My Interviewees as Professional Writers

Douglas Fernandes, "Mapo do Chile- mapa de Chile- map of Chile" via flickr.com, 01/19/2008
Attribution 2.0 Generic

My interviewees are on both ends of the publication spectrum. One of them, Professor Doshi, is very experienced in not only the field but also in publishing in various types of genres. My other interview subject is a graduate student who has just begun to navigate the world of publishing in the environmental field.

Dr. Sapana Doshi

• Professor Doshi is a very experienced writer, evidenced by her large amount of publications, ranging from journal articles to websites to entire book chapters. Most of her work is focused on issues, both social and environmental, in the Indian continent. 

• In 2013, Doshi co authored a journal article about geopolitics in relation to feminism, 
  "Domesticated Dispossessions: Towards a Transnational Feminist Geopolitics of Development". This article is a discussion on the gender/social movements in both rural Guatamala and Urban India, with a specific emphasis on dispossesion by the female gender. A book chapter that she wrote, titled “Rethinking Gentrification in India: Displacement, Dispossession and the Specter of Development", is focused on the displacement of the Indian poor within the urban communities.

• There have been issues with gender inequality in this area, dating very far back into history, leading to a general lower societal status for anyone of the female gender. Arranged marriages and female circumcsion are only two of the current issues in India and South Eastern Asia. Environmental issues also have a large affect on the current policies in the country, especially with industrial waste and drought. 

• The issues in this and other countries are not going to simply go away, and geopolitcal issues and social movements are not mutually exclusive. This is only expounded upon in her book chapter, from the coauthored novel, Gentrification, Globalization and the Post-colonial Challenge;"Over the last decade, a surge in scholarship on the displacement of the urban poor in Indian cities has highlighted the need for post-colonial engagement." 
• Professor Doshi's work is to emphasis the issues in these areas that have been ignored for too long. The article and the book chapter depend on her personal research as well as other previous projects performed by fellow professors and researchers.

Sofia Borgias

• Borgias is new to the field, with a undergraduate degree in International Studies, received in 2013 from the University of Oregon. For her degree she had to publish her undergraduate thesis paper, which is now under the process of peer review to be published in a highly regarded academic journal.

• Her undergraduate thesis paper, Patagonia Without Dams: Framing, Democracy and Social Transformation in Chile, was published in 2013 by the Clarks Honors College at the University of Oregon. This paper, much like her two other papers which are currently undergoing the process of publishing. However, she did collaborate with a few colleagues here at the UofA to publish in a journal, which required them to write under a specific theme. The research paper requires the author to explain and provide data on a specific issue, a journal simply requires it to follow a certain theme.

• Like Dr. Bauer's paper's, Sophia chose to write about the water policy situation in Chile. However, unlike his research, she chose to focus on the current situation of daming in the Maipo River basin and the effect it has on the native population in the area. The current water policy, which has been in place since 1981, has allowed for unequal distribution if water, and this dam would prevent the native peoples from getting even the little amount the receive.

• In the paper, Borgias use data and narrative in order to explain the current situation in the South American country. She feels, like Bauer, that the policy needs to be changed in order to create more water equity. She often references her own experiences during her stay in the country, and also when she studied the Patagonia Sin Represa group. The group is dedicated to preventing the dam from being built, which Borgias agrees with. 

• The purpose of the paper is to not only inform, but also to change minds, especially about water policy. This is evident by her specific points and strong voice, especially during her narrative sections. 

Report on My Interviews

Christian Schnettelker, "BLOG" via flickr.com, 04/28/2015
Attribution 2.0 Generic License

My interview with Sophia Borgias was very interesting. I think it was great to get the perspective of someone who is not only new to publishing her research, but who was also currently going through the publishing process during the interview. Her answers were very informative and very conducive to my project. Unfortunately, I have not interviewed my other candidate yet but will soon.

• In the interview we primarily discussed papers and journals, which are the most common type of genres that are found in our field. However, there was a brief discussion of genres that would connect to the mass media, rather than a selective audience, such as blog posts like this.

•  As I briefly mentioned in the previous bullet, journals, and even more so research papers, are directed toward a very specific audience of fellow researchers and members of academia. The content can use more specific language and techniques that they are more likely to have seen before and can understand. They can also include more detailed information due to their increased length. Research papers are even more specific in that those who are reading it are reading it for a specific purpose. Blog posts, although they are shorter and must include more succinct information, allows for a broader audience. For one thing, they are much more accessible and searchable; a journal requires a much more specific search. The language used would be much easier to understand without prior knowledge and it is more to the point because of the length.

• Sophia feels that the most difficult to write in genre is the blog posts, the things that reach a more diverse audience, because you must then decide what are the most important points about what you are writing about. Then you must decide how to write it so that it is understandable, but doesn't lose too much depth in translation. However, length is not always beneficial; a long paper is difficult as well because you must always relate back to your main topic no matter what you write. Tangents are not really smiled upon in academia. Journals are even more difficult because you must write on the topic that is the theme of the current issue of the journal.

• However, writing in a blog post is exciting because you are able to share information with people who do not normally have access to it. This means that environmental issues that were unbeknownst to the general public before can now be center stage. Papers allow for the author to not only include all the information, but it also allows for their own voice and opinion to shine through. Journals allow create opportunities to get recognition and to begin building a name for yourself. 

• Blogs are great because they can be found with a simple google search or a key word. Journals are a bit more difficult because you have to know what journal you are searching for, and where to get a copy. Going through a university library is good, but if you do not have access to that resource it becomes more difficult. Research papers are the hardest to find because you almost have to know the author in order to find a viable copy. Some papers are published through a university and are in their database, while others are published through a company and are easier to find. 

From Academia to Social Media

Pangean, "ResearchGate logotype old" via commons.wikimedia.com, 03/09/2011
Public Domain Dedication License

The majority of the authors in Applied Geography are older researcher and professors who are quite unlikely to have social media accounts, even on LinkedIn and Wordpress. There are a few younger authors, but even then they are from foreign countries, such as Amsterdam and Switzerland and were not on American social media. Such is the case with one of the authors, Julie G. Zaehringer.

What is she on?

