Blog Entry Details
News Websites: Real-Time News and 9/11
By Jose Lepervanche, Ph. D. Thu, September 08, 2011 4:11 pm EDT
One of the first major events that allowed e-family leaders to try to explain to their children what it was very hard to explain were the news about 9/11/2001 events. Ten years ago we watched live on TV while the events were unfolding. At the same time we were browsing the news websites to expand, to research, to understand, to explain...we were in shock searching TV channels and websites for answers. That day CNN.com and the other major news websites had overwhelming peaks. The fact was that major TV cable networks, TV broadcast networks, local stations, newspapers, news agencies, radio and web-only news providers developed news websites to provide in depth coverage to a population hungry for instant news.
Ten years later, we can see the benefit. News websites bring extensive detail and coverage of the news, allowing users to go beyond regular television programming. Besides, blogs and social media have also evolved to expand the reach for more reliable news. Twitter and Facebook among others have made us media e-family leaders reporters. Armed with a smartphone, a tablet or a laptop, we can send our pictures, videos, reports and express our views. Local impromptu reported have initiated, sustained or continued their own coverage of local revolutions, catastrophes, and events that have changed the way news are produced. People and professional reporters are combining efforts to bring real news to the world in spite of media control attempts by "governments" to silence the truth.
E-family leaders are not only able to read the news, but also to produce them. They are able to explain to their children that it is very hard to explain. Ten years ago, I not only used TV and websites, but also drawings. The real images were too hard to digest. The Statue of Liberty surrounded by smoke gave me the idea to use cartoon-like drawings to explain my then 9-year old son what was happening. It was less painful and easier to convey the message. During that day and the next three months I draw my feelings about 9/11. I went from believing in my faith (Psalm 23), to hope, to anger, to renewal, to move on and to peace in a sequence of drawings. It was a roller coaster of emotions from patriotic and military sentiments, as an American by choice, to a profound desire for unity and peace. You can see all my 9/11 memorial drawings at www.eventoons.org.
The website at www.eventoons.org was my small contribution to share the news using drawings and explained to a child what it was very hard to explain. Ten years later, website news have evolved to new limits thanks to social media and videos and we continue watching and searching for more news. I still hope we can find peace in our hearts and new ways to explain what is very hard to explain.
Jose G. Lepervanche, Ph.D.
About the AuthorDr. Jose Lepervanche is a Professor of Supervision and Management at Florida State College at Jacksonville - Kent Campus. He teaches Management Theory and Practice, Strategic Management, Management of Information Systems and the Capstone Project in Supervision and Management. Dr. Lepervanche is a retired Venezuelan Naval Officer and a Nuclear Engineer graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He's been a technology innovator and an Internet pioneer. He was part of the team that introduced the first commercial online service in Venezuela. Later he traveled around South America to promote the "Network of the Americas." He has been honored as 2009 National Distinguished Scoutmaster, 2010 Innovative Technology Faculty Award, and 2011 NISOD Excellence Award. His motto "Life is a continuous learning adventure."
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