Challenges in Analyzing Primary Sources

One of things things I found particularly challenging during my search for primary sources was differentiating between primary and secondary. This is because two major factors contributed to the controversy, one of them happening in January of 2010 and the other happening in March of 2010. January was when Conan O'Brien resigned and the "switch" was announced, whereas March was when the switch actually took place. I decided to overcome this by picking to write about the actual announcement of the change (what happened in January), because January was when the American public seemed to be the most stirred up by this announcement, and in March people seemed to have somewhat gotten over it.

Another thing that I found challenging was not involving my personal opinion in the analysis. I do have strong feelings about this topic, so in order to write an unbiased analysis, I had to emotionally remove myself while reading the articles and interviews.

Unit 2 Proposal

For my Unit 2 Proposal, I am going to write about the Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien controversy that occurred this past January.  

The Tonight Show is an American Late-Night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954 when Johnny Carson was the host. It is currently the longest running regularly scheduled entertainment in the United States. 

On May 29, 2010 Jay Leno, “retired”, left The Tonight Show and created his own show titled  “The Jay Leno Show” which aired at 9:00pm on NBC. Leno handed down the Tonight Show to Conan O’Brien, who had previously hosted “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” from 1993 to 2009. Jimmy Fallon then took O’Brien’s place with Late Night.  

After only seven months after being the host of The Tonight Show, NBC executives told O’Brien that they intended to move the "Tonight Show" to 11:05: to accommodate the Jay Leno Show at 10:35 because Leno’s ratings for his new shows were low and he wanted a better time slot. This would have pushed Conan’s show and Fallon’s show back half an hour, making all of these late night comedy shows very late. Conan O’Brien then resigned, not wanting to participate in this. In result, Jay Leno took back his position as host of The Tonight Show in March of 2010, Jimmy Fallon resumed his show, and Conan O’Brien quit and no longer has a show of any kind.

This switch around made many people across America upset, and a lot of people believed Leno acted unfairly Conan O’Brien was treated wrongly by NBC, whereas some people were glad to have Leno back as the host of The Tonight Show.

I intend to look at interviews that were held by news reporters on major news channels and plan on re-watching some episodes of TMZ and looking at those interviews. Additionally, I plan on using newspapers and magazines that were published very soon after the controversy all as primary sources.

I chose this topic because I have always loved watching all of the late night shows. I loved watching Conan’s show when he hosted Late Night and also when he took over the Tonight Show, and absolutely love Late Night with Jimmy Fallon that now airs. I occasionally watched the Tonight Show with Leno too, although I don’t anymore. I have been watching these shows since elementary school and was emotionally invested in this controversy when it occurred and still have some investment in it. It will be interesting to investigate these primary sources to see if the arguments made either way by people were effective or solely opinions that were not backed up by any solid evidence.

In Class: First Paragraph

Barnes & Noble has a very quiet, peaceful atmosphere. The lighting is warm, the walls are a mustard yellow, the carpet is a dark green, the music typically jazzy, the air smells like a mix of pages of new books and coffee, the employees are friendly and the customers are calm. When you walk in, there are two sets of doors. When you open the first set of doors, there are bargain priced books of all categories surrounding you along with calendars and journals. In front of you, you will see the second set of doors. Once you open these doors, you will see the cash registers to your left, the magazine section to your right, and the books, calendars, journals and accessories directly in front of you that encompass the entire store. The Starbucks that is attached to the bookstore is to the left of the cash register. In the back and various corners of the store there are chairs and couches that customers use to study and relax. Depending on what you came to the Barnes & Noble to do, whether it's buying a book, grabbing a cup of coffee, or relaxing, will determine where in the store you will find yourself.

In class: Thoughts on In-Class Peer Workshops

It's been a long time sinceI have been involved in an in-class peer workshop. I believe the last time I took part in one was my senior year of high school, so that was about 3 years ago. In-class peer workshops aren't my favorite thing in the world, but I don't loathe them. To me, these workshops are simply uncomfortable, kind of like a doctor appointment. On some level, I'm afraid that my peers are going to judge my writing and therefore make me feel insecure. This depends on how well I know my peers. If I'm friends with them, it makes the process even more uncomfortable because I especially don't want people I have actual relationships with "judging" my writing. If I'm only acquaintances then I only dread it a little bit.

