Week 5: Assignment and Student Response to Discussion One and Two

This Final Research Paper requires that you build on knowledge that you have obtained across the previous weeks. Each topic is based on one of the theoretical concepts: framing, agenda-setting, or priming. You will choose one of the following topics for your Final Research Paper:

· On the Agenda: How the media uses agenda-setting on political issues.

· Getting Framed: An analysis of framing of political issues in the news media.

· Primed for Action: How news organizations use social media to report political issues based on the priming theory.

For the paper, you will choose one political issue to focus on. You will also choose three different news media outlets (print or electronic) to research. The political issues cannot duplicate any that you have investigated for previous assignments. The issues must be recent (within the past year), controversial issues on a local, national, or international level. In the paper, you must:

· Define the origins of the theoretical concept associated with the chosen topic.

· Identify and describe at least two previous studies conducted utilizing the theoretical concept in the investigation of the media.

· Discuss the nature of the chosen political issue.

· Illustrate how the chosen media outlets present the political issues in relation to the applicable theoretical concept through specific examples.

· Discuss the overall impact of the presentation of the political issues by the news media outlets in relation to the theoretical concept.

In addition to the three media sources, a minimum of five scholarly resources must be used (Wikipedia, or any online reference that allows user changes are not considered a scholarly source), three of which must be found in the Ashford University Library. Acceptable resources are books, trade journals, other professional journals, newspapers, or professional publications. Articles used should be less than five years old.

Writing the Final Research Paper

The Final Research Paper:

1. Must be eight to ten double-spaced pages in length (excluding title and reference pages), and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.

2. Must include a title page with the following:

1. Title of paper

2. Student’s name

3. Course name and number

4. Instructor’s name

5. Date submitted

3. Must begin with an introductory paragraph that has a succinct thesis statement.

4. Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought.

5. Must end with a conclusion that reaffirms your thesis.

6. Must use at least eight scholarly resources, two of which can be found in the Ashford University Library, three which must be media resources.

7. Must document all sources in APA style, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.

8. Must include a separate reference page, formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.