LGBT

Tom Cook has never acknowledged his sexual orientation publicly, until a post on the Bloomberg Business Week website. He has always tried to maintain a basic level of privacy throughout his professional life to keep the attention away from himself and focus much of his attention on his products.

“I’m proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me.”

Tom Cook fits into the 20 percent of the world which is estimated to be gay or homosexual by a study from the National Bureau of Economic Research in 2013. This is nearly double of the actual estimated figure of 10 percent that was previously believed to be true. The growing percentage of homosexuals in this day and age has caused many other gays to step up and come out to their families and friends.

Most recently, Tom Cook came out to the rest of the world online. ‘Famous’ people like Cook help provide confidence for the rest of the world to be grateful and proud of who they are. Not only has Cook given a spur of confidence to other young or old gays, but other normal everyday people have too. There are over 14 million results when searching the keywords ‘Coming Out’ on YouTube. Many of these videos are just ordinary people coming out to their families, others tips and tricks for coming out. This is just another piece of evidence of how strong internet connections are and how anybody can make a change in the world.

Troye Sivan, a YouTuber with nearly 2 million subscribers (or viewers), has definitely made a desirable effect on the world at the age of only 19. Not only has he released a music album and have a very high profile online presence, but he is gay. He came out to his viewers on August 7, 2013. His loving, close-knit family have accepted Troye for he is and have supported his YouTube and music career unconditionally.

On the other hand, there are coming out stories that do not end with a ‘happily ever after’ but self harm and suicide instead. According to the Trevor Project, a movement started to support gays who may experience problems during their journey as a homosexual, say that LGBT (lesbians, gays and bisexuals) youths are four times more likely to commit suicide than straight children or teens their age.

Coming out and being homosexual is especially hard on teens, as it is an ‘awkward’ time in terms of body changes and figuring out who you are. This is why projects like The Trevor Project exist- for support that may not be there for teens in their surroundings. They offer a 24-hour hotline and a branch called TrevorSpace. TrevorSpace is social networking site for LGBTQ (lesbian, transgender, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth) aged 13 through 24 to talk to one another and find support in people their age.

Although many people are allies of LGBT community and say they support it, but not much action is taken against discrimination of homosexuals. This is where being an ally comes in. This is where people fully support gays and take action against racial slurs and discrimination against the LGBT(Q) community.

One’s sexual orientation should never change the level of respect for another. Being gay doesn’t change the person in any way- they just have different preferences. Haven’t people always said that love knows no boundaries? Why should it stop at what we assume marriage can only be- between a male and female? There are endless questions towards gays- ranging from reproduction and religion that will probably never end.

The only thing we can do is try to understand their point of view, as much as they understand straight people’s desire for people of the opposite gender. We need to let them know they aren’t alone. 

By Jo Yie

YouTube : It's Power

He angled his camera towards his brown sofa, the light reflectors highlighting the undertones in his skin. He hit the record button. “Well hello everybody, my name is Tyler Oakley!” pulsated around him as he began filming his next video.

He is a YouTuber.

YouTubers are just like regular people, they live normal lives, go through normal things but the only difference is that they film it, often talking to a camera, doing tutorials, putting up little skits, doing challenges and or even making short films. But what makes it so unique, what makes it so much better than actors on the big screen? How is it that a person you have never met, one you only see through a computer screen can impact you in the most significant way, change your personality, change your life?

For many, YouTube is really the first site to search for videos online. Whether it be a video about the latest political election, a funny cat video or a tv show, Youtube has it all. It all started when three men, Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim were looking for videos online but had terrible difficulty in finding them so they created YouTube, intended for sharing videos but has grown and evolved to much more. It is a special place, to some, their own Hogwarts where they can express themselves in an unprecedented way. YouTube isn’t just a place for outcasts making videos, contrary to what most people think. It focuses on real issues and it gives people something to relate to and has enough potential to be huge.

