Final Presentation and Paper - COM 101 - Introduction to Mass Communication

Instructions:

Instructions for your final class discussion. Respond to the following questions:

• Describe the importance of the First Amendment in preserving our democratic freedoms.
• Explain the importance of a “watchdog press” in maintaining a free and open society.  Provide a recent example—positive or negative, in your opinion—of the watchdog press at work.
• Identify how corporate interests have affected the operation of media outlets.
• Describe media convergence and the changes it has created in the way the public consumes news and entertainment.
• Provide an example of how today’s media technologies are being used to communicate in an ethical and responsible manner.  Explain why you chose this example.
• With all that you now know about the communication industry, how has this knowledge:
  • Changed the way you think about the media messages you consume?
  • Changed the way you access your media messages (via the different channels of newspaper, magazines, radio, television, Internet, etc.)?
  • Changed your views about the media’s role in society?

• Finally, complete this sentence:  “In summary, the biggest lesson I learned about the field of communication this semester was. . . .

Instructions for your final paper:

This final assignment for your Introduction to Mass Communication class draws from your comprehensive knowledge of the major issues presented in our class discussions and in your reading material.  The First Amendment, the watchdog press, media economics, and media convergence and technology are the foundation of the modern-day media and the topics we stressed in the course.

Your final paper should build upon the preparation you did for class. In a your paper (five-page take-home essay), please show your understanding of the key concepts brought forth by the questions you thought about above. Do so by:

1. Reviewing the examples listed below. (See “Sample Media Examples that You Can Use.”)
2. Analyzing the media coverage of that particular issue or event presented in the example.
3. Selecting an example—or more than one example—from the list (or identify your own examples) that will enable you to:

• Define each concept;
• Provide an example of the concept “in use”; and
• Synthesize the definition and the example in such a way that it’s clear to your professor that you understand the concept on an in-depth level. In your paper, the concepts that you are expected to analyze include:
  • The importance of the First Amendment in preserving our democratic freedoms;
  • The importance of a watchdog press in maintaining a free and open society;
  • The influence of corporate interests on the operation of media outlets or the information the public gets from them;
  • The way in which today’s media technologies are being used to communicate in an ethical and responsible manner;
  • The convergence of media and how it has altered the way the public receives news and entertainment.
• Conclude your analysis with a reflection about your changed understanding of the mass media (meaning: the way you think about the media messages you consume and your views about the media’s role in society).

Please refer to your class notes and readings to fully explain the concepts.  We expect you to cite your research material according to APA or MLA Style.  (Please see your Bedford Handbook for appropriate in-text and reference styles.)

Sample Media Examples that You Can Use.

For your consideration, the faculty have provided a number of suggested media examples for your review. 

-Kevin Sites hired by Yahoo to do original convergence reporting: Explanation of this new feature:

• http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/12/technology/12yahoo.html?ex=1284177600&en=601508afe447d1f8&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss
• The actual site: http://hotzone.yahoo.com/

-Washington Post reporting on Walter Reed Army Hospital:

• Soldiers Face Neglect, Frustration At Army's Top Medical Facility By Dana Priest and Anne Hull .
• Walter Reed and Beyond .

-Seymour Hersh's reporting on how torture became part of US operations:

• http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2004/05/24/040524fa_fact .

-New York Times discovers Bush approved wiretapping without the necessary court approval.

• First story by James Risen and Eric Lichtblau .
• A critique of the decision to publish this story by an editor of the New York Times .

-Is WalMart Good for America?

• http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/view/
• http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/walmart/

NOTE: You are not limited to these examples. You are welcome to find an appropriate example on your own.   If you use your own examples, please be sure to include the name of the media source and a web link in your citations and references. 

Here is an example of what you are expected to submit in your final paper:
(Note: You must select a different example and provide your own synthesis.):  

A watchdog press has the responsibility to carefully examine government activity.
According to Campbell et al (2005), the press is sometimes considered to be the Fourth Estate or “an unofficial branch of the government that monitors the legislative, judicial, and executive branches for abuses of power” (p. 546). [Defining the concept] 

Woodward and Bernstein's coverage of Watergate, as documented in the Washington Post, is an excellent depiction of watch dog journalism.
[Providing an example] 

Both reporters showed dogged determination to investigate the story. Reviewing library records, talking to personal sources, interviewing employees, and questioning officials about the money trail, Woodward and Bernstein monitored selected activities within the federal government. They felt they had a responsibility to inform the public about the activities of government officials. [Synthesizing the definition and the example]

Grading

An "A" paper will convey an in-depth understanding of a concept and provide a fully integrated example of an appropriate media issue or event. (You may use the same media issue or event for all of the bullet points as long as you are examining different angles of the story.)  

A “B” paper will show thoughtful definition of the concepts and will reference a media issue or event without direct integration of the two components.

A “C” paper will merely define the concepts with accuracy but show little attempt to relate each of the bulleted points to a modern media example.

A “D” paper will have limited information defining the key concepts and only a few modern media examples.

A failing paper will have inaccurate or incomplete information and lack a reference to a modern media example.
 

If you have additional questions on the paper or the presentation, please see your instructor.