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Essay Available:
Pages:
3 pages/≈825 words
Sources:
4 Sources
Style:
APA
Subject:
Communications & Media
Type:
Research Paper
Language:
English (U.S.)
Document:
MS Word
Date:
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Topic:

Short Paper Assignment Description of the issue (Abortion)

Research Paper Instructions:

Given our conversations about Media and Political Knowledge (Chapter 4), Contemporary Political Socialization (Chapter 5), Agenda-Setting (Chapter 6), and Framing (Chapter 7), you are well-equipped to discuss not only how American citizens acquire information about political matters (both consciously and unconsciously), but also how particular stories or aspects of information are made salient in the mind of the public.
For this assignment, you'll choose one of the three following activities:
1) Choose a historic political issue from the 20th Century and briefly describe it. (Examples might include: The Women's Suffrage Movement, The Civil Rights Movement, abortion, Second Amendment rights, The New Deal, etc...) You'll briefly describe the issue and the political actors involved - lobbying/interest groups, political figures, governmental agents, public personalities - folks or groups who played a major part in or offered an opinion on the topic. For this activity, you'll inspect the role of the media in disseminating information about the issue to the public over a period of time. You won't necessarily be able to demonstrate agenda-setting (unless you have access to old historic newspapers/documents to show what was prioritized), so instead, I'd like you to look for headlines or historic articles written as the issue was evolving - and analyze how the media followed the societal change (if anything changed) through language. Did the media "shape" the story with their words? Did they try to "prime" audiences who already had opinions in any way? Were interest groups or individuals trying to "frame" the issue in the media, and were they successful (and in what ways)? Did a policy agenda emerge in response to media or public demand?
Ground rules for all options:
1) You'll use evidence from the lectures and texts as appropriate.
2) You'll properly cite (APA style) any lifted quotes from political communication texts and give citations/context to quotes, headlines, tweets, etc...from media sources.
3) Paper should be typed, roughly 3-4 pages, double-spaced, 1 inch margins in 12-point font. I will not accept handwritten submissions.
4) Papers will be graded on adherence to these guidelines as well as on the strength of your argument and use of evidence from both media content and course materials. I will be looking for thoughtful and creative application of the media content you find/story you decide to cover to the lessons we've already learned in class.

Research Paper Sample Content Preview:

Short Paper Assignment
Name
Institution
Short paper assignment
Introduction
Media comprises of a mixture of public and private posts with content intertwined with different types of activities. Consequently, in some cases, news articles and online media platforms dramatize cases to make stories newsworthy, sometimes unintentionally repeating misconceptions around abortion. As a result, what Americans were exposed to with regards to abortion was partly depended on the behavior of media sites. This paper seeks to inspect the role of media in disseminating information related to abortion.
Description of the issue (Abortion)
The first laws passed against abortion in the United States were in 1710 in Virginia when abortion was made a capital crime. However, in the 20th century, state and federal laws varied; thus abortion lacked proper legislation. The few states that formulated policies lacked evidence to sentence offenders. Also, judges and magistrates showed sympathy for desperate women who sought an abortion. The underlying issue was that women did not commit abortion alone, thus not guilty. It was men who were pushing women into abortion as they refused to marry them. Therefore, in the majority of the cases; women were “more sinned against than sinning” (Fisher, 2014). Also, clinical personnel that performed the actual abortions were guiltier than women. As a result, the discussions around abortion in the 20th century centered on who should be responsible? When should it be said that a woman`s life is in danger so that to permit abortion? Who should carry out the abortion procedure?
Political actors involved
The major movements that developed with regards to abortion held contrasting views; the right to live view and the pro-choice view. For those who supported abortion, argued that it has always been widely accepted in America. However, the opposing side argued that abortion was a thing that emerged in the 20th century and had to be contained. As a result, federal and state laws were torn between two strong views that represented each side of American society. However, the religious community except for the Catholic Church, condemned abortion using the Bible. The Catholic Church did not act independently but supported one or the other prevailing views.
How the media disseminated abortion information
Just like political actors, the media was caught between supporting or opposing laws that regulate abortion. However, irrespective of their position, the majority of the media in the United States focused on abortion as a religious, moral, and legal subject. As a result, the focus was on the dangers of...
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