A Look at Snopes

Before this blog assignment, I have heard about Snopes in passing, but never used it or actually looked on the website. As a skeptic and somewhat cynical person, I do not trust everything that I see on the internet or even in print. This is especially true when friends post things on Facebook. Anything goes on the internet, and anyone could write or publish anything. Then, that could spread everywhere. Unfortunately, plenty of people are gullible and are used as tools to spread this false information around the internet. In general, bias is extremely difficult to completely avoid. A personal take or response on something can be avoided, but then it could be interpreted that your sources lean one way or another. The sources could be biased, although that should be avoided as well.

Focusing on Snopes itself, it seems to focus on a lot of "fact-checking" and news articles. They also feature the most popular urban legends, updated frequently. Their more recent news articles are about politics and celebrities that have recently passed. However, the fact-checking is the most popular part of the site. It is also the most updated, with several checks posted per day. Some of the ones that most interested me were the one about the Mississippi River/Gulf of Mexico meeting and supposedly not mixing, North Carolina no longer accepting $20 bills, and the story of a doctor and paramedic saving each other's lives.

Overall, it does not seem like, at least at first glance around Snopes, that it has blatantly obvious bias issues. I did not take a look too far back into the past, or really look in-depth at their sources though. They may have had issues in the past, or been less objective. This could be a good place for people to look for fact-checks, but I would not trust it as the exclusive, only source of important information.

The Sentinel

Regarding KSU’s Sentinel newspaper, I have read several of the print issues before.  The website is not much different. Both are well-organized and easy for readers to follow. There are several features that are helpful and stand out on the website. They have their own podcast, links to their other media sites, and even a spot for the current weather. Articles are divided into their own sections, such as News, Opinion, and Sports. My favorite areas of the website are the News, Opinion, and the Archives.

The Archives allow users to look at newspapers back to 2012. What is very noticeable, especially within the past year, is the consequences and results of the merger with SPSU. There were several articles about the Commons, parking, library renovations, and problems with transfers. More recently, the campus-carry bill has been a subject of several articles, as well as several campus events and featured clubs.

The Sentinel has a great mix of articles. It provides students with local, campus information, while not ignoring the nation or the world’s events. As a student with not much knowledge about campus events or clubs, this is one feature that is especially beneficial for new students. What I also like about the Sentinel is they do not skirt around tougher topics, such as mental health, sexual assault, alcohol, and politics.

Lastly, the Police Beat section can be both amusing and shocking at the same time. It is good to list this information for students, even if it is just a summary or the main events. Personally, with a father that works as a public safety officer at a university in Pennsylvania, it is fun to exchange stories about what goes on.

Formulating a Response

“Schools Nationwide Still Grapple With Lead in Water” by Michael Wines, Patrick McGeehan, and John Schwartz is about how schools are struggling with lead in their water. The lead amount varies, but often is worst for the first users of the water each day. The lead comes from aging piping and infrastructure, most often in schools built before 1986. Although some water testing found too much lead in years past, such as in Jersey City public schools, it is not until 2013 that officials started to be proactive about the problem. The Flint, MI lead contamination controversy is starting a new wave of concern in schools. Not caused just by aging plumbing, problems also include tight budgets and loopholes in federal rules. Schools may find it cheaper to just rely on bottled water instead of trying to replace all of the lead piping. Other “solutions”, such as filters and overly flushing have not worked. Even newer schools have a risk of lead because “lead-free” still can contain about 8% lead with Congress’s definition. The best approach would be to remove all of the lead piping, but most schools can’t afford it. They try to remove the worst ones each time, though this Is not effective because, as mentioned, lead content can vary.

One letter is from a teacher, stating that her school’s custodian warned her to run the faucets a minute or two before use. She is concerned about the wasting of water and how this problem is not recent – it has been going on for decades. A second letter says that the funding of fixing the lead plumbing shouldn’t be completely dependent on local district’s funding or ability to increase taxes on residents. Cheryl says, “The federal government cannot keep operating as if each individual school district and each municipality has the means to handle this alone.” Filnt’s example is good for her viewpoint, because their own funds were too small to fix it by themselves.

This article was eye-opening and concerning at the same time. The schools I went to back in PA were older than 1986 for sure, and while the water seemed okay, who really knew for sure? I would feel safer if testing was more frequent and included colleges as well.

Article/Letters

A Shortened Version of My Relationship with Literature

My relationship with literature has been complicated at certain points in time. The relationship depends on whether I like what I am reading and what is going on in other parts of my life. Growing up, I really enjoyed reading and still do. My bookshelves were stuffed as much as I could get away with.

What has been difficult are some of the works that have been assigned, especially in honors English in high school, and my sad attempt at AP Lit. I tend not to like some classics because, for me, they tend to ramble and make things longer than they should be. Sometimes that can be a good thing, however a lot of the classic themes are very similar. Also, classics can lack real diversity, or even when they offer women as main characters, they depend on men too heavily. I really dislike books where women are seemingly weak or seen as secondary just because of their gender. I realize that is more historically accurate, but changing it could work. Another thing that disappoints me about most books that are assigned is that a lot are about straight white men, and it can be hard for me to make a personal connection to them. Even if a work offers lesbian characters, it is a common theme to have a negative outcome for them. More specifically, I disliked reading Shakespeare and Jane Eyre, among others.

I enjoy assignments that I can take a personal interest into. I would rather interpret it myself, but not get too picky or detailed with analyzing the work. The assignments I enjoy more are ones that are more open-ended, such as our Literary Analysis. Just reading and being tested on it gets old and repetitive, and students have found ways around this (SparkNotes, for example). During senior year of high school, I attempted AP Lit. It is one of the worst decisions I have made, not just because of the course load. Around that time, my depression and anxiety levels were very high, and motivation levels plummeted due to the extra stress. Back then, I was not diagnosed and did not know why I felt the way I did. Even if the mental side of things were decreased, I still do not think I would have enjoyed the course much, because we analyzed works to the extreme. I did not always understand the connections (symbolism is challenging).

Currently, I do not have as much time to read on my own, but I always make it a point to find ones to read for the future. I have a few lists worked up that greatly interest me and that I can perhaps form a connection to, both fiction and non-fiction.