For an expert testimony, this reporter referenced Susan Wojcicki, the current CEO of Youtube who has said YouTube has been putting more and more effort into getting the YouTube community more popular saying, ‘YouTube personalities are well known to their audience but not to other people” and also explained on how and why she wants to change that. She makes it clear that YouTube has a lot of power and it certainly gives “a voice to people who would otherwise not have one” which ties into what YouTuber Bethany Mota had to say about her journey on YouTube, she talked about how it really did give her a platform to voice her thoughts for when she didn’t have that.

In the UK, a poll held by Tesco Mobile found that nearly a third of the population aged 16-25 watch YouTubers at least twice a week. Another survey revealed that 15 out of 22 middle schoolers say that they watch Youtube on an everyday basis and 11 out of the 15 say that these YouTubers have affected them in some way or the other. This information reveals that growth of the YouTube community is truly life changing and it definitely has the power to impact more lives.

Another survey conducted by Variety magazine found that YouTube celebrities are more appealing to Americans, aged 13 to 18 more that mainstream Hollywood stars revealing that The similarity between YouTubers and their viewers is the lifestyle they both share and that’s what makes them appealing. They share their life, their past, their thoughts and it almost feels like having a best friend who you haven’t actually met.

“These people have such a strong connection with their audience, and that just isn’t possible if you’re starring in a Hollywood hit every two or three months,” says Ben McOwen Wilson, the director of content partnership for YouTube EMEA, “There is no genuine personal connection with the audience, which is what it takes to be successful on YouTube.” Whether they vlog or film their whole day, or use social media, these YouTubers connect with their viewers on a daily basis, talk to them and do anything in their power to meet them- something that separates them from celebrities.

You may now think that YouTube is a place for uncultured slobs making crazy weird videos but give them a chance. But, quite the contrary, one Youtuber in particular that has impacted the whole Youtube community is Tyler Oakley, a 25-year old man with almost 6 million subscribers and over 250 million views. He is not just a YouTuber but also is an advocate for The Trevor Project, which is a suicide prevention project specifically orientated to gays, a project for which Tyler raised $250,000. Being an openly gay YouTuber, he always voices his opinion on gay rights and equal rights for all. So you see? YouTube can do things, it can change lives, it can promote well-being and it can be a safety suit for people to fall on when they’re down.

Give them the time of day because the amount of hard work, creativity and love that goes into these videos is unimaginable. Watch their content, theres nothing you can lose from it but theres a lot to gain. The journey that YouTube has taken and given is incredible and deserves to be recognized. “We’re just getting started with YouTube and its potential,” said Omid Kordestani, Google’s chief business officer.

There’s a lot of talk of YouTube possibly being the next television, who knows? Maybe in a few years time, you’ll be watching YouTubers on a weekly basis.

By Urja

It's All Fun and Games till Someone Gets Hurt

During lunch one day, a female 5th and a male 4th grader decided to approach a group of 8th grade girls and have an interesting but out of hand conversation with them. At this point a few other girls accumulated together around the 2 like bees gathering around a field of unpollinated flowers. The duo thought they had as much power over them as the president as they burst out in nonsensical insults such as“Oh you wear glasses, nerd!” or “You have pimples, your face is just one giant wart”. Why were they doing this? Did they believe that this would offend the 8th graders? To find out more, I interviewed a witness of the event, 8th grader Sofia says “I thought they were mean and I think they didn’t fully understand what they were doing, when they grow up I think they need to understand that making fun of people can have a long lasting effect” . So the question that you may be asking currently is; ‘Bullying, how does it impact the victim and do the bullies realize what exactly they are doing?’