• I was unable to find Zaehringer, who is a younger person, on any social media common to the younger generation, such as Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. However, I continued to research her and found her on a site called Research Gate, which provided information on her and her accomplishments.

Who is she?

• Research Gate presents her as a professional and as a great researcher. It holds all of her recent publications as well as provides information on her academic and professional career. The site also rates her based on her publications and interactions with other researchers. Overall, this site is definitely for professional networking and presenting research to collegues.

Who is she really?

• Her online identity matches perfectly with the personality that she presented in her research paper, professional and intelligent. I do not see any discrepancies within the two. I think she truly wants to be seen as a professional and refrains from using social media that could say otherwise. 

Academic Discourse and Genre

Nic McPhee, "2008-01-26 (Editing a paper) -19" via flickr.com, 01/28/2008
Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic License

Applied Geography is a scientific journal that covers international environmental issues and publishes the studies that are dedicated to them. The type of content that is published can range from papers to articles reviewing other case studies.

What types of genres?

• This issue of Applied Geography is composed of primarily papers discussing the concept of spacial data and it's implications for environmental policy. However, the first piece of content in the journal is an article that is essentially a study condensed into a few paragraphs, like it is giving more of an abstract than a full case study.

What are they called?

• The majority of the content are published research papers on case studies, which are essentially papers that explain an issue that a researcher or a group of researchers began to study. It also has the processes that they underwent/ did in order to learn more and come up with a viable solution to the issue. It also has a considerable length in comparison to articles, sometimes up to a hundred and sixty pages. The other article that was published is more of a review or abstract of a case study that either needs to be performed or has already been published. It is significantly lacking in data or analysis, and is quite a bit shorter, about two or three solid paragraphs.

How are they defined?

• I feel that a research paper could be defined as a presentation of a case study on a specific issue that consists of discussion, data, and analysis. These are primarily for fellow researchers and professors who have the ability to understand the content to the fullest degree. The review article, on the other hand, is more of an abstract of a larger case study that could have been published previously. It is more to inform and grab the interest of people who are not necessarily involved in academia, and who could not have a complete understanding of a full case study.

Rhetorical Analysis of Academic Journal

Applied Geography, Volume 68, 03/2016

The journal I chose to analyze is aptly named Applied Geography, because it discusses different environmental issues concepts in relation to it's geographical location. The next issue is going to be published (physically) in April of this year, however I was able to secure a copy of the March 2016 issue online.

Who is the author?

• In the most current issue, Volume 68, there are many different articles with different authors, some articles with more than one. For example, the very first article was authored by Karina Zelya, Jasper van Vliet, and Peter H. Verburg, who are all professors at different universities. Karina Zelaya is a Professor at California State University, and Japer van Vliet and Peter H. Verburg are professors at the University of Amsterdam. However, this article is just a review article. The rest of the issue is composed of research papers done by other professors. A majority of the authors in the journal are also professors and educators. In this field, research and education are mutually exclusive. But, their research is portrayed as just as important as any other field work.

Who is the audience?

• The journal contains language and some mathematics that require an in depth knowledge of the field to really get all the information that is given. The diagrams are somewhat helpful, but even so, the intended audience audience for this journal is not very general. However, I think that the article could be used as an example for what you could do with an environmental degree, so in turn it could be used as teaching material for a class.

What is the context?

• The theme of this issue is spacial data and awareness in relation to environmental issues/ problems. Each of the articles have "highlights" of the papers/ articles, and all of them at least mention the interpretation and collection of spacial data. This means that only a few of the hundreds of articles that have been submitted to the journal for publication this month are selected. 

What is the message?

• The message of this issue is what happens when you take something that happens in a large area's environment and look at it's affect on a small area's environment, as evidenced by the discussion and visualization of data in various articles.

What is the purpose?

• The issue is analyzing the results of scalar data and showing how our activities can have a huge affect on all environments.

Porter Ranch Gas Leak Podcast

The BP Oil Spill on Land: Porter Ranch Gas Leak

My Major

photoshopper24, "Environmental Protection Environment Atmosphere" via pixabay.com, 01/2014
Public Domain Dedication License

Environmental Studies is one of the most essential, world changing, fields out there. We may not be building computers or writing novels, but we are helping make global change and create a cleaner planet. Without clean air, vegetation, or water, there would be no one to make computers or write novels.

• In my field of study, we learn not only about past and current environmental issues/disasters, but also how to analyze data and fix problems. For example, we may learn of a specific mining company that is polluting local water sources with sludge and chemical run off, and we will also learn how to measure acidity levels of the water and look at the chemical makeup of the toxicities in the lake. Finally, we would learn how to neutralize these problems and prevent them from happening again.

• There are many possible professions with this degree, including field work with various environmental disaster groups, teaching at a high school or university, or even journalism, reporting on issues that come up on the news. I personally would like to go into field work for the possibility on traveling around the world helping people and the environment is very exciting to me. 

• In my junior year of high school, I took an AP Environmental Science class. From the first class I fell in love with the idea of saving the environment and helping victims of corporal pollution. My teacher was very encouraging (he went on to be my mentor for my last two years as well as for my senior capstone on food scarcity) at the time. I still keep in close contact with him today.

• A well known name in the environmental field right now is May Boeve, who was very active in the political fight against the Key Stone XL pipeline. She and her coworkers formed the environmental group 350.com, who dedicated their resources and time to prevent the passing of a bill that would allow the construction of a large oil pipeline from Alaska all the way to the Southern States. This pipeline was very environmentally dangerous and had it burst it would have cost billions of dollars in damage. Another well known name is the industry is Katharine Hayhoe, who is both a evangelical christian and an environmental activist known for her views on global warming. She uses her religious influence to convince spiritual non-believers of the real threat of climate change. Finally, Julian McQueen is also a big name, especially for his work with Green For All, a group that is dedicated to uniting communities over environmental issues.

• Two very interesting journals in the geography/ environmental field, which I discussed in my interview with Sophia Borgias, are Applied Geography and Annals of the American Association of Geography. Both of these journals are peer-reviewed and academic, and to be published in them could take up to two years. I personally find these journals very interesting because of the different ways that the two journals approach the same topic. Applied Geography tends to take more of a social justice stance on issues, covering opinions of those affected by a disaster, while Annals analyzes the topic through a political lense, discussing different policies that lead to the outcome. Both journals, however, are great introductions to the Environmental Field. The third journal, which I discovered on my own, is called Environmental Science and Policy, which covers BOTH the social issues and the policy issues, while also analyzing the economic impact of the problem. 

