August 2008 Archives

Look Who's Reporting Now!

Francesca Ayala
| August 31, 2008 12:56 AM TrackBacks (0) Comments (2)
   The advent of the Internet as a platform enabling user-generated content to be publicly available has raised several concerns regarding the profession of journalism. Now, ordinary citizens have the means to publish themselves for free and communicate to a global audience... all this without the constraints that journalists operating within the traditional forms of media must face while propagating information to the public. Going online has instigated a revolution in the way we communicate with one another, so much so that it has shaken the foundations of traditional journalism. Institutions that cannot keep up with the times have clearly suffered, while those that have are much more difficult to distinguish in a sea of countless sources. These days, who's to say what's newsworthy and what isn't? Does it even matter, now that we can ascribe any degree of significance to any given event in time? And if it doesn't matter, then where do we stand as journalists, in light of this revolution?

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LA Gangs: Myths and Realities

Francesca Ayala
| August 25, 2008 9:20 PM TrackBacks (0) Comments (1)
   Is it really possible for former gang members to turn their lives around and give back to the communities they've disrupted? This is a question addressed very differently by two institutions geared towards resolving the issue of gang violence that has plagued Los Angeles for decades. One establishment is Homeboy Industries, a gang rehabilitation center focused on helping ex-gang members reform and become productive members of society. Another is the Los Angeles County District Attorney Office's Hard Core Gang Division, a government unit that "targets habitual gang offenders countrywide and prosecutes them either in juvenile or criminal courts". While these establishments both aim to alleviate the same social ills, they represent contrasting viewpoints that lead one to question if L.A.'s gang problem will ever truly be resolved. 

   Homeboy Industries was founded by Father Gregory Boyle in 1988 and has since grown to be the world's largest gang intervention program. The organization offers a variety of free services to rehabilitate former gang members and help them reintegrate themselves into society. Examples of such services are career placement, counseling, tattoo removal, legal services and educational programs. 

   "We're letting the community know that we're here for them, now that we've been given the opportunity to be normal people," says Manuel Melendrez, a former member of the El Monte Hicks, "I've accomplished more in the last three months than I've ever done in my life."

   This is among several of the eager testimonials that Father Boyle's "homies" will give to his program. Yet while employees regale visitors with praises of the organization, there are many skeptics outside of the Homeboy community-- particularly cops and public officials-- who question the establishment's actual impact on gang violence in Los Angeles.

   "You cannot change a criminal mind," says Deputy District Attorney Gary Hearnsberger, "Some people think that projecting their morals onto criminals means that they understand them... It's like looking at a dog and saying you understand what he's thinking."

   Hearnsberger notes that what happens at Homeboy Industries during its operating hours is one thing, but what might go on afterwards may be a totally different story. To further illustrate, he cites a murder that occurred in 2005, in the parking lot of Homeboy Industries' old facility. Although he is reluctant to accept that ex-convicts can so easily turn over a new leaf, he does not totally dispute the validity of gang rehabilitation programs such as Father Boyle's.

   "I think Homeboy Industries is a pretty good program," says Hearnsberger, "Like everything else, it's not perfect, but it's nice to give someone who hasn't had that many chances and opportunity. Personally, after looking at a guy's rap sheet, I'm reluctant to believe he's leading the perfect life."

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Girl, You'll Be a Writer Soon

Francesca Ayala
| August 24, 2008 4:13 PM TrackBacks (0) Comments (0)
"Take the time to make some sense of what you want to say
And cast your words away upon the waves
Sail them home with acquiesce on a ship of hope today
And as they land upon the shore, tell them not to fear no more"  
- Oasis, The Masterplan

   I was an annoying child at the age of four, harassing everyone in my immediate environment with endless barrages of "why's"and "how come's", eager to make sense of the world around me and determine where I would fit in. When the grown-ups tired of my persistent inquisitions, they left me to the world of literature, hoping that the picture books would quell my hyperactive curiosity with answers they could not give themselves. I buried myself in this world and lost myself in the search for new stories, most of the time even foregoing the more tangible aspects of a cookie-cutter childhood (such as playing outside and making friends). When my mom would fall asleep after re-reading me a bedtime story, I pried the book out of her hands and read to myself until I finally drifted off to the Neverlands and Wonderlands in my dreams. 

   By the first grade, I grew tired of children's books and took my interest to higher levels-- a hardbound, college-level edition of William Shakespeare's tragedies, the glossy stacks of Vogue that piled around my mother's bed and the broadsheets she read at brunch. This premature transition to my parents' literature led to the quick discovery that stories-- both of the real world and of the imagination-- did not always have happy endings. These tales unfolded before me and gave my little, seven year-old head a taste of the pain and suffering that plagued the modern world. Nonetheless, my thirst for these stories continued to persist. Rather than reverting to the macaroni and glitter art-covered world of Disney channel happy endings, I chose to learn more. I'd had enough of living entirely in the whimsical worlds of imagination and took an interest in the real world, the events that occurred in it and the way they affected people. I took off my rose-colored glasses, shoved them in my overall pockets and continued to feed my inquisitive mind with knowledge and answers that wouldn't be handed to me with kid gloves. 

      Nearly a decade has passed and I have had ample time to immerse myself in a dizzying array of mainstream and renegade publications that have documented the evolution and retrograde of contemporary society. The movements that have influenced society (sprung from the social, political and economic environment at a particular point in history) never fail to fascinate me. I've observed the lines blur between pop and subculture as ideas turn into trends. I've made it a point to explore the world around me through publications that present the cultural compartments of society in an inventive, sort of paint-by-numbers format for the general public. I want to continue this tradition of telling the world's stories to the people who need to hear them. Throughout the years I've learned that there are a multitude different ways to tell a story and just because it's already been told, doesn't mean it's over. As a journalist, I intend to keep learning new ways to tell the stories I will encounter, by making use of the new platforms by which we are communicating. Each time I think I've learned all I possibly could, I am humbled as more sides to the story are revealed.  My quest for the truth is an adventure that will never end. I now know that the "why's" and "how come's" that have intrigued me since childhood will follow me forever. Hopefully, in time, I can hone my talent as a writer enough to make that proverbial difference in the world. As a journalist in favor of the underdogs and undiscovered, I know my work will not change the world. While many aim to leave a thunderous impact on the ideals of society, I would be happy even with just a lipstick stain of influence. I know that my writing cannot provide the answers, but I am hoping it will help the public ask the right questions, the kind that result in change. 
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