On a positive note, from what I remember, in-class peer workshops result in constructive criticism that helps me write a better paper along with forming relationships with people who I don't know, even if it isn't the most pleasant thing.

In Class: Thoughts About Peer Comments

Two things that my peers mentioned/questioned about was the different types of day and the kinds of people who are at Barnes and Noble at these different times. People during the day seem to be people who are taking a break from work or stay at home moms with their kids. People at night are people who are studying...they are in their "comfy" clothes with a cup of coffee and a stack of books. Regardless, it is quiet both times of the day as one of my peers commented on.

One person asked about the types of people and their personalities that go there. He said that there are not too many interactions among people in the bookstore, which is true (unless an employee is helping a customer) and asked what this suggests about the personalities of people who go here. I have never thought of this, as I go to Barnes & Noble pretty often for different reasons and don't give a second thought as to why people might like this quiet, somewhat "anti-social" environment. I will have to think about this since I am a part of the target audience and not simply a fly on the wall with no background whatsoever about this place.

I agree with the comments of my peers and nothing surprised me or caught me off guard. The questions were constructive and will be helpful when I go back to observe next time and when I write my first draft.

In Class: Observing Experience

I'd say I saw about 80% of what I expected to see when I was observing Barnes & Noble. A few examples of things that that didn't surprise me were things like the warm lighting, the numerous amounts books/magazines, the smell of books with a hint of coffee (because of the Starbucks that is attached to B&N), the calming music, people studying and relaxing, the sound of cash registers and employees talking to customers, etc.

So far I have observed during lunch time on Tuesday, and very late last night. I plan on observing at least one more time, probably in the morning to get a feel for what the atmosphere and customers are like at different times of the day. I have always thought of Barnes & Noble as having friendly employees and have yet to have an unfriendly experience, until last night. It was about 11:45pm and an announcement was made that said something like, "Barnes & Noble will close in 15 minutes, please take your items and bring them to the register." I was sitting on the couch where other people were studying and reading, and an employee comes and looks at us and says, "It's time to go guys. Get out." That really caught me by surprise. I understood that the store was closing and it was almost time for people to leave but felt that he could have been a little nicer about it as it was only 11:50pm. Maybe yesterday was a long day and he just wanted to go home, I don't know.

Ethical, Emotional, and Logical appeals B&N makes.

Barnes & Noble makes an appeal ethically and logically to its customers by presenting itself as one of the best bookstores in the United States. The textbook book says, “we observe people, groups, or institutions making and defending claims all the time and ask ourselves: Should we pay attention to them? Can we trust them?” If you simply google Barnes & Noble, their website claims that “Barnes & Noble is the nation's top bookseller brand for the seventh year in a row, and is rated number two in trust among all retailers for the second year in a row according to the EquiTrend® Brand Study by Harris Interactive®.” This is a statistic, so it is not necessarily a fact, but it is evidence. This seems pretty credible to anybody who reads this. Additionally, if you walk in Barnes & Noble, you are bombarded by many different categories and subcategories, books, journals, magazines, periodicals, accessories, music and DVDs. A lot of bookstores only have a couple of what is just listed above, but Barnes & Noble seems to have literally everything in the eyes of the customer.

The emotional appeal that Barnes & Noble is evident because of what the store itself is selling. Barnes & Noble’s products are geared towards the heart. They sell games to make you laugh, journals to write your deepest thoughts in, books that evoke a plethora of emotions, same with DVDs, along with a quiet atmosphere that is conducive to studying and relaxing. People go to Barnes & Noble typically to find something that is going to make them feel a certain way. For example, I went to Barnes & Noble a couple weeks ago to by the new Ray LaMontagne CD because of the way the music makes me feel. Additionally, Barnes & Noble claims (on their website) that their stores “hosts close to 200,000 community events every year.” This makes B&N seem interested in philanthropy and the needs of others too, which feeds on the emotion of its customers.

Overall, pathos, logos, and ethos seem to all mesh together a lot of the time. I believe that most public spaces that sell something use all 3 of these appeals to grab the attention of the customer so they will buy something. Is this manipulative? Possibly. But it works.