Monday, January 27, 2020

American Intelligence In The Cuban Missile Crisis History Essay

American Intelligence In The Cuban Missile Crisis History Essay The Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962 brought the world close to a nuclear confrontation between the United States, Cuba, and the Soviet Union. The Cuban missile crisis was triggered by the Soviet deployment to Cuba of medium-range and intermediate-range ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads. It was the result of a variety of things: the Cuban Revolution, the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion, US anti-communism, the insecurity of the Soviet Union, and Cubas fear of invasion. From the start of the crisis, American intelligence monitored the islands development and was able to collect and analyze information, but it miscalculated the Soviet Unions intentions and motivation for placing nuclear missiles in Cuba. American intelligence, through human intelligence gathering methods, aerial photoreconnaissance, and signal interceptions, was able to discover Soviet missiles in Cuba, and thwart the possibility of a nuclear war. This intelligence provided the U.S with a great deal of in formation about its enemies military units, missiles, weapons and strength. The events of the Cuban Missile Crisis revealed the sophistication of the U.S. intelligence community, especially in its ability to collect and analyze information. Human Intelligence (HUMIT) obtained inside information concerning Cuba from Refugees, and important secrets transferred to U.S. Government by Soviet Colonel Oleg Penkovsky. Photographic intelligence (PHOTINT) played an exceedingly important part (the U-2 reconnaissance spy-plane) in taking internal terrestrial images of the Island. Signals intelligence (SIGINT) was used to block communication between Soviet Union and Cubans during the crisis to the advantage of the Americans. Cuban Missile Crisis Background Fidel Castro came to power after the Cuban Revolution. At first the U.S. supported Castro, but when he embraced communism, the U.S. attempted to overthrow Castros rule in Cuba. In April 1961, Americans used CIA-trained and armed Cuban exiles (La Brigada) in the Bay of Pigs invasion but failed. After the failed invasion of the Bay of Pigs, it was evident to the Castro that the U.S. would attack again, causing him to make concessions with the Soviet Union in order to defend Cuba. Consequently, Soviet Premier Nikita S. Khrushchev eagerly extended an offer of assistance to the desperate Castro and saw an opportunity to gain a strategic foothold in Americas backyard. Castro allowed the Soviet Union to place military bases on the island of Cuba, in exchange for protection against any U.S. invasion attempts. After Castros approval, Khrushchev quickly and secretly built ballistic missile installations in Cuba in the summer of 1962. When the U.S discovered ballistic missiles presence in Cuba, it elevated tension between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. When the missiles installation were discovered by intelligence, President John F. Kennedy ordered a naval quarantine (blockade) of Cuba and threatened to invade Cuba; as a result, the Soviet Union pledged to withdraw from Cuba if the U.S. did not invade and finally the Cuban Missile Crisis was resolved. The American Intelligence Role in the Pre-Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban missile crisis started in a series of American intelligence blunders that started under the Dwight Eisenhower administration and continued into the John F. Kennedy administration. The American intelligence agency devised Operation Mongoose, which was aimed to expel the powerful Castro and his regime. The Operation Mongoose plot included economic and political destabilization, propaganda, manipulation, sabotage, assignation plots and direct assistance to anti-Castro Cubans in military training. During the Cold war, Cuban refugees provided inaccurate inside information about Cuba and Castro, and such information was able to convince the Americas Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to initiate the covert Bay of Pigs operation on April 17th, 1961 to overthrow the Castro communist regime. Cuban exiles, trained by the CIA, staged a botched invasion at Cubas Bay of Pigs, but the CIAs planned invasion ended in complete failure due to miscalculations by the CIA and a lack of resources and support from the American military. U.S. intelligence misunderstood the nature of Fidel Castros insurgency and miscalculated the likelihood of his victory. Operation Mongoose (Bay of Pigs invasion in Cuba is a part of this operation) is also partially responsible for initiating the Cuban Missile Crisis as Cuban intelligence was able to discover that America planned to assassinate Castro through Operation Mongoose. Castro was worried about Cubas safety; on the other side, the Soviet Union was also worried about losing a valuable ally in Cuba. Moreover, the Soviets had the intention to compensate for Soviet inferiority in ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missile) and liked to reply to the Americans with a nuclear version of tit-for-tat as noted by Khrushchevs advisor Fyodor Burlatsky: Khrushchev and Soviet Defence Minister R. Malinovsky à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ were strolling along the Black Sea coast. Malinovsky pointed out to sea and said that on the other shore in Turkey there was an American nuclear missile base. In a matter of six or seven minutes missiles launched from that base could devastate major centres in the Ukraine and southern Russ ia. