English paper

Week 5 Topic Proposal and Summary

This week’s goal is to begin collecting information and planning for the final Commentary essay by reading, thinking, and engaging with your topic. As you determine your topic, you’ll want to be sure it’s viable by understanding the perspectives within it and determining what unique angle you can offer to the conversation. Under each prompt or question below, provide detailed information about your topic.

1. What is your chosen topic, and how did you come across it? Why is it interesting to you? What do you personally hope to gain or accomplish by writing about this topic? In this section, define your topic and explain where you first heard about it (i.e. local newspaper, website, etc.). Reflect on how or why your background, motivations, needs, or interests inspired your curiosity about this topic, and consider how the topic relates to your overall goals for writing.

As of July, the U.S. government has released more than 30,000 documents related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Documents that for more than half a century had been deemed classified. The release of these new file has added fuel to the fire, that is one of the most controversial events in American history. Yet, still today experts are no closers to learning the truth about why Lee Harvey Oswald committed this awful murder 54 years ago.

This topic is interesting to me because I enjoy learning about the history of our great nation. Recently the President Trump has declassified thousands of documents that could shine some light on one of the greatest controversies in the history of the United States. By writing about this topic I hope to gain insight as to why JFK was murdered and who was responsible for his assassination.

2. Provide a brief summary of the topic. Explain the current issues surrounding the topic and share at least two different positions on the topic. As this is a summary, this section should be written in your own words; however, you must first conduct research to complete this section. Find at least two sources that offer differing perspectives on this topic and summarize their points of view. In your summary, also explain who the author or publishing organization is and how he, she, or it relates to the topic. Although we will be learning more about APA style next week, use Chapter 28 in your textbook and our APA class tutorials to provide full references for both sources.

President Kennedy was assassinated on November 22,1963, in Dallas, TX. Oct. 26, 2017, was the final deadline for the US Government to release records involving the assassination. The deadline is the result of a law that was passed in 1992. The recent release of some 2,800 documents involving the assassination of President Kennedy, is a chance to answer many lingering questions about one of the most infamous days in US history. It is also a chance to put some unfounded conspiracy theories to rest, and perhaps give life to other theories.

A different position of this topic is that information like this is released to distract the public from more pressing issues. There are many important problems that demand our thoughtful attention. The reaction to the declassification of the remaining files about President Kennedy's assassination demonstrates how easily our focus can shift away from important issues onto myths, drama and conspiracy.

Schlossberg, J. (2017). JFK's Grandson: The JFK Assassination Files Release Contributed to Our Era of Distraction. Time.Com, 43

Waxman, O. B. (2017). What Experts Have Learned So Far From the JFK Records Releases. Time.Com, 1.

3. What specific issue will you write about within the larger topic, and what unique angle will you provide?

I will be writing about how the release of these documents, is a chance to answer many lingering questions about one of the most infamous days in US history. I will also discuss how stories like this one have the power to confuse and distract, and they have come to play an increasingly large role in our national discourse.

4. Define your audience. Who are they, and what are their needs, motivations, and influences? In what ways will you need to structure your writing to appeal to them? Analyze the groups and individuals who are reading and writing on your chosen topic. Work to define who they are and how their backgrounds will dictate your writing approach.

My target audience is the American people. Too often we let events, like the release of these files, distract us from dramatic issues in society. Many people believe that the government is allowing us access to this information with good intentions. Others believe that it is just a slide of hand to take our focus off more pressing issues. I will present evidence from both sides, with the hope to raise awareness that sometime thing are not always what they seem.