My Interviewees on Social Media

ClkerFreeVectorImages, "Twitter Tweet Twitter Bird Social Network Internet" via pixabay.com, 08/06/2014
Public Domain Dedication License

As one of my interviewees was an older professor, I did not expect to find him on much social media other than on perhaps LinkedIn, for job outreach and Wordpress. My other interview subject, who is a much younger graduate student, was much more likely to be on media sharing sites such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

• Sophia Borgias uses Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Dr. Carl Bauer, however, is not on many social media sites. As far as I could tell, he was not on any social media sites at all, actually. I could find him only on his faculty page and his website.

• Except for Twitter, Sophia seems to use social media for personal purposes and for sharing content with close friends. Both of her Instagram and Facebook are restricted from public view. Her twitter, on the other hand, is mostly dedicated to sharing stories about recent environmental policy issues. Bauer's faculty website is only for sharing information about him, and links us to his website which discusses his accomplishments and past work experiences.

• Bauer's internet present reflects the academic professionalism that comes across in his journal article and book. On the other hand, Sophia's social media presence it more dedicated to her personal experiences, not necessarily her professional ones.

My Interview Subjects

I emailed seven people asking to get interviews to understand what it is like to publish within the Environmental community. Unfortunately, five of them are off in impoverished an environmentally damaged countries at the time and cannot sit down for an hour interview. But that only means more content for them to publish for further research in the field. Never the less, I needed two interview subjects, and soon. Thankfully, two individuals from the School of Geography and Development here at the University of Arizona were willing to dedicate some time to me.

Sophia Borgias, M.A. in Geography/ Graduate Research Assistant

Who are they?

• Sophia Borgias

Who do they work for?

• She is a research assistant at the Udall Center of Public Policy as well as for QUASEC Center for Excellence in Water Security.

What is their education level?

• Sophia Borgias graduated from the University of Oregon with a Bachelors in both International Studies and Spanish. She is currently a second year master student in Geography at the University of Arizona.

How long have they worked in the field?

• Borgias has been employed at the Udall Center and the QUASEC center for a few years, however, her undergraduate research took her to the Maipo River Basin in Central Chile, where she explored the development of the Patagonia Sin Represias movement against dam building in the basin. Her undergraduate thesis was focused on this issue, and she plans to have her graduate thesis expound upon her previous findings.

When is the interview?

• I plan to interview Ms. Borgias this Friday, February 26th, in the ENR2 building at 9 am. I am very excited to see what she has to say about the publication process, especially since she is in the midst of publishing her first two papers in the field. 

What are the questions you are going to ask?

• Have you found that a specific type of source is more prevalent in an educational setting?
• Have you noticed, specifically as a fairly recent undergraduate, an increase in any type of genre as research material?
• In your research for your undergraduate thesis, did you use any genres more often than not? Did you notice yourself turning to a specific publication more than others, such as a specific journal or study?
• Would you say that certain types of publications are more reliable than others, such as primary versus secondary research?
• The publication you had on your informational page, Patagonia Without Dams, is your undergraduate thesis? Since it was published by the University of Oregon, would you say that it was easier or more difficult than going through other publication sources?
• Do you feel that it was because it was a paper, rather than a different type of genre?
• What are your current projects that are undergoing publication?
• Have you found that publishing these have been more difficult here at the University of Arizona than at your previous university?
• As a graduate research assistant, do you find yourself handling many different genres of research?
• Which have been the most valuable to your work?

Professor Sapana Doshi, PhD from Department of Geography, University of California, Berkley

Who are they?

• Professor Sapana Doshi

What is their education level?

• Dr. Doshi received her undergraduate degree in 1997 in Economics from Columbia University. She then received her doctorate degree from the University of California, Berkley, in 2011. Her studies focused on Geography and Gender Women's studies as well. 

How long have they worked in the field?

• Professor Doshi, before becoming a professor at the University of Arizona, worked in the field in Brazil, Nepal and the US, where she worked as a "development practitioner" on various issues and policies. She dedicated her time and and work to micro-finance, gender-based empowerment, rural drought relief, urban housing and sustainability. She has also worked in South Asian-African communities on LGBQT+ issues and gender issues.

When is the interview?

• The interview is scheduled for Tuesday, March 1st, in the ENR2 Building.

What questions are you going to ask?

• In your long career in education, both as a student and an educator, have you noticed a significant pattern in what genres are most used to teach students about geopolitics and gender issues?
• Can you say with definitive certainty that professors and researchers alike are beginning to turn to a specific genre for teaching and publishing findings?
• Do you yourself prefer a certain genre when teaching? What about for publishing your findings?
• Is there are specific publication, such as a journal or book, that you find yourself turning to more often than others? Why do you feel that this publication makes a significant difference in a student's understanding of geopolitics and the issues related to it?
• You yourself have published in many different genres from journals to books to just chapters. Do you find that one genre is easier to write in? What about to publish in?
• Can you describe the process for publishing in these genres? What would you say is the most difficult part of the process? The easiest?
• Have you ever published a paper through a university, such as for a graduate or undergraduate thesis?
• Would you say that the publishing process has become more difficult since your undergraduate career? Would you say that it depends on the type of genre?

Local Revision: Sentence Variety

gari, "Paint Colors Design Variety Crayons Child's Play" via pixabay.com 02/07/2014
Public Domain Dedication License

Sentence structure can be very tricky. Some sentences are short. Some are quite a bit lengthy, depending on the content. Others are beautifully complex, full to the brim with descriptive language; the subject of said sentence does not matter, only that the reader feel complete after reading it.

 How much variation is there in your sentence structures in the current draft? Can you spot any repetitive or redundant sentence patterns in your writing? Provide a cogent analysis of what the Rules for Writers reading tells you about your sentences.

