell of San Diego fell victim to this, accidentally shooting himself in his bedroom with a ghost gun his 15-year-old friend brought to him. Law enforcement in the area have reported that in the last 18 months, ghost guns have been found at well over 25% of crime scenes and have disproportionately affected young people. In addition, most of the people purchasing these guns were otherwise banned from owning a firearm. In the month of October alone, they had recovered nearly 400 ghost guns.

Ghost guns — untraceable firearms without serial numbers, assembled from components bought online — are increasingly becoming the lethal weapon of easy access for those legally barred from buying or owning guns around the country. The criminal underground has long relied on stolen weapons with sanded-off serial numbers, but ghost guns represent a digital-age upgrade, and they are especially prevalent in coastal blue states with strict firearm laws

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/14/us/ghost-guns-homemade-firearms.html

This begs the question: Why the sudden popularity of these weapons? The reasoning for this is that they are far easier to acquire. This is a result of the fact that they are sold by piece, so they can’t be classified as guns and regulated. A new proposal from the Biden administration would require these pieces to have serial numbers and be treated as regular guns that have to be picked up at a federally licensed gun shop.