Write a 5 page paper (not including title page and works cited page; Times New Roman, 12 pt., double spaced) that has three main parts:
I. Overview of the issue;
II. Summaries of the articles; and
III. Analysis/Questions.
I. Overview of the Issue: State the issue you’re researching, providing a definition or a brief explanation of it (and please indicate where you got this information). Then write a sentence or two about how it relates to what you’re learning in your Media and Civic Engagement course.
II. Summaries: Please do the following for each article:
• Indicate the country of origin of the article (where the news article/transcript was first published/broadcast), and state how you determined the country of origin.
• List the sources of information named within the article: Which people, organizations, reports, etc., does the writer quote directly or otherwise attribute as sources of information for the article?
• State the article’s main points in your own words.
III. Analysis:
A. Compare and contrast the perspectives on the issue that are reflected in the five articles. In other words: How are the articles different or similar in terms of how they present the issue? Which aspects of the issue are considered important, unimportant, or not addressed at all in the different articles?
B. Following up on your answer to A above, discuss some of the factors that may have shaped these perspectives: How do you think the sources cited in the various articles may have influenced the perspectives from which they represent the issue? Do the sections of the newspapers in which they were published, or anything else, provide clues about the audience(s) that might be targeted by the different articles? Can you think of any relevant perspectives that may be left out of all of these articles? Cite at least 3 of our class readings in your discussion.
C. Write at least two questions that were prompted by reading these articles. They can be questions to which you have found the answers, or things you’re still wondering about. Was there anything that was confusing because you didn’t have the background to understand it? If any of the articles were translated from their original language, do you think anything was “lost in translation”? Also indicate where you might be able to find out more information to answer your questions (besides doing a general Web search).
