Proud to be more than 32 Kilos

70 pounds. That's how much 10-year-old girls are supposed to weigh, not 20-something women. German photographer Ivonne Thein tries to get that point across in "Thirty-Two Kilos," a photo collection that shows what women would look like if they weighed 32 kilos or roughly 70 pounds.

For this collection, Thein photographed normal sized models and then used Photoshop to make them look like they weighed 70 pounds. According to The Washington Post, Thein chose 70 pounds as the magic number after a 70-pound French actress posed nude for an anti-anorexia ad.

The overall inspiration for Thein's work was pro-anorexia Web sites. The Post article said that these Web sites allow girls to offer encouragement for one another's starvation and also provide weight-loss tips. Thein was disgusted, and I am, too.

I guess I never thought that there might be pro-anorexia sites on the Internet. Too many times I have heard about girls struggling with the disease, so I don't want to believe that there are sites out there to embrace it. According to the Post, the girls on these sites want people to consider anorexia as a lifestyle; they want people to see their starvation efforts as being an okay practice.

I truly hope that some of the girls who are part of these Web sites see Thein's pictures. The fragile-looking and gauze-covered models look so gross. I can't even look at most of the pictures without cringing or being afraid that the model's arm or leg will just suddenly break. (Check out Thien's 14-picture set here.)

Apparently, some of these pro-anorexia girls have seen these sites and are actually jealous of the digitally enhanced (or destroyed) models. To me, that is unfathomable, but maybe that just shows that our culture has put an emphasis on thinness over healthiness for way too long.

Word Jumble

Our first assignment was the Word Jumble, in which we constructed silly sentences out of random words. I really enjoyed this assignment because I got to know a few of my classmates and we got to be extremely crazy.

Along with having fun, I did learn a lot from this assignment. This was the first time I had used my Flip Camera, so this project gave me practical experience in using that device.

This was also the first time that I had used Final Cut Express. After using the program in class today, I've discovered that I really like that program. This summer I made a video in Windows Moviemaker, and while the experience was okay, Final Cut Express is more advanced. I think I'll be able to do a lot of cool things with videos once I become more knowledgeable with Final Cut Express.

Finally, I learned vocabulary in today's studio session. I now know that the four windows in Final Cut Express are: the browser, bin viewer, canvas and timeline. Other important terms I became educated on include: scrubbing, in and out points and playhead. I feel so smart!

Public records for everyone; but no guns

Today I was able to go to Newspaper Day, sponsored by the South Dakota Newspaper Association, at our state Capitol. I found it quite informative because I learned about some bills that will directly affect journalists in the state. For example, SB 147 will make more records public and may start a transition to more open government in South Dakota. The really exciting thing about this bill is that it is bi-partisan, meaning both Republicans AND Democrats are sponsoring the bill and are throwing their support behind it. Plus, the leaders of both parties sounded optimistic about the bill. Maybe this will happen after all! (Read more about SB 147 at the South Dakota Legislative Research Council Web site.)

On another legislative note, SB 82, the bill that would have allowed concealed weapons on campus failed today in the Senate. Despite the resounding 25-10 loss, this bill might come back. Last year, essentially the same bill, HB 1261, failed in the Senate State Affairs Committee, but the measure was later recalled and reconsidered by the committee. Then the bill was struck down again, basically for good that time. So given the emotional debate on the issue and the resilience of the bill last year, I wouldn't be too surprised to see more talk about SB 82 before the end of the session. (You can monitor SB 82 here. If you don't go directly to the SB 82 history page, search SB 82.)

Do newspapers have hope?

Newspapers are dying, or so I hear. In South Dakota, most community papers are still doing okay, but supposedly the Argus Leader has been making some painful cuts lately. But even though community papers are doing fine, it's the national giants that really are falling one by one.

I'll never forget when I heard about the Chicago Tribune filing for bankruptcy. It was an late night/ early morning for me since we had to publish The Collegian that day. As a co-worker and I drove to Cook's Kitchen for some greasy delights after our long night, we heard an NPR story about how the Tribune had helped expose Blagojevich's misdeeds to the public. The next story was about how the Trib was filing for bankruptcy. How ironic; how sad. Even though the paper has just done something pretty amazing, it is still in financial trouble. (Read more about the Tribune's financial problems on its Web site.)

Recently, I heard that the Minneapolis Star Tribune has filed for bankruptcy. (For more information, visit CBS News.) I've also heard talk that the New York Times isn't doing so well, either. If the Times goes, then what paper is really safe? The Times is basically a standard for papers across the country, and so what gives newspapers hope if even the Times is struggling?

I might just be unwilling to face the truth, but I don't think newspapers will ever completely die. There will always be people like me who love to read the paper while eating a snack after school, and I think there will always be people that appreciate some of the more in-depth stories that newspapers can provide.

I think community papers will certainly never die. Too many people enjoy seeing their kids' faces or their accomplishments in the paper, and plus, people want to get the news about their communities that they won't be able to find on national or regional newscasts. Let's be honest, if the local paper doesn't cover that city council meeting, who will?

So, I think there will always be a place for newspapers within the world of journalism, but maybe we won't have so many large papers in the future. I guess it's true that the larger they come, the harder they fall.