• Personally, I feel that I not have enough simple sentences within my prose. Simple sentences are required in order to give the reader a break; they are easier to piece together than compound/complex sentences. More often than not, my sentences could use a bit of simplicity to help the flow. I could also switch around the parts of the sentence at some points. For example, in my second paragraph, rather than, "Each neighbor has their role in the community, be it working at the local charter school or at the branch of the L.A. library...", I could have written it as, "Be it working at the local school or at the branch of the L.A. library, each neighbor has their role in the community..."

What about paragraph structures, including transitions between different paragraphs (or, for video/audio projects, different sections of the project)? 

• In order to indicate transitions between sections of my audio podcast, I chose to put in sections of music. I think it helps the reader digest whatever information was given in the previous section. The sentences at the end of each section creates a "closing statement" kind of feeling, which helps as well.

 What about vocabulary? Is there variety and flavor in your use of vocabulary? What are the main strengths and weaknesses of the draft's approach to vocabulary?

• I feel that I tried my best in order to use interesting and engaging language, using words that invoke imagery such as "Billowing" or "Vomiting". It is a possibility that I could input even more descriptive words, like replacing the phrase "Working for" with "Employed by".

Local Revision: Pronoun Usage

Ian Britton, "Sorry out of use" via freefoto.com
Creative Commons License Attribution- NonCommercial- No Derivative Works 3.0 Licsense

For as long as my podcast is, it really does not over-use pronouns, in my opinion. Each pronoun allows the sentence to flow, but still make sense in the end.

Based on your analysis, how effective is your pronoun usage in Project 1? What does actively examining your pronoun usage tell you about your writing style?

• I think that my somewhat limited pronoun usage creates a good rhythm/ flow to the sentence that makes it easier to listen to. Rather than repeating the same name over and over again, the varying wordage allows for a more interesting story. I think it also indicates that the tone of the piece is less scientific and more like prose.

Are there any instances in your project where you speak to or refer directly to the audience? If so, how effective are these moments at creating a bond or connection between audience and author? If not, why not? Explain why you're choosing to leave your audience out of your writing. There's nothing wrong with that, per se, but you should be able to give a sophisticated explanation of your choices.

• I did not find any instances of direct addressing of the audience, mostly just discussing the stakeholders of the controversy. I feel that my story did not need a conversation between the audience and I; it was mostly just a presentation that required the provocation of thoughts from the audience through information. Also, I think the subject is not typically public discussion, the legality and issues of energy harvesting, and I would be addressing an audience that would not have much to say on it.

My Pronouns

Marc Palm, "They Live poster Marc Palm" via flickr.com 04/07/2010
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDervis 2.0 Generic

There are distinctive differences in the pronouns I used versus which paragraph I was analyzing. For example, my third and second to last paragraphs are discussing Erin Brocovitch and Governor Jerry Brown and use the pronouns "Her" and "His", respectively.


It (The Controversy)
It (The Day)
They (The Workers)
It (The Leak)
It (The Leak)
Their (SoCalGas)
It (Aliso Canyon)
They (The Porter Ranch Community)
Their (Neighbors)
It (Roles in the Community)
Their (Members of the Families)
It (The Leaks)
Them (The Workers at SoCalGas)
They (SoCalGas)
They (SoCalGas)
It (Profit)
Their (SoCalGas)
Their (SoCalGas)
Their (SoCalGas)
They (SoCalGas)
Their (SoCalGas)
They (SoCalGas)
It (Developments)
They (SoCalGas)
Their (SoCalGas)
They (Residents of Porter Ranch)
They (Residents of Porter Ranch)
Them (Residents of Porter Ranch)
Their(Residents of Porter Ranch)
Her (Erin Brocovitch)
Her (Erin Brocovitch)
Her (Erin Brocovitch)
His (Jerry Brown)
His (Jerry Brown)
His (Jerry Brown)

Local Revision: Active and Passive Voice

ClkerFreeVectorImages, "Megaphone Loudhailer Speaker Sound Amplifer Voice" via pixabay.com 06/04/2014 Public Domain Dedication License As we write, it is important to make the content interesting to read. By writing mostly in the active voice, we force the reader to imagine the person or the object actually doing the action. It is even better when we provide descriptive verbs that allows the reader to imagine further. Active Voice Specific Billowing Following Complaining Fighting Tapping Persecuting Squash Involved Dedicated Provides Implied Providing Announced According Inching Vomiting Backed Suing Implement Contaminated Declared Declared Cap

ActiveVoice General Started Is Working Saw Had Been Wanted Decided Leave Grew Grew Grew Was Was Began Had Failed Use Prevent Happening Failed Notify Is Is Sitting Holds Are Sits Sit Had Been Was Sitting Had Sitting Was Considered Be Get Was Is Has Be Working Had Wasn't Isn't Working Are Trying Make Feed Is Gets Is Care Is Acting Has Been Is Showing Failed Notify Became Released Started Began Complain Began Drilling Shut Begin Released Has Been Moving Are Are Have Chosen Bring Including Notify Are Said Taken Has Was Made Written Lie Admit Has Had Say Stated Fixing Realized Ignore Gave Puts Will Worried Leaked Taken Worried

Passive Voice Accompanied

• Most of the verbs in my piece are in the Active General Category. I think that is because most of them are conjugations of the "to be" verbs. However, when describing actions specific to the story, the verbs are very descriptive and specific, such as "Itching" or "Billowing". There is only one instance of the passive voice. I personally think that it is good that most of my verbs are in the active categories; it makes the story more interesting to read as well as brings the audience into the story.
• I personally feel that I could add even more descriptive verbs in the final draft. Although there is a significant amount now, I think it could put my project over the top.

