An Iraqi war resister faces a misconduct hearing. A passenger lands a plane after the pilot dies. And San Francisco will host an all-day “masturbate-a-thon.” These are the top stories gaining attention around the world.
When Digital Journalists stick to their favourite beats, the writing passion comes alive in the articles. That’s the case with Carol Forsloff‘s work on the many facets of New Orleans, from its fortune-tellers to its architecture to its legacy of jazz music. She dedicates herself to interviewing interesting personalities dotting the fabled Louisiana city. She is also quick to complement her editorial with photos depicting her subjects. Her articles will give you a pang of wanderlust to visit N’awlins.
KJ Mullins also covered a beat with great enthusiasm — consider her an expert on pandemics, because she reported on a Canadian conference explaining how infectious diseases can spread across various routes. She dissected how SARS moved from city to city, and told us about the”basic elements that are in place to give diseases the chance to spread like wildfire.” It is useful information in a world where infectious diseases will continue to decimate populations.
And also, we recognize the impressive journalistic efforts of Stephen Dohnberg, who’s own beat of social justice is exemplified in his interview with a U.S. war resister, Sgt. Matthis Chiroux. It was an excellent interview illustrating the reasons why Chiroux is stiff-arming the Army’s call to deploy to Iraq and why he faces a misconduct hearing on April 21. We look forward to updates about this case.
Finally, a freelance photographer recently joined DigitalJournal.com, and her photos definitely deserve a mention. Jessica Trinity uploaded more than a dozen photos of an aftermath of a fire ravaging a convenience store in Ottawa. Extremely intimate and well shot, these photos portray different angles to the story, from the witnesses to the firefighters to the students suddenly made homeless because they lived upstairs. Her work is stunning and she has a keen eye.
Many other major stories are popular on DigitalJournal.com, including:
• Somali pirates vow revenge on Americans and French over killings: A major story on almost every continent, the Somali pirates vs. the U.S. Navy gave us some high-seas drama. Chris V. Thangham wrote about the pirates’ declaration of revenge after three of their crewmembers were killed by U.S. forces. As the Digital Journalist reported, “Shipping experts worry about future ships in the area, as violence is expected to escalate.”
• World financial leader Goldman Sachs plans on hushing blogger: Who thought that buying the domain goldmansachs666.com could land you in hot water? Goldman Sachs is suing a blogger for violating intellectual property rights. But the blogger claims his site and the investment firm are not related in any way, and he makes that non-relationship clear on this front page.
• Study says public services a bargain for Canadians: “Middle-income Canadian families enjoy public services worth about $41,000 – or 63% of their income. Even households earning $80,000-$90,000 a year enjoy public services benefits equivalent to about half of their income.” So wrote Bob Ewing, who explained why Canadians enjoy a high quality of life. Canadian taxes pay for services very valuable to Canucks, Ewing said, and the article implied Canadians are better off with what their taxes fund compared to tax cuts.
• Passenger lands plane after pilot dies mid-air: From the bizarre files comes this story about a brave plane passenger who safely landed a King Air plane after the pilot died in mid-air. The plane was at 10,000 feet when the pilot left this mortal coil. We wonder, could you step up and try to land a plane if it was a matter of life or death?
• Rare Skin Condition Transforms Artist Into Human Sketch Pad: Imagine being a human Etch a Sketch, where you can “draw” images on your skin and then wipe it away instantly. That sums up Ariana Page Russel in a fascinating article written by M Dee Dubroff. Russel’s skin condition is “caused by cells in the surface of the skin releasing histamines under the slightest pressure.” She says her skin becomes a canvas for her art, and you have to see the pic above to believe it.
• The Boxmasters Cancel Canada Tour: For those in the dark, the Boxmasters is the band fronted by actor/surly dude Billy Bob Thornton. After his much-publicized interview bomb on CBC Radio in Toronto, Thornton and his band mates cancelled the rest of their Canadian tour, blaming a flu bout afflicting their musicians. Is that a weak excuse or do you believe Billy Bob?
• San Francisco hosts annual self-pleasuring Masturbate-a-thon: Leave it to our saucy Digital Journal Nikki Weingartner to have some fun with this story — San Francisco’s Center for Sex & Culture will host a masturbate-a-thon on May 2, featuring contests such as Longest Time Spent Masturbating and Most Orgasms. So any San Fran journalists out there want to cover this story for us? But, um, you might want to wash your hands before typing the story.
• Susan Boyle Gobsmacks Simon Cowell on Britain’s Got Talent: Who knew a Scottish lady on Britain’s Got Talent would capture the world’s attention? Carolyn E. Price did a great job in describing the judges’ reaction to Susan’s impressive voice: “When Susan Boyle started singing, Simon’s eyebrows shot up so high and so hard they almost hit his hairline, Amanda’s mouth dropped and she broke into a really goofy “Oh my God” grin, and Piers joined the audience who had erupted into applause, and smiled like never before.” Check out the video if you haven’t already, it might even bring a tear to your eye.
• Manny Pacquiao Dropping On Time Magazine Most Influential List: Digital Journalist Edwin Ladaga, also on top of his boxing news, let us know about Philipino boxer Manny Pacquiao’s recent rise to fame…and fall from the #1 spot on Time’s Most Influential List. This article received a record amount of votes, attracting attention from all over the world. Pacquiao’s appeal continues to shine bright.
• Could Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke really trade Luke Schenn?: Amidst the NHL playoffs frenzy, another question is creeping into the minds of hockey fans — where will top prospect John Tavares play next year? Maple Leafs GM Burke admitted he wants Tavares, Nawest Vasquez wrote, and some hockey commentators believe a Luke Schenn-round 1-pick trade could be in the works. As Nawest said, Burke is crazy enough to pull off this trade.
TopFinds Awards
The honourees of this week’s TopFinds Awards attracted impressive attention and widest readership. Digital Journal thanks the following Digital Journalists with Awards for their passion for covering the top issues of the day: Jessica Trinity, Chris V. Thangham, M Dee Dubroff, Carolyn E. Price, Edwin Ladaga, Bob Ewing, Nikki Weingartner, and KJ Mullins.
The Top Blog Post of the Week goes to W. Christopher Epler for a thoughtful rumination on life’s meaning and Zen philosophy. It’s short and sweet, insightful and poetic. To learn more about how we humans are mere shadows of bamboo (we kid you not), read this well-written blog post. You’ll wonder if Epler isn’t a self-help author.
The Top Comment of the Week is awarded to CEG, a person afflicted with the same skin condition described in M Dee’s article. She explains all the symptoms and frustrations of this condition, shedding light on what pain and itching she endures. There’s nothing like learning about a rare skin disease from someone who faces its problems every day, and CEG’s comment added necessary context to the article.
