Assignment 4: Ethics Project
This assignment is designed to further your understandings and critical thinking on journalistic ethics from both theoretical and practical perspectives. Everyone will be looking at the Top 10 Media Ethics Issues of 2015 from iMediaEthics (http://www.imediaethics.org/top-10-media-ethics-issues-of-2015) and choose one to report. This list covers a variety of topics, and you should be able to find some that interest you, especially when most of the issues are still relevant and ongoing. Some of these issues are relatively broad; there are external links within the cases for you to further read on the background of the case.
In groups, you will create a 10-15 minute presentation to share with the class. Apply ethics tools and information we’ve discussed in class. Things to include in your presentation:
- What is the subject matter of the case? (Who is involved? What happened? What has been discussed on the issue?)
- What are the ethical dilemmas in the case? (Are there multiple or is there only one in the case? What are they/is it? What is the main dilemma driving the case?)
- Choose one specific dilemma within your case and debunk the ethical issue within? (Why is it an ethical dilemma for journalists? Possible solutions/paths to take?)
- Personal position on the dilemma you choose? (What would you do? How do you make your choice and why? Is your group divided?)
- 5(ish) minutes of the presentation time will be devoted to discussion. Prepare questions for the class to dissect, analyze, and offer input to your group and other classmates.
Submit a 1-2 page informal write-up on the assignment to D2L. Include information you learned, how your group worked together, and so forth. At the end of the write-up, assess the work of your group-mates and tell me what grade you think they (personally) earned — this will be your chance to make up for/explain any unfairness that you may have perceived in their group work.
There is no formal rubric for the presentation. I will be looking at how well you researched the issue, how much critical thinking was applied to the case and presentation, discussion, and peer feedback. The presentation is worth 25 points overall.
Presentations will take place Friday April 28th. All write-ups on the assignment are due to D2L by midnight on the day you present.
evanwrowe 