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Khrushchev asked Malinovsky why the Soviet Union should not have the right to do the same as America. Why, for example, should it not deploy missiles in Cuba? However, from the American perspective, installing nuclear-armed Jupiter intermediate range ballistic missiles (IRBMs) in Turkey helped secure NATOs southern flank, which also helped cement relations with Turkey, and enhanced their nuclear deterrent with the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union viewed these missiles and their threat very differently. Nevertheless, U.S. covert attempts to depose the Cuban regime seemed to provoke Cuban and Soviet defences and directly led to the deployment of the Soviet ballistic missiles in Cuba. It is true that American intelligence played a role in causing the Cuban Missile Crisis, and to a certain extent failed to estimate that Soviet leadership would deploy strategic missiles in Cuba. Furthermore, CIA agents in Cuba or the Soviet Union were incapable to provide solid indication of the Soviet missiles deployment. Some information was received from other Western intelligence organizations, CIA agents on the island and refugees, but little attention was given to the discovery of the missiles. The US military intelligence agencies with some support from Western allies tracked the Soviet arms shipping to Cuba. In July 1962, SlGlNT collectors listened to the radio messages to and from the Soviet vessels on their way to Cuba. These messages are interpreted and provided some indication about how Soviet vessels calling on Cuban ports were making false port declarations and declaring less than the known cargo-carrying capacity (Carrying heavy military weapons) , but no real conside ration is given due to insufficient evident. Satellite photographic reconnaissance was not directed against Cuba in 1962. On August 29th a U-2 spy-plane on reconnaissance over Cuba, brought back evidence that SA-2 surface-to-air (SAM) missiles has been installed around San Cristobal, but Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin advised President Kennedys closest advisor, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, that the installations were entirely defensive in nature. American intelligence (COMOR-The interagency Committee on Overhead Reconnaissance) decided to send another U-2 spy-plane to take a closer look, but bad weather delayed the fight until October 14th. On September 19th, 1962 American estimators issued Special National Intelligence Estimate (SNIE 85-3-62) on The Military Build-up in Cuba but failed to estimate what the Soviet Union would do, based on insufficient evidence, Soviet intentions, and the past Soviet behaviour. In fact, Soviet intelligence performed better in the pre-crisi s period, and they were able to transport nearly 50,000 Soviet troops, 100 tactical nuclear weapons, possibly four to six nuclear naval mines and 60 nuclear warheads for the surface-to-surface missile sites in Cuba via covert action. The American Intelligence Role during the Cuban Missile Crisis For the United States, the crisis began on October 15, 1962, when photographs from a U-2 reconnaissance aircraft revealed several SS-4 nuclear missiles at San Cristobal, Cuba. The early morning of October 16th, President John Kennedy was informed of the missile installations. Kennedy immediately convened his Executive Committee (EX-COMM), a group of his twelve most important advisors (Such as CIA Director John McCone, Secretary of Defence Robert S. McNamara, National Security Adviser McGeorge Bundy) to handle the unfolding crisis. During the crisis, US intelligence was able to accurately identify the location, operational status of the missile deployment, provision of MiG-21 fighters, SA-2 antiaircraft missile systems, 11-28 light bombers, missile torpedo boats, and coastal defence cruise missiles, and the numbers of these systems. Furthermore, low level reconnaissance allowed discovering the additional military forces, in particular four Soviet augmented ground force regiments, each with 31 tanks, and with six to eight Luna rocket artillery launchers It can be seen that PHOTOINT (currently called Imint- Imaging Intelligence) or aerial reconnaissance really played a vital role in Cuban Missile Crisis. Photoreconnaissance Intelligence had done an incredible job by providing credible evidence of offensive missiles in Cuba (see pictures 1 to 3 on last page of this document, taken from U-2 spy-plane during Cuban Missile Crisis) and helped policy makers and their advisors to make decisions based on solid photograph ic evidence. As McCone indicated, aerial photography was our best means of establishing hard [firm] intelligence HUMIT was also used by interviewing refugees, collecting reports from CIA agents on island, and Soviet secret from Soviet Officer Oleg Penkovsky. American military personnel interrogated unverified refugees from Cuba on American soil, who revealed that they had personally seen a convoy of SS-4 missiles near Havana. But this was not itself sufficient due to the mass of other invalid reports during or before the crisis period. Many reports