First assignment

1. Assignment #1 – Due March 28 by email @ class time, to me
You have now learned about some of the most essential ways of thinking about the
news process, from the pressures of work in a newsroom (Usher & Sesno) to the
values shaping news decisions and how journalists think about their profession
(Tuchman, Gans, Schudson) to spin and framing (Entman and Kurtz) to the process
of fact-checking and misinformation (Elizabeth & Fact-Checking readings) to the
mechanics of sourcing (Patterson & Source readings).
Here’s your assignment.
You’ve just gotten your MA in Media and Strategic Communication. Your boss has
been so kind to let you do your work in off hours, take some time off to write papers,
etc. Now she wants to know what you’ve learned.
Your job is to prepare a brief memo for her outlining what you have learned & how
you plan to respond with your new knowledge. She wants you to put this in the
context of a very simple communication campaign, the first you will run completely
on your own. You should assume for the purposes of this assignment that your
target is the widest possible audience, “journalists.”
This memo should be no more than 1200 words but no less than 700, and while
complete sentences are recommended, bullet points, numbering, sections, bolding,
outlines etc. typical to a memo are welcome and encouraged.
Here are some guidelines to prompt your writing.
More details.
Part a) Select a client, select a strategic message/event/etc.,
This is very simple & should be very brief – addressed in the title or topline of your
memo: Girl Scouts of America, launching a new cookie; Presidential candidate
announcing a tax plan, etc.
Part b) Apply your message in the context of the theories you have learned about.
Lay out a memo addressing the following points in the context of your campaign
1. Briefly explain what you now know about work pressures of the newsroom to
your boss
a. What’s your plan for getting through to journalists given what you
now know about the pressures of the newsroom?
2. Briefly explain what you now know about journalist’s professional values to
your boss
a. What’s your plan for working with journalists’ professional values?
b. Think about how objectivity presents both an opportunity and a
challenge for your message

2. c. Think about what enduring value journalists might be present as
journalists articulate your message. Will journalists possibly find fault
with your message because of them, or will it be ok?
3. Briefly explain what you now see as the spin cycle-- Diagram, either as a
diagram or just clearly in words, the process of spin or “Cascade” network
that your message will travel.
a. Can you anticipate how your message might be framed and reframed
or spun and respun by specific parties
4. Briefly explain what you have learned about sourcing, and what might apply to
your specific situation.
a. How do you plan to cultivate your sources? You’ve read about the
pitfalls and problems with sourcing, so how might you avoid them and
be a good, ethical source?
5. Briefly explain the fact-checking movement and how misinformation in news
works
a. What facts do you anticipate being checked? Is there any possible
misinformation that could happen, either on the side of the press or
when the public receives these messages?
6. Be sure to list three of the most important takeaways for your boss –what she
should have learned if she had gotten her MA but she can now learn from you
Grading Criteria
1. Is it clear that you have a good understanding of the theories that you have
learned thus far? Are you able to articulate them clearly and consciesly, so
that you could explain them to someone with no familiarity?
2. Is it clear that you are able to take away key insights from these theories and
apply them to real life situations?
3. How clear is your writing?
4. Is the memo readable and understandable, with clear formatting and easy to
follow organization?
5. Do you address all of the questions/guidelines posed by the assignment as
illustrated in Part b of the assignment?