Media Research Project

The latest assignment for my CMM101 class was a media research project. We had to chose a topic that was somehow related to media, research it, and give an oral presentation on it. I decided to do my project on military photographers. When I was still in the Marine Corps, there was a military photographer that was attached to my platoon every now and then. Prior to meeting him, I never really gave much thought to these photographers. Once I actually worked with one, I became curious, and this assignment give me the opportunity to learn a little bit more about them.

When it came time to start researching for the project, I was immediately surprised at the lack of information on this subject's history. There was a decent number of sources describing the job today, but I couldn't find much on the origins of military photographers. Compared to the rest of the jobs in the military, photographers really haven't been around that long, so I suppose that explains this lack of information. As I found out, pictures of the military and its actions started appearing during the Mexican-American War. The photographers that took these photos weren't members of the military, however. Rather, they were civilians who followed the military. This continued until the late 19th century. Starting in the 1880s, the U.S. Army's Signal Corps had soldiers assigned as photographers within it. By the end of WWII, military photographers were well established. Since our presentation was supposed to be between 5 and 10 minutes, I didn't go too in depth on this history. Instead, I talked about the mission of military photographers and some of the things they do.

Overall, this wasn't too bad of an assignment, and I was able to learn more about a topic I really didn't know much about.

Hellhound on His Trail Review

As I mentioned in my last post, I recently finished reading Hellhound on His Trail: The Stalking of Martin Luther King Jr. and the International Hunt for His Assassin by Hampton Sides. This was definitely a good book. It begins with James Earl Ray's escape from the Missouri State Penitentiary at Jefferson City and follows his movements prior to and after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It ends with Ray's arrest.

One thing that set this book apart for me was its voice. Even though it is a non-fiction book, Sides presents it in such a way that it appears like a mystery novel or some type of thriller. It isn't dry or boring at all, traits that are sometimes present in non-fiction works. The book's suspenseful nature is especially impressive since everyone is aware that King was assassinated. Yet, during the pages leading up to that infamous gunshot, I found myself hoping he might somehow survive.

In addition to its excellent voice, Hellhound on His Trail is full of details. Prior to writing the book, Side's did painstaking research and traveled to the same destinations Ray went to during his flight. Side's hard work is readily apparent in his presentation. The settings and actions of the book are all vividly described, making it even harder to set down. This is a must read for anyone that is a fan of true-crime, mystery, suspense, or history. Indeed, Side's has masterfully inserted the best traits of each genre in this book.