GOVT 2301 Task 2: Consider the Medium
Fall 2009
Dr. Garrison
(revised 9-11-09)
(sheatx2e/fal09)
Task 2 is worth 100 points and is due in
class no later than October 26/27, 2009.
Please submit your writing to
Turnitin for analysis. Revise your writing if needed before submitting your
paper to the professor. Write at least a three page review and
commentary of one of the choices below. Include in your paper some
commentary from the New York Times
critical review/s of the film, television program, book, etc. In your
commentary consider how the media portrays politics and government. Does the
media affect the public's view of politics? Is there
media bias in your
choice?
See your text's media chapter and
Critical questions for detecting bias
and Rhetorica's Media/Political Bias
for scholarly studies.
What is the liberal
view of the media: Fairness & Accuracy in
Reporting and the conservative view:
Media Research Center?
Read this article before you choose and write: Sean Axmaker, "Movies
and Politics: Uneasy Bedfellows," MSN Movie News.
Choose to view one of the following:
Choice 1. Documentary film: Michael Moore's
film
Capitalism: A Love Story
or
Sicko and
Michael Moore on Sicko
at NOW, June 29, 2007. Use all the accompanying reference
material at the web site.
Choice 2. Documentary film: Nobel Peace
Prize winner Al Gore's
award winning
film about global warming An Inconvenient Truth
(2006).
Choice 3. Television documentary: Buying
the War, Bill Moyers Journal: August 6, 2007. Use all the accompanying
reference material at the web site.
Choice 4. Documentary film Can Mr. Smith Get
to Washington Anymore? (2006)
Choice 5. Hollywood film:
All
the Kings Men (1949), the classic Academy Award winning film version
of the novel or the recent remake film version
All the
King's Men (2006).
Choice 6.
Documentary
film:
Unprecedented
(2003),
The 2000 Presidential Election featuring Danny Glover
Choice
7. Documentary film: Alexandra
Pelosi,
Journeys With George (2002) or
Diary of a Political Tourist
available
on reserve in the SCC LRC.
Choice 8. Documentary film:
Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism (2004)
Choice 9. Hollywood film:
Primary Colors (1998),
John Travolta
,
Choice 10. Hollywood film:
Wag the Dog (1997),
Robert DeNiro, Dustin Hoffman
Choice 11. Hollywood film:
The Candidate, (1972),
the Robert Redford classic.
Choice 12: Hollywood film:
All the President's Men
(1976) Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman
Choice 13. Hollywood film:
Bullworth, (1998) Warren
Beatty
Choice 14. Hollywood film:
Lions for Lambs,
(2007) Robert Redford
Choice 15: Hollywood film:
Good Night
& Good Luck (2005) George Clooney
Choice 16: Hollywood film:
Network (1976) Peter Finch
"I'm Mad as Hell"
scene
Choice 17: HBO film:
Recount (2008)
Choice 18: Hollywood film: Frost-Nixon (2008) Frost/Nixon
Choice 19: Hollywood film: MILK (2008) Sean Penn
Choice 20: Hollywood film: W (2008)
Josh Brolin
Choice 21: Television/Streaming video program:
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart &
Colbert Nation with Steven
Colbert , Comedy Channel (at least two hours of video segments)
Writing and
Documenting Your Paper
Evaluating
reference sources is very important. Follow these guidelines
especially when evaluating sources from the Internet:
Straight From the Source at FactCheckEd.org
Always carefully document your paper. Include reference citations and a
reference list. Following
the writing instructions at
Writing & Documenting Papers.
For film analysis
include some very specific details so that there is no doubt
that you watched the film. YOUR PAPER WILL NOT BE
ACCEPTED WITHOUT PROPER DOCUMENTATION. Please submit your
paper to Turnitin.com for a checkup.
NO LATE PAPERS WILL BE ACCEPTED. Any exceptions to this
policy must be negotiated with the professor in advance.