The first unit of the course has focused heavily on the economics of the media industry, and more specifically, some of the main ways in which the need/desire for profit shapes media institutions and media content itself. In order to apply some of what you learned in the first part of the course, I'm asking you to write a short paper in which you will apply those concepts.
CLICK HERE for the assignment and HERE for the grading rubric.
Tips for writing a good paper:
1. Make sure you do everything the assignment tells you to do. Students often lose points simply for not doing everything on the assignment sheet.
2. Remember that the last 2 questions are just as important as the first -- you should give equal space to all three or weave them together.
3. Don't just tell me, show me: explain your thinking in clear detail. Remember that I can only grade you based upon what you put in your paper. I can't guess what you're thinking.
4. Use specific concepts from lecture and the readings. Directly citing material from lecture and readings will help you connect the ideas in your paper to the ideas we've discussed in class.
5. If you cite stuff, be sure to tell me what it means and how it links up with your argument.
6. Once you have your paper written, look at each paragraph and ask yourself "so what?" Think about why this might matter to someone who's not enrolled in COMM 100. Put the answer in as the topic sentence of your paragraph and adjust the rest of the paragraph accordingly.
7. Bring me a draft of your paper in office hours, or make an appointment. Students who consult with me generally do better.
8. A simple way to proofread your paper: read it out loud to yourself. If a sentence sounds funny, it probably needs to be reworded or rewritten.
9. Put your most important ideas at the top of each paragraph; use the rest of the paragraph to back up your assertion.
10. Remember that fulfilling the minimal requirements for the paper will result in a C grade. If you want to go for an "A", you need to go above and beyond the basics of the assignment.
11. If you have fun with this assignment, it's more likely that I'll enjoy reading it.