This is why bullying is a problem mainly with students, if they are not educated from a young age then they could cause a lot of harm to someone’s life in the future, pain that cannot be mended over a short period of time. According to recent statistics, approximately thirty percent of students in the United States are involved in bullying on a regular basis either as a victim, bully or both. Statistics also show that 1 out of 5 kids admit to being a bully and considering this doesn’t include the ones that remain quiet about their actions this is a considerably large amount. While there are many definitions of the term ‘bullying’ , it is essentially characterized by one or more people acting in a negative way towards a vulnerable peer. There are so many opinions on the subject matter, so I asked a few anonymous 8th grade students to share their thoughts. “In my eyes, bullying is just a way to make the bully feel better about himself, done in a very wrong way” , “Bullying is bad. It is done by people who are sadistic and are sometimes not even aware they do it” another said. The results seemed to be very similar, an expected reaction because as children are getting older they are realizing the full impact bullying can have. Dr Delphine Koh, A senior psychologist (Clinical) who works in Department of Psychological Medicine, Child and Adolescent Mental Wellness Service in KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital says; “Some behavioral and emotional responses to bullying include trying to avoid peers or situations in school, getting anxiety attacks, having difficulty sleeping at night, crying every time one recalls the bullying incident, and self harm or suicidal behaviors”

The impact can have a very strong and long lasting effect on the victim’s perception of themselves. A well known example of this is the Amanda Todd incident. Amanda once flashed on a webcam because she was convinced by a viewer . She received a lot of unnecessary backlash from this event. The emotional pain from this situation was too much for her too handle and quoted directly from the transcript of the video she made before she committed suicide “I overdosed, In hospital for 2 days, I’m stuck, what's left of me now, nothing stops. I have nobody ”. Its difficult to understand what she truly went through but judging by the way she described her feelings it made many feel a lot of sympathy towards the girl, sadly by the time so many people were aware of her incident it was too late. There’s no need to bully someone for their mistakes, especially so much so to the point when they have lost the will to live.

Bullying is a worldwide problem and it is an issue that is most likely is going to be around for years to come, no matter what we try to do people still believe that by bringing others down they will raise their own self-esteem in the process. Bullies have different reasons as to why they decide to do what they do, it may be because you think its ‘cool’. It may be because you have something going on in your own life that you need to make up for by letting another person feel the same pain you are. No excuse that you have gives you a real reason to bully someone. You don’t understand that something that was so harmless to you could have gone one step too far for the opposing side of it.

In some cases it goes so far down the scale that after it’s happened there’s nothing that you or anyone can do about it. There are so many things you could do to help prevent bullying or at least make a small difference. Offer a shoulder to cry on or just smile at them and ask them how they are. That’s all you have to do. Expert Dr Delphine Koh shares her message on what can be done to prevent bullying, this is what she had to say; “Whole school policies are one of the more effective ways to prevent bullying. A clear message has to be made that bullying in any form is not accepted. Encourage children to speak up when they get bullied. Having awareness and positive involvement of adults (e.g, teachers, principals, school counselors and parents) when instances of bullying are reported helps make the school a safe environment for speaking up against bullies”. Bullying can stop, its your decision whether you want to work for it or not, realize that what you’re doing as a bully can deeply change a person’s life entirely , make that conclusion and resolve it before its too late. After all blowing out someone else’s candle won’t make yours shine any brighter.


By Sneha

The Problem With Technology

What do you use to call, text, search for information, use for school and not to mention use during your free time and before you sleep?

The bright colours on the screen has got everybody’s eyes glued to it for hours. Every time you sit down and look around, you’ll see everybody staring at their devices motionless. Nothing that is interactive going on between people. That is the problem in the 21st century, all people care about is checking notifications and messages, nobody is bothered to meet the person and say hi.

Technology is a big problem especially to teens. Teens would rather use their phones and laptops instead of going outside or doing sports or activities. Sometimes even adults cannot resist the screens and you can’t shut it off unless someone drags you away from it, or nobody is online, (A thing that rarely happens). Larry Rosen, a professor of psychology at California State University states that “teens who use Facebook tend to have more narcissistic tendencies, while young adults who are active on the site display other psychological disorders.” Another psychologist reveals that what’s not great about texting is that “it takes away all forms of face to face interaction – it takes away fully formed sentences – even spelling mistakes are accepted. And so, people tend do not engage in meaningful communication – they’re engaging in efficient and quick communication.”