are provided from agents on the Island about suspicious military movement, possible missiles and other defensive activities in Cuba. Colonel Oleg Penkovsky, a Soviet Military Intelligence officer, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and British intelligence (MI-6), all suggested that the Soviets were attempting to put missiles into Cuba but this information was not given credibility until it was subsequently confirmed through aerial reconnaissance. Oleg Penkovsky supplied 111 exposed rolls of film, 99 percent of which were legible. An estimated 10, 000 pages of intelligence reports were produced from his information, which included the top secret operating manuals for the SS-4 and SS-5 missiles. Information from Penkovsky-provided documents was compared with the U-2 photography, and analysts were able to identify positively the specific missiles being placed in Cuba and determine on a daily basis the stage of construction of each missile site. This information was critical in enabling the President to know how much time he had to determine and apply a policy of diplomatic and military pressure against Khrushchev before having to take direct military action. Colonel Oleg Penkovskys role in the Cuban missile crisis has been portrayed as of pre-eminent importance to the outcome, and described as Humints best source of information during the crisis. It is true that SIGINT provided no warning of the presence of Soviet nuclear-armed intermediate and medium-range ballistic missiles in Cuba prior to their discovery by U-2 reconnaissance aircraft. The Oxford, officially known as a Technical Research Ship (TRS), proved to be the largest producer of SIGINT during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The collected communications from SIGINT provided a great quantity of information which, when combined with the photographs from the U2 over-flights, provided a very good picture of what was happening in Cuba. SIGINT also helped during the midst of the crisis, to intercept and triangulate messages and sent to the Command Centre for interpretation, then used by the US government to make further decision and predict future actions of the Soviet Union and Cuba. Another type of intelligence that was used for the first time was the SOSUS (underwater sound surveillance system). SOSUS plus patrol aircraft was extensively and successfully used during the Cuban Missile Crisis and proved to be an important aspect of U.S intelligence in detecting any possible Soviet submarine movement (especially Soviet Foxtrot class submarines). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ªAfter analyzing all the evidence from different sources of the intelligence and having an intense policy debate with the Executive Committee group members, Kennedy imposed a naval quarantine around Cuba. On October 22, Kennedy publicly announced the discovery of the ballistic missile installations and his decision to quarantine (blockade) the island to prevent Soviet ships from carrying further missile equipment to the island. He also proclaimed that any nuclear missile launched from Cuba would be regarded as an attack on the United States by the Soviet Union and demanded that the Soviets remove all of their offensive weapons from Cuba. Later, on the 26th EX-COMM heard from Khrushchev that the Soviets agreed to remove the ballistic missiles from Cuba, if the U.S. would guarantee not to invade Cuba. On October 27th, tension increased when a U-2 was shot down over Cuba and Khrushchev demanded the removal of U.S. missiles in Turkey in exchange for Soviet missiles in Cuba. But Attorney General Robert Kennedy suggested ignoring the second letter and contacted Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin to tell him of the U.S. agreement with the first (not to invade Cuba). Finally, on October 28th, Khrushchev announced that he would dismantle the installations and return the missiles to the Soviet Union. Further negotiations were held to implement the October 28 agreement and it continued in November. Again American intelligence helped to provide evidence to the American government that the Soviets turned their ships back, a fact first learned from SIGINT from radio messages, and soon the Soviets dismantled and withdrew the missil es. The U.S. Navy also played a pivotal role in this crisis, demonstrating the critical importance of naval forces to national defence. Surface and submarine units moved into place to attack any ship crossing the declared line in the quarantine operation. A week of intensive face-off and direct communications between President Kennedy and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev finally made it possible to alleviate the crisis. The American government and the Communist Bloc both considered the crisis over. Conclusion In summary, Espionage has been, and always be a central source of information to support national defense. The performance of US intelligence in the Cuban Missile Crisis was generally good, in some respects outstanding, albeit with a few shortcomings. From the beginning, American Intelligence made all possible efforts to collect, analyze and monitor the Soviet activities and arms build-up in Cuba, but erroneously underestimated the Soviet leaders intention to station nuclear weapons in Cuba. Moreover, the use of U-2 aircraft for aerial photoreconnaissance over the interior of Cuba, Cuban refugee interrogations, and Soviet secrets (manuals for the SS-4 and SS-5 missiles) provided by Penkovskys espionage, gave the U.S. excellent intelligence coverage of the status of missile site construction and readiness. American intelligence community worked well during the crisis, and helped policy makers, senior intelligence estimators and analyst to make better decisions and evaluate Soviet reac tions based on intelligence-provided evidence. The CIA played a leading role in backing up the EXComm. Intelligence organizations of the army, navy, and air force provided backup to the military planners. Overall, American Intelligence role in Cuban Missile Crisis was good and helped government to resolve crisis.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Joe Dimaggio Essay -- baseball players

