Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Extra Extra Read All About It.....

      As there becomes a decline in newspaper sales, a lot of companies are now starting to feel the effects of Social Media. At one time we had to wait until either the evening Sun paper would come out or wait until the next morning for those "Top Stories".  With technology the way it is, people can snap a photo and within minutes everyone knows what happens. I have even seen local news channels ask on the social media networks what had happened prior to them even knowing.

     With these difficult times and struggling economy, it is very hard for some of the top newspapers to stay in business. Most of them are funded by the ad's that are placed in them daily or weekly. I still like reading the Baltimore Sun and on occasion pick up some of the other papers such as the New York Times, Washington Post but only when I am bored!

      However,  I do like to have the papers around for my Maryland Steamed Crabs as well.


So for my choice of newspapers, I chose the Dundalk Eagle as being the survivor! I do believe they will stay in business longer then the bigger papers because:

  • They are only 50cents
  • By The People...allows you to write letters so the readers can interact with one another. 
  • The Community Calendar that keeps us up to date on current events. 
  • The Obituaries
  • Talk of the Town
  • Police Beat for the crimes in the area
  • Classified, Help Wanted, Products for sale, etc...
  • And one of my "Favorites" Take the Newspaper out of town with you and get a picture and they will post it in their paper for free. So its kind of like your few minutes of fame! 

The Dundalk Eagle began in 1969 and has my VOTE on staying in business for another 30 years!

     Just remember you can order your subscription at a very low cost and have it delivered right to your home, or just grab it late Wednesday evenings or first thing Thursday for your UP-TO-DATE. So now that I gave them "Free Advertisement" maybe they will write a letter for us in the By the People section for our project on World Aids Day ;) Sounds good huh??

Susan M. Compton

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Magazines in the checkout line: Airbrush Much??

  
  When I go through the checkout line and see all the tabloid magazines it is quite comical to see how they either make someone look either very bad or extremely better then they are. I have purchased the Enquirer before just to get some good laughs. But the humiliation that comes along with it for the actors, actresses, models can be devastating.  Of course we all want to know what is our favorite star's doing but they are "normal" people under all of that make-up and have family problems just as everyone else!


   Why do "WE" as a society sleep in the nude, shorts, T-shirt, sheets, completely covered with blankets and quilts? I am not saying anything is wrong with anyone of these or that they are linked to fear. There are reasons though ; some may be good and some bad, some may be still needed while some may not. This is due to very low self-esteem whether it has been brought on by your family members, siblings, peers or MAGAZINE'S! They claim you must be the perfect weight, perfect height, no acne, to much make up or whatever someone decides to come up with next.



   Some do make their private life a mockery such as the most recent at the VMA'S, Miley Cyrus and so many more and they do this to get publicity. Bad publicity is not always bad, it draws the attention to them that they needed to place them in the spotlight or give them their so called 15 minutes of fame that maybe they would not have received any other way. I once read how the writers of the Enquirer were constantly getting slammed with lawsuits for false information and when it went to court, the judge had said if there was any truth even down to the location of where the actor, actress, models may have been that they can fabricate the story into a humiliating story without being held liable for slander!


     I do not feel that they should do all of the airbrushing on these models because it gives our society a false sense of reality on how we should or shouldn't look. Oh and those front magazine covers pull you in with topics such as Rachel Ray drops 6 dress sizes in 30 days, why? Because it will make us purchase that magazine, they will do just about anything to pull you in for the purchase. Magazine sales are on the down tremendously. They will give you the magazine free because the people who advertise in the magazines are the ones who are keeping them in business, where before it was the sales that kept them in business.  I believe Men & Women look at these magazines in the same manner, however, it can lead to a false sense of security as well. Some may start feeling as if they good enough for the man or woman they have been with for days, months or many years.  

 Truth is, some of the models are not as perfect as you may think. The one thing I have noticed is that with the new flat screen televisions they show a lot of imperfections and I have caught myself even criticizing some of the most handsome men or women as it show's how much make up they are wearing and the producers have been told they need to cut back and make them look more natural since we can see the tiniest hair on their face. 



     So please remember that "Everyone is Beautiful"!! Admire yourself in the mirror, look and pick one feature that you love or someone has complimented you on and focus on that. The outside is not what makes you beautiful, sexy or make you less of a person because you may not look like your favorite pop star.

Susan Compton