"Shattered Glass"

1. What writing/research practices are involved in the movie?
There were a few different practices used for research and writing. The main type of writing was journalism, because the characters in the movie worked for the magazine "The New Republic." The practices that were used included recording, discussion, peer editing, and fact-checking.

2. How do characters collect data and write about their data?
The characters do a lot of observing and note taking about what people say and do. There is also interviewing used. Steve Glass was detail oriented and very specific which was needed in his writing.

3. What ethical issues do you see emerging in this movie?
The first ethical issue was that Steve lied about his sources. Another issue was that he invented/created his articles in his head and then passed what was fictional off as factual. Twenty-seven of the forty-one articles Steve wrote were either fully or partially made up. Throughout the movie he always sounded suspicious. Anytime anyone asked him questions about his articles, he always stalled by saying that the answer was in his notes but yet he never had the notes with him.

First drafts blog

Anne Lamott starts out by telling about her life and just talks about writing in general. She talks about what people may think about successful writers and what actual goes on. Many people think that great writers just sit down and can just write pages of text and form it into a great piece of work. Lamott brings up the point that, "very few writers really know what they are doing until they've done it" (Lamott, Section 2). Lamott uses the word shitty first drafts. I think it is a very good way to describe writing when you first sit down to put down your thoughts. She describes is as a "child's draft," in that you can write down whatever you want and say whatever you want because you can revise it later (Lamott, Section 4).
When I am starting to write, I just write down as many notes about the topic as I can. I do not want to forget anything so I just write it all down even if I may not use it later in the final draft. I sometimes find that I write down important information and do not even realize it. Then later in the paper, in the second and third drafts, I find that piece of information and it contributes to the paper in a big way.

Covering

I find myself covering a lot when I work in groups. This is especially true when working with fellow business majors in the Honors Business Program. I have a very shy and quiet personality. I am also a caring and nurturing person; however, I can find myself being aggressive and fighting for what I want. Sometimes, in groups when my shy/quiet personality shows, I get stuck doing the work nobody else wants to do. I have been seen to have people "walk over" me when I do not stand up for myself in groups. More and more, I find myself "covering" that side of my personality and taking on the stereotypical male leader and aggressive personality. One example, just recently happened where I was the only female in a group with four males. I covered my shyness and spoke up about what parts of the presentation I wanted to do. By having a more aggressive attitude and adopting the "male role," I got the part I wanted. Sometimes, you have to cover up your own personality in order to get what you want or to get to where you want to be.