Media Coverage

The assignment includes 2 questions – 50 points to each of them (question 1 has two parts – 25 points each, and question 2 has 4 parts – 20 points for part A and 10 points for each of parts 2-4).  Work on your own (unfortunately, working in groups is not allowed). Submission through Moodle.  Deadline for submission: 7/8/20 The paper should be submitted as a Word file (please (!) don’t send me PDF files – it is very difficult to comment on them), according to the following format: Font size: 12, double or 1.5 space.  The task should not exceed 3-4 (maximum 4) pages.  The paper will be worth 80% of the course’s grade   Good Luck everyone! Questions: 1. Relate to media articles on face masks – articles published in February-March, vs articles published in May-July (links attached below):  A. How would a researcher from the Agenda Setting theory relate to the media coverage? Explain and elaborate on the theory (25 points) B. How would a researcher from the Agenda Building theory relate to this coverage? Explain and elaborate on the theory (25 points).  Instructions: Base your answer on our class lessons and presentations. For question, 1B read the article by Len-Ríos et al. (2009), and also consider and relate to the CNBC article (link attached here) by Thomas Frank (Jun 3, 2020).  Len-Ríos et al. (2009). Health News Agenda Building: Journalists’ Perceptions of the Role of Public Relations. Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, 86(2).  Frank T. (Jun 3, 2020). Coronavirus masks could become a $9 billion market, benefiting these stocks, KeyBanc says. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/30/stocks-to-buy-covid-masks-could-be-9-billion-market-for-etsy-and-gap-keybanc-says.html 2. Read the following paragraph and answer the questions below: Several studies published in recent years indicate that taking anti-depressants during pregnancy is linked to increased risks to the baby, including cardiac defects and autism. Following these studies, the FDA issued a health advisory in 2006, saying exposure to some of these drugs during pregnancy may increase the risk of congenital defects. Yet 2 months later, a group of 13 leading experts published a study in the medical journal JAMA, in which they concluded that stopping the medication greatly increases the risk of relapsing into depression, and is very dangerous – far more dangerous than the risks involved in taking these drugs. These same experts gave interviews to the media and lecturers in many medical conferences to physicians, explaining about their findings and arguing that pregnancy is, in fact, a predisposition for depression – and that about 20% of pregnant women experience some level of depression, which might lead to suicides, inability to care for the baby, or even harm their baby. They attacked studies that have found increased risks to babies born to mothers who used antidepressants, claiming that those studies are flawed and unworthy. The group also attacked the FDA for its health advisory and described it as “irresponsible” and as “driven by a single set of data” that is unsound and faulty and on “bad science”. Nevertheless, an investigative article by The Wall Street Journal published in 2013 revealed that this expert group was hired by the makers of antidepressants and that those companies have actually paid them in order to prevent the FDA from banning the entire class of drugs during pregnancy and to encourage pregnant women to continue taking these medications, despite studies suggesting risks to their babies. A. What three major strategies did the company use? Explain and elaborate on each of the strategies (20 points). B. Consider Aristotle’s three approaches to designing compelling messages, and explain which of Aristotle’s approaches fit these strategies (10 points). C. Consider Lule’s article (2001) – What are the 2 main myths used by this group of physicians? (10 points). D. According to the four models of Grunig and Hunt – Which of these ethical models do you think the strategies and tactics used in this case represent? (10 points). Instructions: Base your answers on our class lessons and presentations. For question, 2C read also Chapter 1 in Lule’s book. For question, 2D read also chapter 3 in Bowen, Rawlins and Martin’s book “Public Relations”.  Lule, J. (2001). Daily News, Eternal Stories: The Mythological Role of Journalism. New York: The Guilford Press. Read Chapter 1: The story of the news story. pp. 1127. Bowen, S.A., Rawlins, B., and Martin, T. Mastering Public Relations. Chapter 3: Models and Approaches to Public Relations”. https://2012books.lardbucket.org/books/public-relations/s04-models-and-approaches-to-publi.html Media articles For Q.1: Media articles on face masks published in February-March:  https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/29/health/coronavirus-n95-face-masks.html https://edition.cnn.com/2020/02/29/health/face-masks-coronavirus-surgeon-general-trnd/index.html https://www.businessinsider.com/americans-dont-need-masks-pence-says-as-demand-increases-2020-2 https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/seriously-people-surgeon-general-urges-public-to-stop-buying-masks-for-coronavirus/ar-BB10zmxO Media articles on face masks published in May-July:  https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/19/coronavirus-wearing-a-mask-can-reduce-transmission-by-75percent-new-study-claims.html https://www.foxnews.com/health/surgeon-general-jerome-adams-coronavirus-masks-freedom https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/05/health/coronavirus-masks-who.html https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/06/25/burst/how-to-get-the-most-out-of-your-mask.html https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/01/us/coronavirus-masks.html https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/23/well/family/children-masks-coronavirus.html https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/22/at-home/best-face-masks-fashion-coronavirus.html https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/30/style/mask-america-freedom-coronavirus.html https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/02/opinion/coronavirus-masks.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/01/opinion/coronavirus-face-masks.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article