Purdue University COVID 19 Rewriting Media Rules Research Paper

Please select ONE of the TOPICS below for the Final Project Paper

1. Minimum 5 pages

2. APA or MLA Format (see here: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/)

3. Use standard one-inch margins, 12-point font and double spacing.

4. It must cover the topic effectively and present a well-developed thesis, supported by evidence from primary and secondary sources.

5. Be sure to incorporate research from scholarly journals and articles

6. It must have a title page that includes your name and an appropriate title for your research.

6. Pages, including bibliography, must be numbered, starting on the first page of text. The one exception is the title page, which should not have a number. The first page of text of the paper should be page 1.

RESEARCH PAPER TOPIC SELECTION

Please select ONE of the TOPICS below for the Final Project Paper

TOPIC #1: Media Autobiography

Write a media autobiography about yourself and your relationship with the eight types of mass media they are studying this semester. Write about your background with the media, your experiences and habits with them, which ones you like and dislike, and how your habits have changed over your lifetimes. You can also mention any professional experience you have with the media.

TOPIC #2: Media Controversies

Write about 5 significant controversies about past or present effects of the media. Give supporting facts and public opinion based on these effects. Write your own reaction to these controversies.

Examples:

• Fyre Festival (paid social media adds enticing concert-goers to a non-existent worldwide event.)
• Columbine school shooting (in which violent video games and music were blamed)
• O. J. Simpson trial (which was played for the cameras in the courtroom)
• “MySpace hoax trial” (in which a Missouri woman was accused of pretending to be a teenage boy to taunt a teenage girl online – the girl later committed suicide)
• Rutgers student who committed suicide after an intimate encounter of his was secretly videotaped and posted online.

TOPIC #2: Media Products

Take a closer look at a larger media product (a television series spread across multiple seasons, the work of a major artist, a genre of music, a form of television like the sitcom, a film or book series, a genre of Internet content, the albums of a prominent musical artist, etc.) and discuss:

• the history of that cultural product and/or artist
• the lessons it offers in terms of cultural production
• what the product says about representations of individuals and groups
• the ultimate significance of this product as a cultural force.

Example: Past projects have focused on important key television series like: Mad Men, Sex and the City, Entourage, M*A*S*H. Other projects have looked at genres of content (reality TV programming, punk music, video games, young adult novels, characters in animated movies, etc.)

TOPIC #3: Media Censorship

Discuss how the mass media provide us with ideological visions of the nation and the world. First of all, go to the Project Censored website (www.projectcensored.org), and select one of their “Top Censored Stories of 2018-19” Provide a sociological analysis of why your chosen story was underreported by the major news media. To what extent did the story conflict with established interests? Were these stories truly censored? Do we as Americans have access to freedom of the press? As censorship undermines democracy how are we fighting back?

TOPIC #4: Household Interaction

New media technologies are having a major impact on society as a whole. The integration of such technologies into social settings within society, such as the household, is having a major influence on social interaction between individuals. It is evident from existing literature that new media technologies impact on the social interaction within households in many different ways. New media technologies can assist in increasing interaction amongst families by bringing generations and family members together. As a result, it can help bridge generational and digital divides. On the other hand, however, new media technologies within a household can lead to growing privatization within family life, with individuals increasingly using technology independently rather than collectively. Investigate the question; “How are new media technologies impacting on social interaction within households?” Explore if new media technologies do in fact bring family members together and increase social interaction amongst one another, or if it leads to a family divide instead.

TOPIC #5: Social Media and Our Health

Does Social Media Effect one’s health? In the age of teenage social media addiction discuss and explore:

• Research has shown that the overuse of social media has caused certain psychiatric disorders such as narcissism.
• Statical data shows that the overuse of social media can cause addiction and obsessions. Many teenagers have obsessions with checking their social media sites this is called Facebook addiction.
• Research shows that a large number of teenagers are checking their social media every few minutes.
• There are many negative impacts social media has on the health of young teenagers such as cyberbullying; this causes great stress on many teenagers each day.
• Many teenagers get depression over these online social media sites from comments of people they may know or not know this can impact their self-esteem to the point of people committing suicide.
• Although there can be many good things about social media such as it can boost people’s confidence and help people come out of their shells the negative health issues it has on young teenager’s lives are a lot more serious and have a bigger impact on teenagers everyday life.

TOPIC #6: Cut the Cord and the Wifi

First, of course, you are required to give up television for one week. Seven days. Cold turkey. No TV at all. Zero. Zip. Nada. No videos. No video games. Simply put: Don’t watch or even look at any television screen anywhere for seven entire days.

1. Now, tell the truth: Did you give up television for the entire week (accidental peeks don’t count)?

2. Did you get anyone else (friends or family) to join you in your assignment?

3. If you did get somebody to join you, who was it? If not, why not?

4. Was it easy or difficult for you to break away from the television? Why or why not? What did you learn about your television consumption habits?

5. What did you do with the empty “TV time”? Be sure to describe how not watching television affected your other life habits (eating, socializing with family and friends, newsgathering, etc.).

6. Describe your interactions with other people during this assignment. What have you learned about your television viewing and group interaction?

7. If you were unable to complete the assignment (i.e., you’re a slave to the boob-tube), describe your failed attempts and discuss the circumstances surrounding your decision to quit. Of course, you’ll receive only partial credit, but you will also be able to live with yourself because you told the truth.

TOPIC #7: Gaming and Viewing with Today’s Youth

Do your own case study involving a niece, nephew, or younger sibling, your child (under 12 years old). Observe his or her gaming and television-viewing habits. Write a brief essay describing your findings that include, but are not necessarily limited to, issues such as: what his or her favorite games and programs are; are there commonalities between the two; how long does he or she engage in each behavior (gaming vs. watching); do you see evidence of elements from either the games or programs popping up in his or her behavior or language? Feel free to interview your subject for added insight. Comment on how comfortable you’d be with his or her gaming and viewing were you the parent.

TOPIC #8: The Biggest Story since 9/11. How COVI-19 is Rewriting the Rules of Media

With empty newsrooms, no studio audiences, highly limited travel, and few face-to face- interviews, journalists, authors, and TV people confront the biggest story of the era. The world is changing in real-time, by the day, by the hour, by the minute. The media’s work is to tell the story—but it has to do so with radically new rules. Talk shows are being produced without live studio audiences or going dark altogether. CNN’s March 15 primary debate will proceed without an audience or a spin room. Newspapers and magazines are being produced with everyone working from home. Journalists are working under widespread travel restrictions. Major companies like ViacomCBS, NBCUniversal, Disney–ABC, WarnerMedia, and Fox Corporation are planning to conduct digital-only versions of their annual upfront presentations to advertisers. Conferences, festivals, and book tours are being called off en masse. How do you think this will impact Media deliveries in general? Will we revert back? Will these new deliverables be set in stone? Provide examples and personal feedback on your opinion.