Joe DiMaggio   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Joe DiMaggio was one of the best baseball players of all time. He set many records, including the longest wining streak in Major League Baseball history, it lasted 56 games. He came to America as the son of poor Italian immigrants, but grew up to be an American Icon.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Joseph Paul DiMaggio was born on November 25, 1914. His parents were Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio and Rosalie DiMaggio. He had three brothers and three sisters. His brothers were Michael DiMaggio, Tom DiMaggio, and Vince DiMaggio. His sisters were Dominic, Nellie, and Marie DiMaggio. His father was a fisherman, and his family was poor. They lived in an old, small shack. Vince DiMaggio dropped out of high school and turned his back on fishing. He worked at a fruit stand but still had a lot of talent in baseball. He was looked at by semi-pro teams like the Seals. Both of his older brothers played semi-pro baseball for over one hundred dollars a month. He joined the San Francisco Seals and played for them. Joe DiMaggio grew up in San Francisco and went to school there. He was not bad at school through his elementary year but when he got to high school he didn’t fit in. He was a poor son of a fisherman and his schoolmates were higher classed. He dropped out of high school in 10th grade. He worked as a truck loader, and he crated oranges and worked at a factories, but he was not satisfied doing these odd jobs for minimum wage. He thought that being his brothers Tom and Vince played professional ball for the San Francisco Seals he might be able to too. They played for over $100.00 a month. In 1932 he joined the San Francisco Seals. That year he played 186 games with the Seals. That is a huge amount of games for one season. Joe played for the Seals from 1932-35, but made a large impact on major league baseball scouts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In nineteen thirty-five, Joe DiMaggio was invited to go to spring training with the New York Yankees. He met the baseball player Lou Gehrig, and other great ball players. Jerry Coleman, the Yankee’s second baseman, said about Joe, â€Å"Nothing made Joe happier then to do well in a big series and help the club win. He was a winner in the finest sense of the word. He was simply the greatest ball player I ever saw and it’s not easy to carry that burden. Joe carried it with class and dignity.† When the Yankee’s left fielder, Charlie Keller met Joe, he said, â€Å"When... ...ll players of all time. Work Cited Page Internet sources: Vizzuso. Hall of Famer Biographies. [Online] Available http://xroads.virginia.edu/~CLASS/AM483_P7/projects/vizzuso/final.html, April 10, 2000. No author. National Baseball Hall of Fame-Joe DiMaggio. [Online] Available http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers_and_honorees/hofer_bios/dimaggio_joe.html, April 10, 2000. Book sources: Stout, Glen. DiMaggio, an Illustrated Life. New York: Walker and Company, 1995. Outline Joe DiMaggio Controlling Purpose-The purpose about this report is to tell about the life of one of the best baseball players ever, Joe DiMaggio. I- Early Life   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A.) Birth   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B.) Family   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  C.) School   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  1.) Elementary School   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2.) High School   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  D.) Jobs II- San Francisco Seals   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A.) Getting There   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B.) Career Stats for the Seals III- Yankees   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A.) Early Career   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B.) Team Leader   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  C.) Career Stats for the Yankees IV- Family Life   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A.) Marriage   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  1.) Marilyn Monroe   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2.) Dorothy Arnold   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B.) Children V- After the Yankees   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A.) After the Yankees   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  B.) Death   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Is racism still in football?