Local Revision: Tense Usage

Anonymous, "Eight is Past Tense" via FailingFifth.com 08/13/2007 Noncommercial ShareAlike 2.5 License It is difficult to remember to stay in one tense, rather than switching tenses within one sentence. I definitely have a very bad habit of not paying attention to my tenses. But in writing in mostly the present tense, I bring the reader into the action, rather than just telling them what had happened. Past Tense Started Saw Had Been Wanted Decided Grew Grew Grew Was Was Began Accompanied Had Failed Failed Had Been Had Considered Was Has Had Began Brew Has Been Involved Dedicated Failed Became Released Had Started Began Began Needed Released Has Been Implied Has Been Were Backed Said Been Contaminated Had Was Was Made Elected Declared Had Was Was Stated Wanted Realized Could Gave Take Leaked Worried Worried

Presence Tense Is Working Leave Billowing Following Complaining Use Prevent Happening Notify Is Fighting Is Is Holds Are Sits Sit Tapping Sitting Sitting Be Get Is Has Working Brew Isn't Working Are Trying Make Persecuting Is Going Like Gets Is Care Have Squash Get Is Acting Is Showing Provides Notify Complain Drilling Shut Begin Has Has Providing Have Moving Are According Itching Vomiting Are Have Bring Including Are Suing Implement Notify Are Have Has Had States Lie Admit Has Is Is Has Declares Is Give Fixing Could Ignore Puts Leaking Dictates Cap Is Cause Is Are

Future Tense Will

• The tense that is most prevalent in my draft seems to be the present tense, as if I was telling the story as it is happening.
• I feel like telling the story in the present tense allows the audience to imagine like they are actually there as the story is unfolding. 
• At some points I switched accidentally from past to present or vice versa. I think that shows weakness in writing skills, especially when it happens in the span of a single sentence.
• The fact is that most of my story is being told in the present tense, which I really think helps the story telling, makes it interesting to listen to. Rather than being told about some story that happened long ago, they are actually there, experiencing the action. 

My Verbs

neopri, "Runner Run Running Woman Runner Athlete Sport" via pixabay.com, 11/28/2014
Public Domain Dedication License

In addition to my wordiness, I tend to input a lot of actions into my writings. I think it adds details, but also helps the audience to imagine what is exactly happening in the story. However, I do see the drawbacks in using the same verb multiple times; it can get rather repetitive and tedious.

My list of verbs:
Started
Is
Working
Saw
Had
Been
Wanted
Decided
Leave
Grew
Grew
Grew
Was
Was
Billowing
Following
Began
Complaining
Accompanied
Had
Failed
Use
Prevent
Happening
Failed
Notify
Is
Fighting
Is
Is
Holds
Are
Sits
Sit
Had
Been
Tapping
Was
Sitting
Had
Sitting
Was
Considered
Be
Get
Was
Is
Has
Working
Had
Began
Brew
Isn't
Working
Are
Trying
Make
Persecuting
Is
Going
Like
Gets
Is
Care
Have
Squash
Get
Is
Acting
Has
Been
Involved
Is
Dedicated
Showing
Provides
Failed
Notify
Became
Released
Had
Started
Began
Complain
Began
Drilling
Shut
Needed
Begin
Released
Has
Been
Implied
Has
Been
Providing
Have
Announced
Moving
Are
According
Itching
Vomiting
Were
Are
Have
Chosen
Bring
Backed
Including
Are
Suing
Implement
Notify
Are
Have
Said
Have
Been
Contaminated
Taken
Has
Had
Was
Was
Made
Written
States
Elected
Lie
Admit
Declared
Has
Had
Is
Is
Was
Has
Declares
Was
Stated
Is
Wanted
Give
Fixing
Realized
Could
Ignore
Gave
Puts
Leaking
Dictates
Take
Cap
Is
Has
Leaked
Will
Cause
Is
Worried
Are
Worried

Local Revision: Wordiness

narciso1, "Words Doubtful Pessimistic Pessimist Hesitant" via pixabay.com on 01/2015
Public Domain Dedication License

As a writer, I tend to have the bad habit of inputing too much detail because I want to ensure that my point gets across. In the end, it usually leaves me at a disadvantage as well as with a long wall of text that is hard to read. A good example is of this is in the third segment of my podcast.

Before Revision:

The SoCal Gas Company isn't the face of all evil. Most of the people working for this company are just trying to make a living and feed their families, and persecuting them is going after the little guy. However, like most traditional energy companies, the way SoCal gets the gas is outdated and environmentally disastrous. They seem to care mostly about profit and not necessarily the people that they have to squash to get at it. The legality of their actions is at times questionable, although their acting CEO and President Dennis Arriola has been involved with many charitable organizations as well as other environmentally friendly energy companies. The face of their organization, their website, is dedicated to showing the friendly side of the company, the side that provides natural gas energy at half the cost of their competitors. The sad fact is, they failed to notify the residents of Porter Ranch before the leak became a large problem. On October 23rd, 2015, the SoCalGas company released an official announcement of a leak in one of their natural gas wells, well after the leak had started, and soon after residents began to complain of illness. They began drilling relief wells in attempts to shut off the leak, but to no avail. The relocation of the Porter Ranch community needed to begin immediately, and the company released an official statement that " [They] understand that each family’s situation is unique and every individual reacts differently to the odorant used in our natural gas. To that end, our temporary relocation specialists take a careful case-by-case approach for each request, attempting to the best of our ability, to meet each request with sensitivity and excellent customer service." Yet in recent developments, it has been implied that SoCalGas has been rather "difficult" in providing assistance to those who a required to move. Although they have announced the official budget for moving each family, their estimates are not the most accurate, according to some residents. Needless to say, in between their bouts of itching and vomiting, they were angry, and wanted retribution.

After Revision:

SoCal Gas isn't the face of all evil. The people working for them are just trying to make a living, and persecuting them is pointless. However, like most traditional energy companies, the way they get their gas is outdated and environmentally disastrous. They seem to care only about profit and not the people that they have to squash to get at it. The legality of their actions is at times questionable, although their acting CEO Dennis Arriola has been involved with charitable organizations as well as other environmentally friendly energy companies. Their website is dedicated to showing the friendly side of the company that provides natural gas energy at half the cost of their competitors. The fact is, they failed to notify the residents of Porter Ranch before the leak became a problem. On October 23rd, 2015, the SoCalGas company released an official announcement of a leak in one of their natural gas wells, after the leak had started, and soon after residents began to complain of illness. They began drilling relief wells in attempts to shut off the leak, but they have failed so far. The relocation of Porter Ranch needed to begin immediately, and the company released an official statement that "[They] understand that each family’s situation is unique and every individual reacts differently to the odorant used in our natural gas. To that end, our temporary relocation specialists take a careful case-by-case approach for each request, attempting to the best of our ability, to meet each request with sensitivity and excellent customer service." In recent developments, SoCalGas has been rather "difficult" in assisting those who are required to move. Although they have announced the official budget for moving each family, their estimates are not the most accurate, according to some residents. Needless to say, in between their bouts of itching and vomiting, they were angry, and wanted retribution.

