Hurricane Dean is straight on the trail that Category 5 Hurricane Gilbert followed when it racked Jamaica and bore down on Mexico in 1988. This weekend, I interviewed
St. Petersburg Times reporter Susan Taylor Martin, who covered Gilbert 19 years ago.
Read what she says about why it is important for journalists to go to where these storms are headed, even if it means risking danger.
World Vision is already working in Haiti.
The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies provides helpful resources.
UNICEF is already working on recovery in some of the islands.
Hurricane Dean may well divert our attention from the troubles in Peru, where relief agencies say
the situation following last week's earthquake is worse than they first thought.
Oil companies are keeping vigil with Dean in the Gulf.
Here is a site called "rigzone," which describes what oil companies are doing to keep rig workers safe. The Gulf of Mexico
produces about 27 percent of U.S. oil and 15 percent of America's natural gas, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Oil prices could rise Monday depending on whether the storm track moves north. Most Gulf rigs are north of the current projected path of the storm, but after Katrina and Rita, companies are jumpy.
Covering the Effects of Unhealthy Beaches
Read this from the Society of Environmental Journalists:
As beach season crests in August, many swimmers will want to know whether, or how much, their favorite beach is contaminated. Even with crude, partial information, officials acknowledge that many beaches are polluted and pose a health threat.
In 2006, at least 32% of the 3,771 monitored US beaches had a health advisory or closing. The number of beaches reporting problems increased by about 8% over 2005. The number of "beach days" with closings or advisories in effect increased to 5% from 4% in 2005 (US EPA 2006 Swimming Season Update).
For specifics about your local beaches, see Where You Live. Additional information about beach monitoring.
EPA and many others acknowledge that the decades-old methods used to assess beach contamination are inadequate, as noted in a March 2007 workshop that may have helped advance the adoption of improved methods and criteria by 2012.
A good resource is the Natural Resources Defense Council's annual report on beach conditions, which was just released. Click here to see it.
The council says:
The water at American beaches was unsafe for swimming a record number of days last year, according to the 17th annual beach water quality report released today by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Using data just collected from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the report, "Testing the Waters: A Guide to Water Quality at Vacation Beaches," tallied more than 25,000 closing and health advisory days at ocean, bay and Great Lakes beaches in 2006. The number of no-swim days caused by stormwater more than doubled from the year before.
"Vacations are being ruined. Families can't use the beaches in their own communities because they are polluted. Kids are getting sick -- all because of sewage and contaminated runoff from outdated, under-funded treatment systems," said Nancy Stoner, director of NRDC's water program.
Americans Dying in Car Crashes Abroad
It is not terrorism or crime. Car crashes, USA Today reports, are the leading cause of death for healthy Americans abroad.
USA Today Travel News says:
And the threat to travelers is poised to increase dramatically as worldwide economic growth gives more people access to motor vehicles.
Corporate employers, including energy giant Chevron, are teaming with safety advocates to combat what they view as a rapidly worsening epidemic of highway deaths and injuries, particularly in developing countries.
"The road-safety problem worldwide for travelers and locals constitutes a growing public health crisis," says Tony Bliss, lead road safety specialist for the World Bank. He says it's "a far greater problem than many more widely acknowledged diseases."
Much of the growth in motor vehicle usage is in developing countries, where roads are sub-standard, signage deficient, traffic regulations lax and enforcement spotty. While local residents bear most of the risk of death and injury, travelers can be particularly vulnerable because of their lack of familiarity with surroundings and with local customs.
I think this topic would be great for encouraging readers/online users to submit photographs or personal stories. I suspect international readers would have some interesting experiences to share about driving in the U.S. ...
See a chart of the world's most dangerous roads.
Here is a Web site dedicated to safe driving on international roads.
It is amazing to me how many people post driving videos on YouTube.
Here are a few examples:
“…Is the New…” Expression Helps Describe Local Trends
Is technology the "new" religion?
Is RSS the "new" WWW?
Is timber the "new" steel?
Is television the "new" reality?
This graphic draws from multiple sources, showing how the words "is the new" can be connected from one word to another. This data is from 2005. It would be interesting to see how your readers, viewers, listeners and online users would react to different variations of the "is the new" expression.
For example, I wonder what the public would say about the following:
- (Blank) is the new journalism
- (Blank) is the new Mother Teresa
- (Blank) is the new Billy Graham
- (Blank) is the new liberal
- (Blank) is the new South Beach Diet
- (Blank) is the new MySpace
- (Blank) is the new minivan
- (Blank) is the new Carl Rove
- (Blank) is the new Starbucks
- (Blank) is the new Harvard
You could get really local on this. Compare old and new anything in your community. Use this technique to talk about local trends. Who is the new hotshot rising star politician? What is the most talked about new building in your town? What is the "must attend" event of the year in your town? Has it changed over time?
Alaska Embroiled in a Political Mess
I was talking with a reporter friend of mine in Alaska the other day. When I asked her what was going on there she just laughed and said that three elected representatives to Washington are in danger of losing their office. Salon.com does a great job catching you up on what's happening .
Poynter's 2008 Schedule Online Now
Click here to see what we have planned for you in 2008. You may recall many months ago I asked Al's Morning Meeting readers for help drafting what we would offer in the way of multimedia storytelling next year. I think you will see that your many great ideas are contained in the 2008 schedule.
We will offer a spectrum of courses ranging from those who want to learn to marry still photos and narration online to those who work as backpack or one-man-band journalists in online and broadcast. Of course, the core courses you have come to expect from us are on the schedule in 2008 as well. Check it out.
We are always looking for your great ideas. Send Al a few sentences and hot links.
Editor's Note: Al's Morning Meeting is a compendium of ideas, edited story excerpts and other materials from a variety of Web sites, as well as original concepts and analysis. When the information comes directly from another source, it will be attributed and a link will be provided whenever possible. The column is fact-checked, but depends on the accuracy and integrity of the original sources cited. Errors and inaccuracies found will be corrected.
Alas.... there is no new Mother Theresa, nor will there...