What some readers may not realise that even teens think they spend too much on technology. All of the teens surveyed all said yes they spend too much time on technology. A source quoted that “Students use it for school which is already a long time and then for homework, social network, and games. New technology comes out almost every single day and a lot of teens get too caught up with the trend.” It becomes even more clear that teens realises how much they use it but still can’t resist it.

One by one, teens’ obsession with technology grows until they’re on their phone or laptop in a day longer than they go to school. Teens need to be more aware of the time they spend on technology, socialising with friends and family offline is more important. Put your technology down and enjoy life.

By Angelina

What Is Skateboarding?

Skateboarders are being discriminated by the society because they are “troublemakers”. What people really don’t know is how many benefits you can get out of it, and how much more there is to it than a piece of wood on wheels.

On a hot March Saturday, professional skateboarder, TJ Rogers was skateboarding at the east coast skatepark. The crowd was huge, he was fierce. He was confident like Katniss and concentrated like Asterix. He bolted through the skatepark like lightning, as the harsh sun rays burned his skin. He was trying a trick that has never been done at the skatepark before. He tried non-stop and refused to give up at all. He got hurt many times, but still got up and tried over and over again. He started to slow down, as he looked faint. He looked as if he was woken up at 4 am on a monday morning. He looked tired, as he stepped off his skateboard. The crowd was confused and clueless to what was happening. He looked around as he found the nearest garbage bin. He started to vomit. He sat down for for a while. about 30 seconds later, he immediately got back up on his board. He went to the obstacle he was trying his trick on, and tried again and again. He got hurt, but he walked it off, and kept trying. The crowd cheered him on, as he tried one last time. He executed it perfectly and threw his board into the air as his final celebration.

Skateboarding is not a sport. It is more. There are more benefits you can get out of skateboarding than regular sports. Skaters jump of stairs repeatedly, trying the same trick over and over again until they successfully execute their trick no matter how much it hurts to keep trying after falling a countless amount of times.

Skateboarding teaches resilience. When a skater falls down after trying a trick, he will get back up and try again and again until he succeeds. To learn a skateboard trick, you will fall a countless amount of times, but still get up and try again. Skateboarding teaches you how to take risks. “It’s better to go out like a man than to play it safe and get second” -Professional skateboarder, Sean Malto. Skateboarding pushes your limits, and forces you to challenge yourself and conquer your fears. Skateboarding also boosts your creativity and changes the way you see things. It is a way of expressing yourself and letting go of all the stress inside of you. “I consider skateboarding an art form” -Tony Hawk. “Skateboarding lets us employ the handiwork of the government structure in a thousand ways the original architects could never dream of” -Tony Alva.

By Martin

The Power of Social Media

Do you have the newest iPhone or Samsung? Do your friends? Technology and social media has had such a huge impact on our everyday lives. It’s trendy to have the latest technology and all of the social media; it is useful machinery but sometimes it can get distracting.

Haley is a typical fangirl of all the boy bands and youtubers, she has the need to know what they are doing at all times. She is on her phone at least every 10 minutes and it’s causing her to not focus at what’s a hand such as her subjects. Her parents are giving her a hard time about her grades and so she just hides away and goes on her phone which only worsens the issue. Haley always skips class and locks herself in the bathroom stalls at school, it’s like Alice escaping reality and going to ‘Wonderland’. Haley thinks that school doesn’t really matter to her. She just spends her weekends with her head in her laptop. She hardly talks to her parents even when they try to start a conversation with her fearing that all they will talk about are her grades. She shuts everyone out and is in her own world.

