Students in COM451 class worked on an assignment this week along with journalism students around the country for News Engagement Day. Students worked in groups to find ten current news stories and pair them with songs to create a Spotify playlist that reflects current events. Group one’s playlist is posted below for all to enjoy.

Newsy Toons By Rodney Smith (@ThatBoiBlack), Brooke Mortsolf (@MortsolfBrooke), Michael Amado (@uh_mado10), and Soloman Nwankwo (Solo_jr480)

Newsy Tunes Spotify Playlist

President Trump is pushing to get his border wall approved in the current spending bill. He called it “ridiculous” that funds were not already allocated to the border wall, while also blaming democrats blocking the plan and obstructing law enforcement and border security. The song “Gonna Fly Now” by Bill Conti represents the article Trump urges Republicans to ‘get tough’ on border wall spending.

The next song, “Rude” by Magic! represents the article Trump to Hurricane Florence Survivor: ‘Have a Good Time’. Trump visited North Carolina with the deaths climbing higher from Hurricane Florence. Trump was handing out lunch to survivors who had waited in line for hours and President Trump said, “Got it? Have a good time.” Throughout his visit in North Carolina, President Trump was in an “upbeat” mood.

“Roar” by Katy Perry compliments the article In-N-Out Burger donates $25,000 to the Republican Party, sparking uproar and boycotts. According to the article In-N-Out Burger has donated thousands of dollars to California’s Republican Party. They also donated to the Political Actions Committee, Californians for Jobs, and Strong Economy. These donations have had mixed reactions from people.

“Alright” by Kendrick Lamar goes with the article Wrongly imprisoned golf artist released after media publicity. Valentino Dixon was wrongly imprisoned for 27 years for the killing of Torriano Jackson in 1991. He had illegedly drawn “evocative” drawings on golf courses. The reason he gave was that his spirit was telling him to do the drawings. There was no evidence of Dixon being at the crime scene and the police did a bad job collecting the evidence that was present at the scene. Eventually, another person came forward that they were the one to kill Jackson.

“Girl on Fire” by Alicia Keys represents Toyota-supported flying car hopes to light the Tokyo 2020 Olympic flame. Saturday, September 15th, Japan tested their flying car in the hope that it would be incorporated in the 2020 Olympic Games. The project was started in 2014 and was aimed to be finished in 2018. The model was able to lift off the ground and float for a “few seconds.” The engineers said that the car needs more stability. Toyota Motor has “invested 42.5 million yen or $385,000 for the next three years.

“Don’t Care About Us” by Michael Jackson supports the article Trump’s immigrant roundups increasingly net noncriminals. Customs Enforcement agencies are arresting immigrants with no criminal record at the border. The killing of 20 year old Millie Tibbets is being used by President Trump to enforce his stricter immigration controls. According to the article, the amount arrest has risen 66 percent since the being of 2018.

“Survivor” by Destiny’s Child represents the article A Year Later, Puerto Rico Still recovering from Hurricane Maria. Last year on September 20, Hurricane Maria wrecked havoc on Puerto Rico costing the economy “$140 billion.” A report from George Washington University said that about 2,975 people have died. The report was criticzed by President Trump arguing that Hurricane Florence was “Wetter” than Hurricane Maria. Trump claimed that when he left Puerto Rico there were only “6 – 18 deaths.” Then a long time after Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico started reporting more and more deaths in larger numbers. Lawmakers called Trumps comments “grossly inaccurate, callous, embarrassing and beneath the dignity of the Office of the President of the United States.”

“Hot in Herre” by Neyo goes with the article NASA Spacecraft on Mission to ‘Touch the Sun’ Sends Back First Images. NASA is attempting to be the first to fly a spacecraft into the million-degree sun. The spacecraft, named Parker Solar Probe, launched earlier this year in hops to get closer to the sun and answer questions about stars. NASA enticipates the mission will take seven years to complete. Today, on September 20, 2018, the first images were received from the spacecraft.

“Where is the Love” by Black Eye Peas relates to the article Federal Agency Says it Lost Track of 1,488 Migrant Children. The U.S. federal agency lost about 1,500 migrant children after putting them in homes across the country.

“Under the Weather” by Mac Miller represents the article More than 130,000 lbs. of ground beef recalled due to E. coli concerns after 1 dead, 17 sick. 130,000 lbs of beef is recalled after an Ecoli outbreak. Cargill Meat Solutions in North Carolina. The recall happened after an investigation of 1 dead and 17 sick.