I had a very hard time trimming the paragraph, and I think that is visually very obvious. I value each of the words I put in the paragraph. I think removing them took away from my overall voice, and really made the story less interesting. 

Peer Review Two

Cookieater2009 "pencil" 05/25/2010 via flickr.com
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For my second peer review exercise I reviewed Emily Bond's and Shauna Bratton's podcasts (Emily's rubric is here and Shauna's is here). 

• What did you learn about your own project (or the project in general) by comparing drafts of the same project in different genres?

• From comparing my project to other projects, mostly QRG's, I learned that it might've been a bit easier to convey the information on the controversy through written text. Although I really enjoyed the podcasts recorded by my peers, I think that the QRG's and essay's were a bit more complete than our own projects. However, I also think that the podcasts have so much to offer in creativity and audience engagement, and with a bit more editing I think we can really hit this one out of the park.

• I want you to plan on doing revision between now and our next class meeting on Tuesday. Tell me the top three issues or problems with your draft in its current form and what you plan on doing over the weekend to address those issues.

• My draft has a lot of potential. I think my top issue is working on the flow of the podcast; I tend to stumble over my words very easily and in the recording it sounds amateurish and hesitant. I think with a bit more practice and some editing, I should be able to over come that problem. Another problem is my music and sound effects. I added some music at the very last minute before posting my draft, and it is rather repetitive. I think working on splicing in some sound effects and editing will alleviate any issues with that. Finally, I forgot to cite my sources at the end of the podcast, which is very important for the final draft. 

• Tell me the top three strengths of your draft. How/why are these things strengths? How will you build on them to make the rest of the draft as strong?

• My biggest strength, I think, is the ratio of information to opinion. I provide the needed information to understand the controversy as well as provide my own opinion on the content. This helps my podcast to be informative, but not necessarily pointless. The way I work in various quotations is also very good, and the overall flow of the podcast is good. Finally, I really think I engage the audience with the language I use; it's professional but not necessarily hard to understand or grasp. I plan to keep doing all of these things as I continue to revise and re-record my podcast.

Peer Review One

AJC ajcann.wordpress.com "Peer Review" 05/23/2008 via flickr.com
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For this post I decided to peer review James Furosa, who decided to use a QRG to cover the Joseph Maraachli controversy. The QRG in question was very well written, in my opinion, as my grading and comments reflect in the rubric.

This draft does an excellent job of explaining the controversy for which it is about. It's organization is very appropriate and makes the story easy to follow. I really want to emulate this in my own perfect; I really feel like it is a bit hard to follow at the current moment. I also feel like he provides a lot of evidence from each stakeholder, which not only adds length, but also helps explain each side of the story.

Unfortunately, there were a few things in the post that I think should be changed. Primarily, I feel that there wasn't enough evidence to support the side of the family in the controversy. I want to make sure that each side in my story is equally represented. Another mistake that was made was that the background of one of the stakeholders is rather vague; it doesn't really explain where the group comes from and why they chose to get involved. I need to make sure that each stakeholder fits in the story, explain why they are there.

Draft of Project 1

350.org "Porter Ranch, CA, USA" 12/12/2015 via flickr.com
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This is the draft of my script (it doesn't include any sound effects or music I intend to input into the podcast):

It all started with a leak. Not a large leak, not even a noticeable one. That is, until October, when some evening workers from the SoCal gas company working in Aliso Canyon saw a small leak in one of the older wells. Now, it had been a long day, and these hard workers really wanted to go home. So they decided to leave it for the morning. Except, that leak grew, and grew, and grew until in the morning, it was an unstoppable force. The methane, an invisible but toxic and smelly gas, was now billowing out, following the path into the Porter Ranch community a few miles south of the wells.

Soon residents began complaining of a smell, an awful smell, accompanied by terrible headaches and nose bleeds. SoCalGas had failed to use precautionary measures to prevent such a leak from happening, as well as failed to notify the residents of their activities in the canyon, and now the community is fighting back against the corporation.

Aliso Canyon is just like any other canyon; big, dry, and dusty. Well, except that it is sitting on one of the nation's largest natural gas deposit and holds at least 115 wells, some of which are 40 to 50 years old. The canyon sits approximately 2 miles north of Porter Ranch, and most of the wells sit northwest of the neighborhood. SoCalGas had been tapping into the pocket of methane that was sitting beneath the canyon and the community for over four decades, yet the members of the Porter Ranch community had no clue of the figurative "gold mine" they were sitting on.

This affluent community was considered to be, according to a 2008 L.A. Times article, a "calm outpost of Los Angles" where people could get away from the hustle and bustle of the big city. The population density of this tight-knit community was relatively low, while the number of white picket fences is relatively high. Each neighbor has their role in the community, be it working at the local charter school or at the branch of the L.A. library, yet each family, usually of three members, had their home. It wasn't until the leak in early October that trouble began to brew.

The SoCal Gas Company isn't the face of all evil. Most of the people working for this company are just trying to make a living and feed their families, and persecuting them is going after the little guy. However, like most traditional energy companies, the way SoCal gets the gas is outdated and environmentally disastrous. They seem to care mostly about profit and not necessarily the people that they have to squash to get at it. The legality of their actions is at times questionable, although their acting CEO and President Dennis Arriola has been involved with many charitable organizations as well as other environmentally friendly energy companies. The face of their organization, their website, is dedicated to showing the friendly side of the company, the side that provides natural gas energy at half the cost of their competitors. The sad fact is, they failed to notify the residents of Porter Ranch before the leak became a large problem.
On October 23rd, 2015, the SoCalGas company released an official announcement of a leak in one of their natural gas wells, well after the leak had started, and soon after residents began to complain of illness. They began drilling relief wells in attempts to shut off the leak, but to no avail. The relocation of the Porter Ranch community needed to begin immediately, and the company released an official statement that " [They] understand that each family’s situation is unique and every individual reacts differently to the odorant used in our natural gas. To that end, our temporary relocation specialists take a careful case-by-case approach for each request, attempting to the best of our ability, to meet each request with sensitivity and excellent customer service." Yet in recent developments, it has been implied that SoCalGas has been rather "difficult" in providing assistance to those who are required to move. Although they have announced the official budget for moving each family, their estimates are not the most accurate, according to some residents. Needless to say, in between their bouts of itching and vomiting, they were angry, and wanted retribution.

