POLS 3380_FA2023 Mid Term Exam

pdf

School

Kennesaw State University *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

3380

Subject

Political Science

Date

Oct 30, 2023

Type

pdf

Pages

Uploaded by MinisterWorld2864

POLS 3380 – DeWitt Fall 2023 Mid-Term Exam Guidelines: This is an open-book, open-note, open-class-materials exam. It will be administered until Friday, September 29 at noon , by which point all completed exams must be submitted to the D2L Dropbox. Late submissions will not be accepted. Students are expected to reference assigned materials and completely answer the questions, with specific illustrations and examples as needed. All sources must be properly cited and students may only reference course materials that appear on the syllabus or are linked to on the discussion forums. Students may copy/paste and expand on their own comments from the discussion forums. Generally speaking, for full credit, I would expect answers to the short answer / essay questions (PART I) need to be at least 200 words each and responses to the essay questions (PART II) need to be at least 400 words . Those are just "ballpark" word-count expectations. Bear in mind that your goal is to completely and accurately answer the questions. Essays must reflect the independent work of the student submitting the exam. Any indication of failure to comply with this requirement will result in (at least) a score of zero for the student(s) involved. Note: Tunitin's "Originality Check®", which also scans for AI (ChatGPT)-generated text, is turned on. PART I: SHORT ANSWER / ESSAY. Identify, define or describe, and explain the importance of any two from GROUP A, any two from GROUP B, and any two from GROUP C. In total, students must answer six items in Part 1 to earn full credit. Use assigned course materials and provide examples to illustrate your points. Number your answers. (12 POINTS EACH). GROUP A 1. Mass Media and Politics: Definitions and Relationships 2. What is “fake news” and how might it be combatted? 3. Is the news (or should the news be) primarily a propaganda forum for organized interests, a profitable product for the companies that sell it, a valuable citizen resource …or something else ? GROUP B 4. Freedom of the Press - Definition, Measurement, and a Global Assessment 5. Concerns, costs, and benefits of “big business” control of the media (Bennett vs. Graber and Dunaway)? 6. The Political Power and/or Political Failings of Social Media

2 GROUP C 7. News reporting routines and norms, plus criticisms (Chomsky) and/or alternatives (Hunter S. Thompson) 8. Four information biases that matter, as discussed in the Bennett text 9. Three functions of the mass media, as discussed in the Graber and Dunaway text PART II: ESSAY. Using assigned course materials and examples from the political information environment to illustrate your points, completely answer the following in essay form. (28 POINTS). One of the most exciting aspects of this course is that we are studying subject matter (media and politics) exactly as it evolves around us, at an extremely rapid pace. Needless to say, this requires we regularly update our understanding of where we are in specific relation to where we were. In particular, some observers have noted how the “reconfigured media ecology” has significant consequences for the mass media, governments/politicians, and citizens. Your task: summarize the historical evolution of the mass media and critically evaluate how “changing media” might reflect and/or produce “changing politics.” PART III: EXTRA CREDIT ESSAY. Completely answer the following in essay form. ( UP TO 6 POINTS) One of the primary objectives of this course is that it may help encourage intellectual inquiry and critical analytical skills relating to the media and their relationship with the people, institutions, and processes of government. In this pursuit, we have applied the course material to various “real world” cases. Now it’s your turn. Identify a case study that we have not yet discussed in class but you consider to be a relevant illustration of the intersection of mass media and politics . Specifically, how might you go about applying concepts and/or terms from the course to that “ real world” case?

Your preview ends here

Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version