Multimedia Slideshow, Presidential Election

The two men interviewed for the audio slideshow come from very different backgrounds, which I tried to exemplify through the use of photos that let the viewer get a better understanding of their unique personalities. While they have very different opinions on the candidates, their interviews showed that they want the virtually the exact same things from a presidential candidate. 

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Photographer Matilde Gattoni captures female Syrian refugees in Lebanon

Photographer Matilde Gattoni travelled to Lebanon to seek out the details of the refugees who have fled from Syria as the country is in a violent civil war. She publishes a breath taking slideshow of photos of the women who have fled and live now as “ghosts” being hosted in basements and houses.

Photo Credit: Matilde Gattoni

On November 8th, more than 11,000 people fled from Syria to neighboring countries. Gattoni humanizes this crisis by telling a story about individuals in the midst of it, telling a story in words and in photographs. For the protection of the Syrian women photographed, all of their faces were hidden.

According to the New York Times, Panos Moumtzis, the United Nations refugee agency official coordinating the response, told reporters in Geneva, where the agency is based, that the latest surge included 1,000 Syrians who reached Lebanon and 1,000 who reached Jordan, bringing the number of registered refugees to more than 408,000 in Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq. Agency officials said a few weeks ago they had anticipated that more than 700,000 Syrian refugees would be living in these countries by year’s end, straining their resources just as the cold Middle East winter intensifies.

For those interested in reading more about the Syrian Conflict or seeing Gattoni’s photos.

 

Barack Obama, Gun Salesman of the Year

Time reported today that many people in the gun and ammo industry call our Commander-in-Chief “the gun salesman of the year.” He is semi-jokingly referred to this in the gun industry because of the spike in gun and ammunition sales leading up to and immediately following the presidential elections he has won.

In October, background checks rose by by 18.4%, reported to be related to the election. Gun buyers are concerned that President Obama will support legislation to ban assault rifles during his four years. This is unlikely, because Reuters reports that President Obama has done very little to interfere with gun use and purchase during his first four years in office.

A believed contributing factor to the paranoia surrounding gun purchases is perhaps the presence of shows like “Doomsday Preppers”, bringing awareness that there are a select group of people in the United States who are preparing for the worst case scenarios, as well as the abundance of information on the internet highlighting the “end of times” and how we will recognize it and protect ourselves when it happens.

According to Reuters, gun buyers have no need to worry. But many people feel they need to be stocked with a gun and ammunition, not just to protect themselves from intruders, but to protect themselves from the government as well. 

Per Reuters:

“The administration has not really lifted a finger in the last four years to tighten gun control legislation,” said Wedbush Securities analyst Rommel Dionisio, who covers the gunmakers. “There is a consumer fear that Obama will tighten gun control legislation, but whether or not they will do it this time I don’t know,” Dionisio said.

Read more: http://business.time.com/2012/11/09/elections-over-time-to-buy-a-gun/#ixzz2C3r71vvc

Video Profile of an HPD Patrol Officer

This is a short profile on a Hattiesburg Police Department Patrol Officer. He can be found protecting and serving from the hours of 5 pm to 6 am. I had the chance to speak with him as his shift was nearing it’s end at around 5 in the morning. He was exhausted from his long shift, but did little to indicate it. He explained the variety of crimes he responds to on a daily basis. He briefly explained that he responds to things as minor as speeding tickets to as gruesome as murders.

Multimedia Assignment Video Editing

This is my video for Balloon Fest 2012. It was edited for our MCJ 30o course for an assignment.

Enjoy!