In fact, the residents of the Porter Ranch community are so unhappy with the SoCalGas company's actions, that they have chosen to bring litigation against the natural gas company. Backed by a multitude of law firms, including Morgan and Morgan, Panish Shea and Boyle, Kennedy and Madonna, LLP, and R. Rex Parish, the residents are suing the company for failure to implement preventative measures as well as for failure to notify them of the leak sooner. These people are angry. As one member, Roybn Shapiro, said, "Everyone wanted to live in Porter Ranch, and now who is going to live there?" Their homes have been contaminated and taken away. The community even has the support from famous environmental activist Erin Brocovich. Brocovich had her own fight against the energy company P&E, back in 1993. Her story was so important to the fight against pollution that a biography was made about her in 2000. In a Times article written earlier this year, Brocovich states "We're all taught in Kindergarten, if you smell gas, you run, right? But [residents] were being told it can't hurt you..." SoCalGas elected to lie to the community at Porter Ranch rather than admit fault.

California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency on January 6th of this year after months of silence on this issue. Governor Brown has had a previous affiliation with SoCal before; his sister Kathleen Brown is on the board of directors for the company. It is safe to say that his connection to the company was close. The reason Brown had finally declared a state of emergency was, as he stated in an official press release, "[the] prolonged and continuing duration of this natural gas leak and the request by the residents and local officials". The truth is that the California governor wanted to give the company carte blanche in fixing the problem. When he realized he could ignore the wishes of his constituents no more, he finally gave in. This declaration, however, puts the problem of the leaking well in the hands of the government, and the current timeline dictates it will take at least until March to cap the well.

In reality, this well is not only the problem of the residents of Porter Ranch, but also of the rest of the world. As of right now, this well has leaked almost 95,000 metric tons of methane, a very common green house gas. This incident, nicknamed the "BP spill on land", will cause a jump in global warming if not taken care of soon. While the rest of the nation is worried about the crazy shenanigans of presidential candidate Donald Trump or about the Powerball, the members of the Porter Ranch community are worried about the future of the planet.

There are a few stumbles in the dialog and I don't know if I should change the music for each segment. Do you think that I should add an interview? I wasn't sure. I linked the podcast here. It takes a few seconds to get started. 

The Time Period

CityGypsy11, "Time Travel Haikus 5-7-5" 09/07/2007 via flickr.com
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The story of the SoCalGas leak remained under the radar for months. It began in October, and the official announcement came on the 23rd. Yet even local news stories took until December to begin reporting on the story, like this story on December 2nd, 2015, reported by the L.A. Times on the first relocation effort. The most recent report on the relocation efforts was made on February 3rd of this year by a local news station, abc7. It seems as if the relocation effort has not increased as the amount of methane spilling out of the well, rather, it has decreased.

The biggest national news stories on October 23rd, when the leak was first announced, were talks of politics, of Benghazi and Syria. The largest national story, in the midst of the running for the preliminaries, was on the all too famous Donald Trump, as reported by the national news network CBS. Everyone is concerned about what Donald Trump, presidential candidate, will do next. What crazy shenanigans will he be up to this time? On January 6th, when Governor Jerry Brown announced a state of emergency, the biggest story was on the Powerball. Americans are more concerned about their profit than their environment, as is the case with SoCalGas.

On October 23rd, 2015, Hurricane Patricia was heading toward Mexico at 130 mph. Once a category 5, it had now weakened to a category 4. While the world was focused on the storm approaching toward the east coast of Mexico, people on the west coast of California were worried about the gas leak polluting the atmosphere. On January 6th, the world turned it's focus to the opposite side of the world to North Korea, who had announced that it had launched it's first nuclear rocket.

The nation, the world, the state of California, they all seem to be unconcerned with the well that is spilling out natural gas by the minute. Each story also seems to be about the bad, Donald Trump, North Korea, and the Hurricane. The world focuses on the negative, but the negative that effects them. The community of Porter Ranch is facing a negative beyond comprehension, yet the world turns a blind eye to them. This leak has the potential to effect us all through green house gasses, yet we don't seem to care.

The Setting

EARTHWORKS "Aliso Canyon leak well pad 3 Credit: Earthworks" 12/17/2015
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Aliso Canyon is just like any other canyon; big, dry, and dusty. Well, except that it it sitting on one of the nation's largest natural gas deposit and holds at least 115 wells, some of which are 40 to 50 years old. The canyon sits approximately 2 miles north of Porter Ranch, and most of the wells sit northwest of the neighborhood. However, the flow of the gas was directly into the affluent community, where then many of its residents were burdened with horrible nose bleeds and nausea. The community has a relatively low population density for a L.A. neighborhood, and ironically enough it had been considered to have the cleanest air in all of northern L.A. The residents of Porter Ranch did not let the physical distance between them drive them apart, in fact, they were considered to be a very close knit community who stuck together. The leak, however, has caused them to relocate, to break up their community. In this relocation, we have expanded the setting from the idyllic community to all of L.A., into hotel rooms and one bedroom apartments.

Stake Holder #3

Freedom To Marry "Jerry Brown" 06/01/2009 via flickr.com
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The California government has been muddled with controversy for as long as it had been established in the 1800's, and today is no different. Current California Governor Jerry Brown has been involved in this controversy since October of last year, and has just recently announced a state of an emergency when it was decided the leak could not be plugged within the month. The L.A. City Council has been debating over months on the regulations that should have already been put in place in order to prevent this from occurring. Essentially the California government is now being forced into the spotlight by both the people and the SoCalGas company, split in half over who is right.

