Analyze how news media’s portrayed the catastrophe happening in Syria and turkey and how this type of news can affect people who constantly listen/read about it.
Overall Prompt: You will write a formal essay (2-3 pages) about one or more media example(s) (e.g., TV show, movie, advertisement/commercial, video game, podcast, video, cartoon, article, TikTok, Instagram post) and relate it to at least 3 concepts, theories, or studies about news discussed in class an/or in readings. This is not a summary of what we have talked about; I want to see you apply the concepts, theories, and/or studies we’ve discussed in class to media that you have experienced in your own life.
Here is a list of concepts, theories, and studies that count for this week’s reflection. You must bold the terms in your essay when you use them. (Note: if the concept was introduced only in lecture, you’ll see the appropriate lecture listed. Otherwise, the appropriate reading will be listed):
- Public opinion (News lecture)
- Public discourse (News lecture)
- Agenda-setting (Sparks, Ch. 9)
- Framing (Sparks, Ch. 9)
- Selective exposure (Sparks, Ch. 9)
- “If it bleeds, it leads” (Sparks, Ch. 9)
- Negativity bias (Sparks, Ch. 9)
- Spiral of silence (Sparks, Ch. 9)
- Fear of isolation (Sparks, Ch. 9)
- Silencing effect (Sparks, Ch. 9)
- Iyenger & Kinder’s (1979) experiment (Sparks, Ch. 9)
- Constructive journalism (Journalistic Practices lecture)
- Information processing model (Journalistic Practices lecture)
- Episodic framing (Frameworks, 2017; Baumgartner & McAdon, 2017)
- Thematic framing (Frameworks, 2017; Baumgartner & McAdon, 2017)
- Blended framing (Journalistic Practices lecture)
- Social learning theory (Journalistic Practices lecture & Sparks, Ch. 5)
- Rewards/Glorification (Journalistic Practices lecture & Sparks, Ch. 5)
- Copycat (Journalistic Practices lecture & Sparks, Ch. 5)
- Werther effect (Journalistic Practices lecture & Sparks, Ch. 5)
- Self-perpetuated reinforcement bubbles (Gould, 2019)
- Digitally perpetuated bubbles (Gould, 2019)
- Cognitive dissonance (Gould, 2019)
- Empathy (Gould, 2019)
- Algorithms (Gould, 2019)
- Filter bubbles (Gould, 2019)
- Echochamber (Gould, 2019)
Example prompts for this week:
- What kind of news do you read, watch, or hear about? Is this different than what other people hear about? Why do you think this is? What kind of effect do you think this has had? For example, how has it informed, reinforced, or changed your view of a specific issue, such as COVID-19?
- Given what you have heard in the news, what do you think the “agenda” is highlighting? What is it diminishing? How are certain stories then framed? What does this do to public opinion?
- What kind of news have you seen covering a topic such as mass murder, sexual assault, or crime? What type of frame was used? Why do you think this is? What kind of effect do you think this has had?
- Do you avoid news? Why do you think that is? What kind of effect do you think this has had?
- Do you come across news on social media? Is it typically aligned with your political views?
- Think about your social media network. What kind of self or digitally perpetuated bubbles might you be in?