A lot of people would argue that racism is still around, no matter how much we try to kick it out and especially in Football. Kick it out is a campaign designated purely to stamp out racism in Football. It works throughout the football, educational and community sectors to challenge discrimination and encourage inclusive practices and work for positive change. However after recent events going back a few years racism is still a main part of the football world although most people try to hide the fact that this is happening a lot of others are disappointed and frustrated that this still goes on. â€Å"To any governing body that turns a blind eye, I want to tell you that your attitude only magnifies the fact you are out of touch with the modern game† a strong statement made by Sepp Blatter president of FIFA (The International Federation of Association Football) to suggest that people must speak up, otherwise this problem may never be solved. On speaking about recent events that have caught eye of the public audience’s I’m going to speak on two talented footballers who are generally known around the world; Luis Suarez Captain of Uruguay and an extremely talented footballer who wears the number 7 jersey for Liverpool FC and John Terry, previous England captain and captain for Chelsea FC, both have been in the limelight regarding racial allegations. After being found guilty for misconduct regarding using insulting and potentially racist words towards Patrice Evra of Manchester United, Luis Suarez was banned for eight games and fined ?40,000. The allegations on October 15th during a fixture between Liverpool and Manchester United, during which Evra claimed that Suarez racially abused him â€Å"more than 10 times† (Guardian, 2011) Recently, incidents of racism have been blown out of proportion. Main man for Chelsea and England leader John Terry has been in the public eye following an occurrence that took place December of 2011 between himself and Anton Ferdinand, brother of England’s Rio Ferdinand. John Terry has been accused of racial abuse and has been found guilty on the 27th of July 2012. â€Å"The verdict released by the FA said: â€Å"The Football Association charged Mr Terry on Friday 27 July 2012 with using abusive and/or insulting words and/or behaviour towards Queens Park Rangers' Anton Ferdinand and which included a reference to colour and/or race contrary to FA Rule E3 [2] in relation to the Queens Park Rangers FC versus Chelsea FC fixture at Loftus Road on 23 October 2011. (BBC Sport, September, 2012) Sky Sports are one of the most sports oriented television channels in the UK and I will be assigning my media interest about how they reflect on the racism in the football world, more so in the United Kingdom. For my second week I had to identify, justify and develop an answerable research question Because I decided to focus my media interest on how sky sports deal with the issue that has affected a lot of people in football, this issue being racism, it’s no surprise that my research question will be of the same topic. To begin with I had to do some research to see if the question I’m asking would be suitable and answered by the right audience. However before I reached that stage I needed to find the correct people I’m aiming this question to. So I went and rushed to the nearest shopping centre and asked a lot of local men, there ages ranging 18-24. 17 out of 20 young males identified themselves as regular Football viewers and also check Sky Sports to catch up on the latest. Research Question: How do Sky Sports report racism in Football? Object of Study: In this subject I will be discussing how exactly Sky Sports report the racism that has been going on in recent events going back a few months to the Euro Cup where football players stated ‘if someone throws a banana at me I will go to jail, because I will kill them’ (Mario Balotelli, Sky Sports news) Sky Sports, like any other News Industry contain a lot of facts and gossip. In order to get information from my ‘object of study’ I have decided that I would visit Birmingham City Football club and speak to two young men who play for the clubs reserve squad, I asked them How Sky Sports reports racism and how the audience may respond to them? 8 year old Nathan told me that he had gone through some racial abuse early on in his career ‘I would never get picked for teams, players would never pass me the ball and most likely hear some racial abuse from fans but I believe it made me a better player now’ and 19 year old Jermain told me ‘whether Sky S ports sponge the racism issue these days to get more viewers or not, at least there putting the issue out there more so everybody can see what goes on. However I still needed to ground my question and make it more local, I could only come to a conclusion and make it based more in the UK, ‘How do Sky Sports report football racism in the UK?. Sky Sports covers most of England NI and Wales this could already suggest that all there reports covers only the United Kingdom. In my third week, for my third assignment I’ve had to amend my question and look at something that in my eyes had all the possible attributes to fit that week’s task. I have decided to use the new Guinness advert to show how rhetorical