Independent News vs. Corporate News. Credibility and Its Significance in Information Delivery
Essay One: Independent News vs. Corporate News
Choose an article that is over 200 words long from one of the following independent (non-corporate) news websites:
--naturalnews.com
--tragedyandhope.com
--mediamonarchy.com
--21stcenturywire.com
--nomorefakenews.com
--corbettreport.com
Here are some additional (alleged) indie news sites:
• rt.com
• democracynow.org (funded by Rockefeller Foundation)
• aljazeera.com
Video Presentation
The Assignment in a Nutshell
Pick a topic in one independent news site, and then pick a mainstream news site that reports on the same basic topic. Your essay will be easier to write about if the contrast is noticeable between indie and mainstream media reportage.
Chose a third site/source that backs up your point of view (which you will eventually explain in the conclusion). This third source will help to guide your essay through additional facts to back up your thesis statement in the body of your essay.
In the body of your essay, talk about how the topic is reported differently, along with a token amount about similarities. Then pull back your scope and examine the wider implications about the mainstream media. Are there any "agendas" pertaining to the topic you chose? What do you think (in third person)?
Now, make a nice smooth transition into a first person conclusion that states directly what your conclusions are about the topic. Do not use the transition "In conclusion. . . ." This is a tacky cliche and should be avoided.
Please note: There are two more lectures to help you do well on Essay One. These are found down below the Quiz and Discussion in Week One's lessons.
Detailed Description of the Assignment
Narrative Voice: Third person should be the narrative voice you use in Essay One's introduction and body. It's up to you if you would like to transition into First Person narrative voice in the conclusion.
If you would like to choose your own independent news site, that’s fine, but run it by me before you begin writing on it. Many sites that seem independent are actually owned by giant corporations and made to seem independent.
Choose a fairly recent article from one of the independent news sites that is at least 250 words long. Make sure the article takes a point of view. It doesn’t need to be about “politics.” Many health or science issues have two points of view, for instance. Read the article twice, from beginning to end.
Now pick an article on the same topic from a mainstream corporate newspaper or corporate Internet site, and follow the same procedure. Most well-known (and often well-respected) newspapers, news sites, and news websites are mainstream. For example, the New York Times is managed by the Sulzburger family. When one investigates who this family is, it’s easy to see how corporate “the family’s” newspaper truly is. The Sulzburgers helped to start Wallstreet with covert money from European (especially British) banks. They also started the Punch Sulzburger Foundation at Columbia University, which indoctrinates key journalists of power in our global society, and then helps to place them in positions around the nation and the world. These interests are very much in line with the interests of the world’s largest and most powerful corporations. The New York Times is therefore a “mainstream” news source.
Draw a line down a piece of notebook paper and write five main points from each article. Which ones do you agree with? Why or why not?
Once you decide which point of view is most similar to your own, it’s time to sit down and plan your essay. Keep in mind that your point of view is not really all that important (in terms of this assignment). Instead, the way in which you express your views, particularly through citing sources and examples, will determine the grade you ultimately receive. Your first essay is academic; as such, it need not be personally motivated. If you don’t have a point of view, that’s okay. Pick a side and go for it. Just remember not to write in the first person until your conclusion. Rather, you should write in third person narrative voice. This means you cannot use the following sorts of words: I, me, my, our, you, your. Instead use words like people, they, one, etc. For more information, please visit the following website: http://www(dot)mesacc(dot)edu/~paoih30491/PointofView.html.
When you write your essay, summarize the main ideas from each article (independent and mainstream), and then react to them with your own take on the issue. Do not merely restate the premise of the article you have read. Be decisive, take a point of view, and argue it logically by drawing from the article for evidence, hard facts, dates, statistics, etc., and then use these facts to help form your argument about the topic.
After you choose an independent article, choose a mainstream article that directly contradicts the independent article. Now, you are in a position to decide which point of view you will endorse (mainly in the third person).
The Topic
Try to choose an article that goes against mainstream reportage. Once you find one that interests you, read it at least two times so that you are completely familiar with its point of view and the material it covers. Now find a corresponding report on the same topic in the mainstream news, such as any major national or international newspaper, magazine, or television network Internet site (CNN, ABC, CNBC, etc).
Huffington Post, Democracy Now and Drudge also fit into the category of mainstream media that has been camouflaged by ownership that appears to be independent, but when examined more closely, fits into the category of "controlled opposition" for major media, which, in turn, works hand-in-hand as propaganda that benefits the richest families in the world. In light of this fact, it's fine to use any of these news sources, so long as they are used as "mainstream news sources." As such, these sites can be considered "mainstream."
Compare and contrast the reporting in the indepedent news article with reporting in the mainstream news article or broadcast. How does the independent (non-corporate) reportage differ from mainstream reportage?
