Julia Burke

SLM-521

Elective #7—Current Events

July 4, 2009

Current Events

As a social studies teacher, parent, and prospective librarian, I see education as the means by which children learn how to engage with and critically evaluate all facets of their environment as well as to become active participants as citizens of the world community. A huge component of this process is the study of current events—“real” happenings experienced by “real” people. A significant aspect of the study of current events is the ability to access timely and reliable news sources. The immediacy of online news sites can be an invaluable tool in the classroom when combined with a student’s ability to judiciously examine the quality of these sites—a skill which will hopefully be carried over into adult life.

When evaluating news sources online, I believe that it is important to consider exactly what you’re researching—general overviews of current events or more in-depth analysis, facts or opinions, a combination of all of these factors, etc. As with any website, there are also the issues of reliability, clarity, and the navigability of the site. The age and maturity level of the user is also of considerable importance. The four news sites evaluated below are all quality sites, albeit with differing areas of strength.

The two sites that I have selected for older students are The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com and MSNBC http://www.msnbc.msn.com. (These are two of the sites that I personally use as well.) Although it has had some issues in the past, I believe that the NYT provides reputable, sophisticated news coverage. The physical layout of the site itself can initially seem complex but with exploration becomes easily navigable. The option of accessing the Global Edition in addition to the U.S. Edition is an added bonus. Although possibly considered a drawback by some, I find the layout reminiscent of its paper origin engaging and familiar. When considering MSNBC, it is readily apparent that its origins are that of the television medium—especially when compared with the NYT. I find the layout of the MSNBC site to be very user friendly and its contents to be reliably reputable. Another positive is its “up to the minute” news coverage. As with any research it is important to consult more than one source and even with the most trustworthy sources this still holds true.

Although the previous sites can be used with younger children with close supervision, Time for Kids http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/ and Scholastic News for Kids http://www.scholastic.com/scholasticnews/ are ideally suited for younger students. Both of these sites are from reputable origins and the fact that they are geared toward educational settings is an added bonus. Both of these sites are visually appealing and engage the user. The option of being able to specify grade level is also an asset.

Current Events Instructional Activity

Instructions: For this activity you will be asked to compare how different online news sources cover the same issue. Using the following sites: The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com and MSNBC http://www.msnbc.msn.com, select one major foreign policy issue/current event and compare and contrast the coverage of said issue/event on both of these sites. Some examples and questions to answer in your response are provided below:

Possible topics: the war in Afghanistan, North Korea’s nuclear program, Iranian political unrest, presidential meetings with foreign leaders, political unrest in China, etc.

Choose one article from each news site and answer the following questions:

1. How does each site present the subject? Is the story dealing with your topic placed in a prominent position on the web page? Does the site provide more in-depth analysis? Does one site place more emphasis on this event than the other site does?

2. If the significant event is not given a place of prominence, what other stories take precedence? How do the two sites compare?

3. Can you detect any bias in the coverage? If so, describe it. Is one site more objective than the other?

4. Both of these news sites contain opinion/analysis information—is this separated from the main news area and clearly represented?

5. In your opinion, which of these sites gives the more comprehensive and possibly more reliable coverage of this issue/event? Explain.

Bonus Activity: In addition to researching your topic on the two previous sites, investigate the coverage on the BBC News web site http://news.bbc.co.uk/ What similarities and differences, if any, can you detect? Why might there be a different perspective? Explain.