and also semiological analysis are both being used. Directed by Peter Thwaites from Gorgeous, the film was shot on location in South Africa in both Johannesburg and along the Durban coastline. The advert conveys the metaphor amazing things can happen when we challenge ourselves. (Creative report, 2012) The advert in the viewer’s judgments if never seen before can leave them guessing what it is leading to as it did me the first time I watched it. However, I looked back at it a few times and came across a number of key factors that actually do make sense and can relate to the pint of Guinness they are so discreetly advertising. ‘A cloud came from the sea’ the idea here, this could suggest, is that the cloud represents the typical Guinness drinker – someone who has broken away from the masses to find their own path. In a way using a cloud to represent liquid refreshment is very clever and in its own way. â€Å"The cloud came from the sea. He was not like other clouds. The wind could not come on him. The more he saw, the more he did. And the more he did, the more he became. You see he wasn’t just a cloud. He was a cloud made of more† the dialogue is very intriguing and it’s what draws us closer to the advertisement. As the film progresses, the cloud engages with people, places and objects below, seeing itself reflected in a mirrored skyscraper, darkening as it approaches the scene of a fierce industrial fire before the dramatic climax. The cloud then gently drifts back, ocean-bound, and gradually merges into a swirling pint of Guinness, before resolving with the new pint; Guinness. Made of More. Speaking more about the fire scene, in actual essence the cloud does represent a lot more. I believe that the fire represents a man’s rage and the cloud puts out the fire suggesting that if you have a pint of Guinness you’ll be relaxed and cooler. After reviewing this advert I’ve come to a conclusion, it’s just a major metaphor to show the amazing things that can happen when we challenge ourselves to make the most of who we are. Do we settle for the way things are or do we take the bold choice to step up and be made of more? Do we settle for an ordinary drink or do we choose one that is made of more? † Now for my fourth week I decided to focus my task on a new topic, purely because I needed a diverse audience there’s not much diversity in Football between Male and Females. How do audiences get entertainment from watching music videos on YouTube? YouTube provides a venue for sharing videos among friends and family as well as a showcase for new and experienced videographers. Featuring videos it considers entertaining, YouTube has become a destination for ambitious videographers, as well as amateurs who fancy making a statement of some kind. In addition, YouTube emerged as a major venue for excerpts from political speeches (PC Magazine) To find out a suitable answer for my question I had to obviously ask some people and see what their response on the subject is. The 3 people I decided to interview were: 21 year old musician Jamal, 23 year old Producer Michael and 19 year old dancer Emma. All of these people where happy for me to ask them anything as long as it suited the subject. Jamal told me he watched YouTube at least three times a day just too see if he can find inspiration and sometimes check out the competition. ‘YouTube is a massive platform for everybody to show off their skills, I have to see what everyone is bringing to the table to know what kind of stuff I want to bring out, and sometimes find some inspiration’. Michael however wasn’t so bitter and loves watching other musicians and producers on YouTube. ‘I love YouTube, I love everything about it. It’s like travelling the world to see what talents others have but you can do it all in your room if you know what I mean. I watch YouTube every night, sometimes because I’m bored but most of the time for entertainments, it’s like how can anybody get bored of YouTube’. I asked him if he’s ever uploaded anything on YouTube and how that’s affected him ‘Yes, I upload my beats and samples and most of the times I get people messaging me and asking me to make them an instrumental, so it does take most of my time’. To conclude my interview I went over to speak to 19 year old dancer Emma, she told me that if it had not been for YouTube maybe she would have been a nurse. I was studying health and social care in secondary school till I got all obsessed with dancing, so literally every night after school id rush home to watch some magnificent dancers on YouTube. It was like a form of relaxation, I loved it, there were some nights I wouldn’t sleep id just be up all night watching amazing dancers. This was the main factor which made me change my mind in becoming a dancer. As far as entertainment goes, I believe YouTube is the main entertainment site to date for anyone. McQuail – ‘duality of audiences’ is largely used when I was interviewing each one of these people because it gave them sense of equality the way they so passionately spoke about the subject. By reading Stuarts Halls encoding and decoding essay ive come to realise that The terms encoding and decoding are often used in reference to the processes of analog-to-digital conversion and digital-to-analog conversion. In this sense, these terms can apply to any form of data, including text, images, audio, video, multimedia, computer programs, or signals in sensors, telemetry, and control systems. Encoding should not be confused with encryption, a process in which data is deliberately altered so as to conceal its content. Encryption can be done without changing the particular code that the content is in, and encoding can be done without deliberately concealing the content. (Search network, encoding decoding, Stuart Hall) Hall himself referred to several ‘linked but distinctive moments – production, circulation, distribution/consumption, reproduction' (Hall 1980, 128)

