Print Media

Chapters 3, 4, and 5 of your textbook discuss the history, trends, and future of print media. Identify a theme that applies to print media, and discuss the relevant medium(s) individually citing specific examples. Some possibilities would be:

• Print media have often functioned as agents of change in society. Discuss the role print media has played in giving "new, challenging, or unpopular" (51) ideas a voice. Also address whether this is still the case. Has advertising, conglomeration, or technology changed this political role?
• Take up the issue of the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech and the press. Why is this important in democracy? Is there ever a place for censorship? Make sure to connect this issue to print media and how it relates to newspapers, magazines, and books.
• Technology has had a tremendous influence on print media. Explain how the digital culture has changed the nature of print media. Is the impact positive, negative, or are there both positive and negative implications? Be careful to stay grounded in the fact that this is a paper on print media, not technology. Stay with the theme of print media when discussing technology.
• How does print media reflect the culture that consumes it? Since print media depends on its audience to finance its production, what role does the consumer play in driving demand?
• Discuss the power of photography to communicate messages, especially in newspapers and magazines. How does it function in a different way than the written text? You may take up a specific theme in photography (such as representing ideals of beauty, providing evidence of an event, stirring emotions, etc.) . Again, be careful not to get into images on social media as this paper is not about social media, but print media.

You may choose one of these topics for your paper, or identify another theme that relates to books, newspapers, and magazines. You should cite three credible research sources in your paper using the APA citation method. You may use your textbook as a source for this paper. Make sure you cite it appropriately using APA.

This paper should be approximately 4 pages in length (word count may be more helpful here — see rubric for specific word count — word count will be what I base your evaluation of length). Please refer to the associated rubric to understand the criteria by which this paper will be graded.