First Assignment Fall 2023

 Choose One

1. Pick any news event (e.g., speeches, press conferences, Sunday morning talk shows) since January 1, 2022 for which you can get a full transcript, recording, or video. Read the coverage of that event in three major mainstream news sources (e.g., New York Times, Politico). How did each define the story? On what sources did the stories draw? Did any miss something important? Explain in light of the outlets’ audiences, constraints, and organizational processes. Among other sources, you may find transcripts at:

• Nexis Uni (from Honnold Library database menu)
• http://www.whitehouse.gov
• https://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/oral_arguments.aspx
• https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Transcripts/
• https://www.c-span.org/

2  Write a case study of citizen journalism since January 1, 2022. That is, explain how material posted online by a non-journalist (e.g., blog posts, tweets, YouTube videos) drove coverage by the mainstream media.  In the specific case that you choose, explain whether the effect was harmful or beneficial.

3. Drawing on firsthand knowledge or experience, write an op-ed (or "guest essay") on any topic that we are discussing. The op-ed should run no more than three pages. You may add a fourth page, discussing strategy for publishing it. Tell where you would submit it, and why you think it could win acceptance. Use endnotes for this submission. If you succeed in publishing this op-ed, you will get an A for this assignment.  (To qualify for the auto-A, it must appear in a legitimate, professional news outlet. Blogs, newsletters, and student publications do not count.)  Click here for an example from 2005.

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• Essays should be typed (12-point), double-spaced, and no more than three pages long. I will not read past the third page. (Exception: option #5, where you should add a short explanation of placement strategy). 
• Please submit all papers in this course as Word documents, not pdfs.
• Cite your sources. Please use endnotes in the format of Chicago Manual of Style.  Endnotes do not count against the page limit. Please do not use footnotes, which take up too much page space.
• Do not use ChatGPT or any other generative AI. Misrepresenting AI-generated content as your own work is plagiarism.  
• Watch your spelling, grammar, diction, and punctuation. Errors will count against you. 
• Return essays to the class Sakai dropbox by 11:59 PM on Friday, September 29. I reserve the right to dock papers one gradepoint for one day’s lateness and a full grade after that.