Friday, January 3, 2020

The Story of Dido, Queen of Ancient Carthage

Dido (pronounced Die-doh) is known best as the mythical queen of Carthage who died for love of Aeneas, according to The Aeneid of the Roman poet Vergil (Virgil). Dido was the daughter of the king of the Phoenician city-state of Tyre, and her Phoenician name was Elissa, but she was later given the name Dido, meaning wanderer. Dido was also the name of a Phoenician deity named Astarte. Who Wrote About Dido? The earliest known person to have written about Dido was the Greek historian Timaeus of Taormina (c. 350–260 BCE). While Timaeuss writing did not survive, he is referenced by later writers. According to Timaeus, Dido founded Carthage in either 814 or 813 BCE. A later source is the first-century historian Josephus whose writings mention an Elissa who founded Carthage during the rule of Menandros of Ephesus. Most people, however, know about the story of Dido from its telling in Viergil’s Aeneid. The Legend Dido was the daughter of the Tyrian king Mutto (also known as Belus or Agenor), and she was the sister of Pygmalion, who succeeded to the throne of Tyre when his father died. Dido married Acerbas (or Sychaeus), who was a priest of Hercules and a man of immense wealth; Pygmalion, jealous of his treasures, murdered him. The ghost of Sychaeus revealed to Dido what had happened to him and told her where he had hidden his treasure. Dido, knowing how dangerous Tyre was with her brother still alive, took the treasure, and secretly sailed from Tyre accompanied by some noble Tyrians who were dissatisfied with Pygmalions rule. Dido landed in Cyprus, where she carried off 80 maidens to provide the Tyrians with brides, and then crossed the Mediterranean to Carthage, in what is now modern Tunisia. Dido bartered with the locals, offering a substantial amount of wealth in exchange for what she could contain within the skin of a bull. After they had agreed to what seemed an exchange greatly to their advantage, Dido showed how clever she really was. She cut the hide into strips and laid it out in a semi-circle around a strategically placed hill with the sea forming the other side. There, Dido founded the city of Carthage and ruled it as queen. According to the Aeneid, the Trojan prince Aeneas met Dido on his way from Troy to Lavinium. He stumbled on the beginnings of the city where he had expected to find only a desert, including a temple to Juno and an amphitheater, both under construction. He wooed Dido who resisted him until she was struck by an arrow of Cupid. When he left her to fulfill his destiny, Dido was devastated and committed suicide. Aeneas saw her again, in the Underworld in Book VI of the Aeneid. An earlier ending of Didos story omits Aeneas and reports that she committed suicide rather than marry a neighboring king. Didos Legacy While Dido is a unique and intriguing character, it is unclear whether there was a historical Queen of Carthage. In 1894, a small gold pendant was found in the 6th–7th century Douà ¯mà ¨s cemetery at Carthage that was inscribed with a six-line epigraph that mentioned Pygmalion (Pummay) and provided a date of 814 BCE. That suggests that the founding dates listed in historical documents could well be correct. Pygmalion may reference a known king of Tyre (Pummay) in the 9th century BCE, or perhaps a Cypriot god associated with Astarte. But if Dido and Aeneas were real people, they could not have met: he would have been old enough to be her grandfather. Didos story was engaging enough to become a focus for many later writers including the Romans  Ovid (43 BCE–17 CE) and Tertullian (c. 160–c. 240 CE), and medieval writers Petrarch and Chaucer. Later, she became the title character in Purcells opera Dido and Aeneas and Berliozs Les Troyennes. Sources and Further Reading Diskin, Clay. The Archaeology of the Temple to Juno in Carthage (Aen. 1. 446-93). Classical Philology 83.3 (1988): 195–205. Print.Hard, Robin. The Routledge Handbook of Greek Mythology. London: Routledge, 2003. Print.Krahmalkov, Charles R. The Foundation of Carthage, 814 B.C. The Douà ¯mà ¨s Pendant Inscription. Journal of Semitic Studies 26.2 (1981): 177–91. Print.Leeming, David. The Oxford Companion to World Mythology. Oxford UK: Oxford University Press, 2005. Print.Pilkington, Nathan. An Archaeological History of Carthaginian Imperialism. Columbia University, 2013. Print.Smith, William, and G.E. Marindon, eds. A Classical Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography, Mythology, and Geography. London: John Murray, 1904. Print.