Media and Politics Analysis
You will go to the websites of MSNBC AND FoxNews. Choose ONE politics or public policy topic that is addressed on both networks websites and read those two stories. In other words, if you select a story about the presidential election on MSNBC then you should try to find how FoxNews is reporting on that same story. Use those two articles to answer the following questions to determine the differences, if any, between the way the media report. PLEASE NUMBER YOUR ANSWERS ON YOUR SUBMISSION SINCE THIS ASSIGNMENT HAS MULTIPLE PARTS. 1. Were the facts reported the same in both stories? Or was there something that was left out of one story and not the other? Why might the facts be different in each story? 2. What did you notice about the language/word choice? Was there leading or subjective language to favor one point of view over another? You should give examples from the article to support your argument. 3. Is the media trying to influence your opinion about the topic as mentioned in the textbook under the heading “media influence?” (The bulk of your paper should answer this question.) Again, provide examples. 4. Are the media in this particular instance performing their proper role in our democracy? Why or why not? Explain what that role is. This should come from your textbook. 5. Finally, go to the following fact checking resources: Politifact and Factcheck. Both of these resources are non-partisan and independent fact checking organizations that help us determine what is fact and fiction in American politics. Check out both of their “about us” sections so you can determine for yourself if you think they are a legitimate source of information or not. Then use these websites to determine if the facts reported in your story were true and discuss. You may not be able to find the exact story from MSNBC or Fox, but hopefully you can find something that is closely related to discuss. The whole point is to become familiar with these sites so you can use them in the future. 5. Copy and paste URL of your news stories from MSNBC and Fox at the bottom of your paper • This paper may be longer than 1 page (no more than 2 pages)