It turns out that this was not an isolated incident, the people interviewed were asked what social media’s weaknesses were and 100% of them said that it is distracting. They mostly all agreed that that was one of social media’s biggest weaknesses alongside cyber-bullying.

What, you may ask, should you do? Well, the choice is up to you really. Social media has a huge impact on our everyday lives as it shapes the way we do things. You’ve probably encountered many times when 2 people that have gone for dinner at a restaurant are found on their phones and not talking to each other. It’s distracting and sad that these people aren’t having a proper conversation with each other and as you keep looking back at them - to check if they’ve put their phones down - you’re disappointed when you find they are still at it. The only time they look away from their devices is to eat their food. It breaks your heart every time but makes you angry unless you’re one of them.Sofia goes on to say “yes, it is distracting but in a certain type of context. It distracts people that are doing work but it doesn’t distract people that are doing nothing. Anonymous then comments about a specific social media called Instagram “Instagram is like a drug, you can’t really get off it, it’s addicting”.

You may be surprised to find that when the world found out when the iPhone 6 was released they bombarded Apple with around 4 million pre-orders. Apple has grown rapidly to be known worldwide for it’s great technology since founded in April 1976.

Millions and millions of people are on some kind of technology at all times, whether it’s doing research for a school project or, having a skype conference or checking people’s status they are always there.

By Lauren

Is Underage Drinking the same as getting social media underaged?

Getting Social Media underage is the same as underage drinking. The topics looks to be very different but actually the rules are the same. Legally You have to be 18++ to drink and according to facebook you have to be 13++ to create an account. People follow the drinking rule but why not facebook rule? This is because if you drink underaged you would break a law and a fine up to $500. why doesn't people follow this rule? This is because there is a lot of slack with facebook since you think you are hidden behind a computer screen therefore you wouldn't think that they would know your personal information such as age,birthdate,gender.

Age 9. Youtube would be your best friend, from finding funny videos to vlogs. Now you could actually become famous on this platform for example Tyler Oakley , Bethany Mota , Troye Sivan etc. But that's the good side of youtube. Everyone knows the internet is not completely safe there's that other side that has everything you don't want your kid to see and now it maybe possibly stumble upon one of the videos, think its safe and continue to watch it.

Something that also affects kids is that using the internet at such a young age is messaging applications like Gmail Chat, Facebook messaging but it mostly happens in online chatrooms. People now use “Internet Slang” ( brb,tbh,gtg etc). As people get used to the new “language” . “It now affects the classroom, now they do not capitalize words or use punctuation anymore” a teacher claims. Now because of the impact on some students english people may not take you seriously because your english may not be up to the level of some other people that aren't influenced by social media.

Age 12. Twitter is now the new way to express your thoughts in 140 characters. But theres such things like Twitter Fights that go on. For example Hollywood stars Amanda Bynes and Rihanna had a big argument on a “public stage” since both of them both have millions of followers watching them fight it out. This is not appropriate for kids to experience these things because there is mostly cursing and racism involved.

My personal experience with twitter is looking at what my friends and some celebrities talk about. Some people either finding out where their favorite stars are at that moment or trying to get them to notice them by retweeting and favoriting.

Finally Age 13. Snapchat is 3-10 seconds of laughter for you to share with your friends, you can post whatever you want to whoever you want. The Problem with snapchat is that you can screenshot the photos that you send to people but there are some websites that you can use to retrieve old snapchats that you may not want other people seeing. when you click on your username it would show 3-4 people that are your “best friends” on snapchat. some people get jealous of because they aren't your “best friend”

“Facebook one of those things that you see your mom on nowadays” a student claims. this is because n parents are now engaged with social media more than ever because they want to be aware of the dangers and they want to make sure that this platform is safe for their child

People need to learn that all websites have restrictions because some things are not appropriate for the certain age group so to conclude this topic I say that Underaged Drinking is just like getting Social Media underaged.

By Cala