you need watch the film "Control Room (2004)" or The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (2003) before

write a 3+ page essay, following the basic essay structure, in which

you respond to one of the two prompts below. Before you begin, be sure to read the Course Writing Standards (CWS) document from the course moodle site; the evaluation of your paper is also based on your ability to follow these guidelines. In your essay, you should demonstrate a) comprehension of the required reading assignments and lecture material, and b) an understanding of the film addressed in the selected prompt, i.e. you know the characters, setting, story, themes, perspectives and arguments, important concepts, etc. You only need to pick one of the following as the basis of your essay.

1. 1)  The documentary film Control Room (2004), directed by Jehane Noujaim, presents a unique view of an Arabic satellite news network and its coverage of the beginning of the Iraq War in March of 2003. After studying the supplementary research materials on the course Moodle, write an essay in which you explore how Al Jazeera’s representation of the Arab world and the invasion of Iraq compared with that of the U.S. news media’s perspective. What issues are raised by Control Room that U.S.-based news outlets either censored or ignored in 2003, or even since then? What complexities does the film raise with respect to understanding the concepts of subjectivity and objectivity in news production and documentary filmmaking? How are these issues connected to larger issues concerning the U.S. news media and its portrayal of race and people of Arabic descent?

2. 2)  The documentary The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (2003), directed by the Irish filmmakers Kim Bartley and Donnacha O’Briain, captures the April 2002 coup against democratically- elected Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez. As one of the most controversial films to ever be made in Latin America, it has been virtually banned by the U.S. media and had once provoked death threats when it was scheduled to be screened at the Amnesty International Film Festival in 2003. The film’s producer, Rod Stoneman, has done an extensive case study of the film, a portion of which is posted on the course Moodle. Based on your viewing of the film, and the facts and analyses presented by Stoneman, write an essay in which you not only describe and explain at least three significant moments in the film, but also provide your own reflection on how the documentary organizes and presents the coup, given the allegations and criticisms against it that Stoneman addresses.