Written Assignments

Materials: New York Times or any newspaper (online, print, e-reader, etc).

Many of us think we are informed because we watch television news or listen to radio shows.

There is a problem with this assumption. All news media are in business—their goal is to raise

advertising revenue by attracting an audience. As a result, no matter how much the media claims

to be in the business of "informing" the public, they are often more interested in entertaining

and sensationalizing. This practice applies to all media -television, radio, and even newspapers.

However, the newspaper reader, especially the reader of a national newspaper, is often someone

who is looking for more depth.

Your task for this essay is to observe and analyze coverage of a recent headline story in the New York Times or other newspaper. You will then write an essay (3-5 pages) that describes and analyzes your observations.

Select one situation to follow closely during the next few days. Scan the "International"

and "National" links on the homepage of the website (or section "A" of the print version) of

the Times to see what is currently going on in the news. You will need to define the situation

narrowly to make your job manageable. For example:

Too broad/not manageable:

•Ferguson

Narrowly defined/manageable

* Character Assassination of Michael Brown

* Militarization of Police

Every day, read as many news articles in the "International" and "National" links on the

homepage of the website (or section "A" of the print version) as you can about the situation.

Also check the opinion-editorial section (the "Editorials/Op-Ed" link on the homepage of the website OR the final two

pages in the "A" section of the print version) to see what opinions are being expressed about the

situation being reported.

Your job is to observe. In the same way that you observe a cell under a microscope in a biology

class, observe what the newspaper is doing. Just as you don't judge what the cell is doing,

avoid coming to judgments about what the newspaper is doing. For now, just watch how the

newspaper reports the situation.

Your essay should answer some--but not necessarily all--of these questions:

* What is the situation and why did you choose to follow it in the news?

* What has the newspaper been reporting about this situation? Summarize two or three

of the most informative articles.

* What have you learned about the situation from following it in the news that you did

not know before?

* What is one aspect of the situation that seemed most surprising to you?

* What photographs or other graphics have been accompanying coverage of the

situation? Have these pictures been appropriate? What kind of pictures would

have been more appropriate?

* Have any of the reporters seemed to show any signs of bias? If so, explain what words,

phrases, or content suggests bias.

* What kinds of headlines have the editors been giving stories covering this situation?

What positions have these articles appeared in (front page vs. later page, top vs. bottom of the page)?

As the story has continued, have the articles appeared in different positions? What does the

newspaper seem to be communicating about the importance of the story?

To conclude your essay, reflect on your experience of observing news coverage. What have you

learned about the newspaper and the act of covering the news?

Be sure to use the articles in a variety of ways-summarizing, paraphrasing, and quoting-and integrate them smoothly into your writing by introducing authors and providing signal phrases. Avoid plagiarism and cite all articles correctly in the works cited page and every time you summarize, paraphrase, or quote from an article.