Articles written by Cyndy Hardy

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About me - Cyndy Hardy

Hi there! I'm a freelance journalist living in Sedona, Arizona. My niche is investigative reporting but I'm trying to broaden out into feature and entertainment writing. Bear with me while I try new forms of writing. I'd love to hear your feedback, rants

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Politics, News & Issues > US Elections Archives Assessing Mitt Romney's chances for the 2008 Republican primaries: 1 of 15
Mitt's Not Two-Faced: If He Were He'd Wear the Other One Presidential candidate Mitt Romney bombed at CNN's Nov. 28 YouTube debate. The meltdown started when he bashed Rudy Giuliani for his sanctuary policies as mayor of New York City. Giuliani said his policies complied with federal mandates to provide healthcare and educat... More..
Society & Lifestyle > Personal Morals & Values How to become a better person: 15 of 192
Define integrity. To me, it is what you do when no one is looking. Sounds simple, right? How you behave when no one is watching is the foundation of your character. If you want to be a better person, start with this ... now. How about forgiveness? Someone cuts you off in traffic. Your lover misses an important party. The kid... More..
Entertainment > Music Business Prince: Is giving away music bad for the music industry: 1 of 8
So, Prince pissed off the record industry by packaging his new album, "Planet Earth," with the British tabloid, Mail on Sunday. The rack price is $2.80. The paper's average distribution is about 2.3 million. If record label executives see Prince as a rat, he's a rat that knows when to jump off a sinking ship. Imagine that yo... More..
Politics, News & Issues > News Industry Does the media cause crime?: 5 of 13
Mohtarama Nenazir Bhutto pulled her shawl tighter around her head moments before the explosion ripped away both her life and Pakistan's best chance of democracy. Funny, I felt no sudden urge to run out and kill Hilary Clinton. Does that mean someone else won't try? No. If they did, would that mean the media caused the crime?... More..
Arts & Humanities > Writing Tips Guide to general improvement of your writing: 16 of 41
HOW TO BE A MEDIOCRE WRITER Write only when the mood hits you. Don't practice every day; that's too much effort and you don't have time anyway. Don't use spell check. Your readers will be too overwhelmed by your brilliant prose to notice you couldn't be bothered to let the computer check your work for you. And if you must us... More..
Politics, News & Issues > Politics, News & Issues (Other) Understanding copyright law: 7 of 15
Don't Be Fooled About Your Rights as a Writer The U.S. Court of Appeals of the Second Circuit today reversed a lower court's decision that would have paid about $18 million to freelance writers whose work was unlawfully distributed by some major publishers and electronic database services. The writers lost this round of liti... More..
Politics, News & Issues > News Industry The impact of blogs on the news industry: 25 of 40
Journalism vs. Journalizing As public faith in traditional media gives way to alternate news sources such as blogs, news consumers should arm themselves with information to best discern the information by which they form personal opinion. "Journalism" is the collection and periodic publication or transmission of news through... More..
Creative Writing > Reflections Reflections: Form letter in response to criticism: 81 of 121
Sedona residents do not need their community newspaper to take on the role of Wile E. Coyote ["Do green benefits of RoadRunner make costs worthwhile?" Oct. 17]. He's a fictional character who is always wrong; and who always ends up on the wrong side of the anvil. A little research into city documents and the newspaper's own ... More..
Personal Finance > Mortgages & Home Loans Guide to mortgage loans: 19 of 21
Why Your Credit Report Matters to Mortgage Lenders Every time mortgage lenders make a loan they run the risk that the borrower can't or won't pay it back. Lenders use many tools to analyze and reduce that risk, including your consumer credit report. Think of it like a resume. Your resume tells an employer if you are a good m... More..
Jobs & Careers > Stress & Time Management Most embarrassing moment on the job: 14 of 14
"Fast-food burritos should be called "gut bombs!'" Alice muttered around a rancid burp. Twenty minutes ago she had wolfed down the culprit, steering the Jeep Cherokee with one knee while she thumbed a number on her cell phone with her free hand to tell her client she'd be late. The quick meal between multi-million-dollar app... More..