Because of the Internet, people today have the chance to read news that was written by authors that don't work for corporations with a vested interest in swaying public opinion for economic reasons. Prior to the Internet, independent news organizations were much more challenged when it came to distributing their writing. For this reason, corporate news tended to dominate. Although this is still the case today, for the first time, an author that wants to conduct investigative journalism or to write an article that is critical of "the establishment" has the chance to do so without jeopardizing his ability to reach a big audience.
As I've already said, you should choose a total of at least three sources (two that back up your take on the subject and one opposing view). When it comes to Essay One, try to focus on the actual facts, rather than opinions or hype. Is the mainstream media source hyping the story more than the independent news article, or vice versa?
You can use the four W's of journalism to help you zero in on the facts (who, what, where, when). Now, once you have discussed the facts of the news item, it's time to tackle "why." Why has the news in the mainstream media taken the point of view that it has taken? Why is the article important? What is its significance to people's well-being in the USA and elsewhere?
Avoid using first person narrative (I, me, my, our, we) or second person (you, your) until the end of your essay. Once you reach your conclusion, then switch smoothly to first person and offer your personal take on the news story. Do you have an opinion on it? Why or why not?
echnical Specifications
1. Word count: 900-word minimum/1,000-word maximum. Essays which fail to meet the minimum word count will not receive comments.
2. 12 point font
3. Avoid run ons, fragments, comma splices, and dangling modifiers LIKE THE PLAGUE
4. Title should be centered two spaces under header; body left justified with one of the following: block formatted paragraphs with one extra blank line between them, or, paragraphs indented 5 spaces with no extra lines between them
5. Use of first person is prohibited, except in essay's conclusion.
6. Use MS-Word when submitting your essay attachment to ensure that my software can open it.
7. Cut and paste your submission in the textbox as a back-up to make sure that if you attachment won't open, I can still grade your essay and verify it was finished on time.
8. Header in the upper left that includes the following:
Your name (No Nicknames or Alternate Last Names Please! Use the name that appears in the class grade book!)
Date
Precise word count
Mr. Sigurdson
WR122
10\08\2019
Credibility and Its Significance in Information Delivery
Information is a critical part of today’s society. Americans and people globally actively depend on information to make life decisions, have a stand, and be informed on matters affecting them. Obtaining information today has been made easier by the internet as a person can learn about something happening on the other side of the globe by the touch of a button. The internet has enabled people to exercise their freedom of expression, to speak up without fear of being muzzled or facing any repercussion. The playing field is not entirely fair as some countries face censorship on specific information; for instance, it is impossible to access Google in China. However, significant strides are being made as people are passionately demanding their freedom of expression and right to information. To this effect, many sources of news continue to emerge by the day. Some categories include independent news and corporate news, all of which get protected under the freedom of the press. A fine line can be drawn between the two forms of news sources based on credibility.
Looking at one of the top stories in American politics this week, Donald Trump is facing a fresh impeachment attempt. Natural News, which is an example of an independent news outlet, reported the news and their headline read, “Dems want to impeach a president trying to expose a crime, then elect the person who actually committed the crime.” According to CITATION Hey19 \l 1033 (Heyes), the democrats and their efforts to impeach the president seems desperate, and the Attorney General should put an end to it. They are trying to leverage the situation and impeach Trump for trying to uncover the ‘greatest political scandal in America.’ A transcript released shows that the president did no such thing in his call with Zelensky, and it was Joe Biden who threatened to withhold military aid in Ukraine instead. Zelensky also publicly claimed that Trump never forced him to do anything.
Given the magnitude of this story, it is impossible to miss it in the mainstream media. Aljazeera is one of, if not popular, news outlets globally and is owned by Aljazeera Media Network and funded by the Qatari government; therefore, it gets categorized as a corporate news outlet. Their report based on text messages released that show Trump trying to commit Ukraine into investigating the Biden family, especially a gas company, Burisma, where Bi...
You Might Also Like Other Topics Related to censorship essays:
- Moral and Ethical Development and Issues in Children’s Literature 3 pages/≈825 words | 5 Sources | MLA | Literature & Language | Essay |
- Art And Propaganda: Public Opinion6 pages/≈1650 words | 8 Sources | Chicago | Visual & Performing Arts | Essay |
- Watchmen Roles And Visual Representations Of Female Characters2 pages/≈550 words | No Sources | MLA | Literature & Language | Essay |
- Critique of Technological Determinism Theory6 pages/≈1650 words | 8 Sources | APA | Social Sciences | Essay |
- Brave New World and Censorship Law in the United States6 pages/≈1650 words | 3 Sources | MLA | Literature & Language | Essay |
- Asia Potts ENGL 1120 Change of Media- The Remix Project4 pages/≈1100 words | 3 Sources | MLA | Literature & Language | Essay |
- Paper Proposal: Vulgar Eroticism & White Photographs2 pages/≈550 words | 5 Sources | APA | Visual & Performing Arts | Research Proposal |