In defence of his declaration of a state of an emergence, governor Jerry Brown released this statement, "[the] prolonged and continuing duration of this natural gas leak and the request by the residents and local officials for a declaration of emergency" is the reason for the declaration. Brown, previous to this statement, had been a very large supporter of SoCalGas; his sister is on the Board at the company. In fact, many were frustrated with his silence on the issue until his declaration in early January. In response to the concerns of the residents, the Governor responded, "all state agencies will utilize state personnel, equipment, and facilities to ensure a continuos and thorough state response to this incident." Brown is clearly trying to cover himself and comfort the residents while still working closely with SoCal. Governor Brown has met with the community only very recently, and stated that the government would "cover costs related to the natural gas leak and its response, while protecting ratepayers."

All of the statements have come in the aftermath of the leak, and Governor Jerry Brown is clearly playing catch up trying to please the residents from Porter Ranch. After he realized that the nation is on the side of the residents, the governor is trying to act like he is too. His previous and current associations with the company lessens his credibility in this controversy. I think he is trying to switch his alliance to the right side of history too late in the game, and he is trying to play off the emotions of the nation.

If each stakeholder is at one side of the spectrum, with the residents of Porter Ranch being at one end and the SoCalGas company being at the other, Governor Jerry Brown is trying to pretend he is in the middle, even at the end of the residents. However, in reality, the governor is actually right up there with SoCalGas. His morality, in light of the recent controversy, seems to be something less than he had promised as an "environmental" governor.

Stakeholder #2

350.org "Porter Ranch, CA, USA" 12/12/2015 via flickr.com
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Stakeholder number two isn't a person, rather it is an large group of people, the members of Porter Ranch. The community at Porter Ranch, which is in the Northwest part of Los Anglese, California, had been established for quite a while, over two decades. A moderately diverse community, Porter Ranch was pretty normal, families of three or four, white picket fences and palm trees. Students would go to school at the charter or community school, while adults would drive to the center of L.A. to go to work. This neighborhood was as average as you could get, until the smell came. The smell of rotten eggs began pervading into the community, and eventually children and sickly adults fell ill with nose bleeds, nausea, and rashes. It was then when they learned that SoCalGas had not only been operating in the canyon beyond them, but also that they had failed to prevent a leak in one of their 50 year old wells. Needless to say, in between their bouts of itching and vomiting, they were angry, and wanted retribution

On behalf of these residents, the LA councilman, Mitchell Englander, that is representing them in government hearings for tighter restrictions against SoCalGas has released several statements, including this statement during an NPR interview: "Most people weren't aware that one of the largest gas storage facilities in the United States was in their backyard. There was, from what we're hearing, no disclosure when they bought their homes." It's clear, from this statement, that the resident's of Porter Ranch were being left in the dark about the activities going on behind their homes. Erin Brocovich, who had be essential in the litigation against P&E (another energy company) for a previous case of intense pollution and who lives not thirty minutes away from Porter Ranch, commented on the lies that were being feed to the community. "We're all taught in Kindergarten, if you smell gas, you run, right? But [residents] were being told it can't hurt you..." The SoCalGas company had begun leaking lies and excuses as fast as they were methane, all at the expense of the residents, who still was at a lost as to what was happening in their community. Finally, with the perfect response to the long term effects of this event, Roybn Shapiro, a long time member of the community, said "Everyone wanted to live in Porter Ranch, and now who is going to live there?"

I don't think these people, victims, have anything to win by lying about knowing the activities of SoCalGas. These people had already lost so much, their homes, their pets, and their health, and had they known about the wells and the leak, I don't think they would've risked so much just to make a profit off of the litigation. The credibility of Erin Brocovich has been well established through previous cases as well as other sources, such as a movie made in honor of her fight with P&E.

The residents of Porter Ranch are a small entity fighting against the large corporation SoCalGas. Their struggles cannot be mired by SoCal or the government, and their opinions are completely unique to their situation. 

Stake Holder #1

Magnascan, "Flame Gas Gas Flame Blue Hot Ring Burner Danger" 12/07/2014 via pixabay.com
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The SoCal Gas Company isn't the face of all evil. Most of the people working for this company are just trying to make a living and feed their families, and persecuting them is going after the little guy. However, like most traditional energy companies, the way SoCal gets the gas is outdated and environmentally disastrous. They seem to care mostly about profit and not necessarily the people that they have to squash to get at it. The legality of their actions is at times questionable, although their acting CEO and President Dennis Arriola has been involved with many charitable organizations as well as other environmentally friendly energy companies. The face of their organization, their website, is dedicated to showing the friendly side of the company, the side that provides natural gas energy at half the cost of their competitors. In reality, there isn't truly a line between good and evil, and no company can be on either side of it. The SoCal Gas Company happens to be both good and bad.

In a statement report published by SoCalGas on the California motion to expand the area that is considered to be affected by the gas leak. This would force the company to fund more relocations of families. To quote the company, "At SoCalGas, we understand that each family’s situation is unique and every individual reacts differently to the odorant used in our natural gas. To that end, our temporary relocation specialists take a careful case-by-case approach for each request, attempting to the best of our ability, to meet each request with sensitivity and excellent customer service." They had provided a statement in the case of a wrongful death case against them in relation to the leak. A California family has filed a lawsuit against the company for the death of their cancer-ridden grandmother. In response to the suit the company stated that they "are sorry to hear about the family's loss. We are reviewing the lawsuit and will allow the judicial process to take its course." Finally, in direct response to the worries about the perspective timeline for the fix of the leak, SoCal released the statement, “While we cannot confirm how long the process will take, we are working to do this as safely and expeditiously as possible" in attempts to calm the residents of Porter Ranch.

I think all of these statements are to present a face of sympathy for SoCalGas. Each statement is an attempt to humanize the company, to make it seem as if the company really cares for the people that are affected by their actions. I think their claims aren't necessarily genuine, I think they are being made by spokespersons who don't speak for the entire company. This is a classic case of manipulation.

SoCalGas is a large entity that is facing against several smaller entities, the residents of Portor Ranch. However, those smaller entities are being represented by large law firms, which gives them equal footing in this fight. As for equality in opinions, SoCalGas holds a higher power in getting people to believe their claims over other stakeholders. The fact is that they have a lot of money and a lot of power in the government that protects them from most claims made against them. In reality, they have nothing in common with the residents, who only want to protect themselves.