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Final Project Wrap

News Stories, Press Releases, and Personal Opinions

+News Article: Key components

+A word about statistics

Original sourcing is a requirement for the final news stories (and that goes for the press release and personal opinion column) on any statistics that you use in your written work.

What do I mean by this? Do NOT use statistics quoted in other media. Verify them by going to the original source.

For example, if I am writing about unmarried women in America I don’t quote from the New York Times, but from the U.S. census data.

Please do use the data you may have compiled from your own surveys and cite that it came from a survey of XX of students.

+Citation!

Please follow standard journalistic practice of citing sources in the body of the article…this goes for the press release and the opinion piece.

It’s a simple as 90 percent of college students say they’d rather be on Facebook than in class, according to a survey conducted by Fara Warner, a researcher at the University of Michigan.

When quoting a source: “College students feel they learn more about the world on Facebook than they do sitting in class,” says Fara Warner, a researcher at the University of Michigan.

+The interview

You already have the stats—so now how do you make the story more interesting.

Most trend news stories will include at least three—three makes a trend we always say in journalism—interviews in a story with data and stats.

For the final news story, try hard for those three interviews. Key components of an interview

They must be “symbolic” of the trend Ask very specific questions Remember the who, what, when, where and how? One of your interviews can provide the skepticism you are

looking for in the journalistic piece. Consumers can raise the questions you may have as a journalist.

+Go to a place where you will find these people…

Atmosphere in a trends article is as important as the atmospherics in a retail outlet

Friendship bracelets—where will you go?

Recycling?

Other groups?

+For the news story…you must have

Must be 1,000 words and no more—including your headline

Three interviews (one can be your “consumer” in the group)

An atmosphere—a store, their room, a coffee shop, etc. And describe it. Set the scene for us.

An expert: use each other to find experts who can support your trend information. Are there professors on campus who can supply you with quotes and information? Researchers etc. You may use books or scholarly articles written on your trend. Don’t use experts quoted in other media.

+The press release: key components

1,000 words

Must include a headline and subdeck that really sell your trend and the symbol of that trend (i.e. texting while driving and stickers etc. to promote that trend)

Remember you are the “optimist.” You have to make me believe this is a trend I absolutely can’t miss as a journalist.

What can you offer me that will make me choose your trend over the other eight pitches that I’m going to receive in a few weeks?

+For the press release, you must have

Three main requirements (remember you can share information amongst your group) Statistics Consumer reaction—at least two if not three. Expert reaction—again this must be from an interview, a

book, scholarly journal. Set the scene for us as well—how would you attract a

journalist to your product or trend? The hard sell—what will you offer me that will make me

write about your trend?

+The Personal Opinion Piece: Key components

Distinct from news or public relations It is emotional, personal, you are not holding your audience

at a distance, but attempting to bring them closer to you. How do you do that?

Descriptive Personal narrative

+Making the Personal Universal

Once you have determined your personal story—how do you make it universal?

Statistics can be used to buttress your personal stories. They are as important to a personal opinion piece as they are to a more traditional journalist piece.

Interviews with others. How will you incorporate other “consumers” into your opinion column?

Experts: Using an expert to support your position.

You can either be supportive or critical of your chosen trend. You aren’t required to be supportive.

+For the personal piece, you must have

1,000 words including a headline

Statistics to support your position

At least, one other consumer who serves as support for your position (again remember that you can use each others’ interviews and work—share)

An expert to support your position—in this case, you could have an expert who is critical of the trend.

Powerful, personal writing. Don’t hold your reader at a distance.

+Peer and class evaluations

Peer evaluation sheets are available on the course website. Please fill these out and either hand them in before your

presentation or anytime on/or before Dec. 18.

Class evaluations. I will hand out evaluations to all of you at the start of the presentations. You will fill these out and give them to the presenters so they can use your comments to refine their final projects as they see fit. Groups will turn in these evaluations with their final projects.

Both of these are part of the final project grade.

+The Presentation

25 minutes

Each person must participate

Question and Answer period

Peer evaluations

Class evaluations

+The Presentation

Bringing together all the information and research you have gathered for the project. Don’t forget your benchmarking information

What is your trend? What are the social and historical imperatives for the trend?

What is your research? What is the larger social trend you are trying to explore or impact?

Think creatively about how you would affect change in a population drawing on the readings, our class discussions, movies, field trips.