Newspapers have a long history of being regarded as a useful educational tool, and their use in a classroom setting dates back further than most might expect. Take, for instance, this quotation:
"Much has been said and written on the utility of newspapers; but one principal advantage which might be derived from these publication has been neglected; we mean that of reading them in schools, and by the children in families?newspapers are plenty and cheap ? the cheapest book that can be bought, and the more you buy the better for your children, because every part furnishes some new and valuable information! (Cowen 1)"
Although this statement reads like an educator or newspaper publisher of today might have said it, it comes from an article
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From the kindergarten newspaper hats to the supplemental application of newspapers in high school, the real-life educational quality they give students is helpful for students, teachers, and the newspaper industry. Those looking into the future of newspapers in education are talking of combining newspapers along with other media to help the students of today improve reading and writing skills and gain knowledge of current events. Generations today spend a great amount of time viewing television, and a combination of media could boost students? interest in learning and continue to improve reading skills. Educators such as Barbara Shapely want to incorporate all media into school curriculums and teach students how to critically interpret the messages that the media is sending out. She favors an integrated systematic approach in using mass media, and is quick to point out that the "United States is one of the few countries in the world where media literacy is not integrated in the school curriculum" (Shipley …show more content…
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Cowen, Marlene Stone. "History of the Newspaper in Education Program." American
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Shipley, Barbara. "Integrating Mass Media Instruction: ?Connecting? NIE and TV Programs for the 21st Century." Annual Conference on Newspapers in Education and Literacy. ERIC Digest, Florida. 15-17 May
Not only educational shows accomplish these goals, but fictional television programs can often incorporate information that requires viewers to grapple with a topic using logical reasoning and a global consciousness. In addition, not to diminish the importance of reading, television reaches those who may never pick up a book or who might struggle with reading problems, enabling a broader spectrum of people to interact with cognitive topics. Veith has committed the error of making generalizations about two forms of media when, in truth, the situation varies depending on quality and content. However, what follows these statements is not just fallacious, but
In chapter one, Wattenberg discusses the declining trends of Americans who regularly read newspapers between the 1960’s and present day. This can be attributed the aging patterns among generations who frequently read newspapers as well as with the use of technology rising. Reading the newspaper is a habit that either is or is not developed by the time one reaches voting age. With this, newspapers have become an older generation’s primary source of information, however, are still the best source for political matters. Younger generations tend to be more computer literate and have grown up with television and media more accessible to them than the previous generation. These trends not only reflect in American culture, but in other countries worldwide such as Italy, and Germany. Quoting a 2003 fox news interview of President Bush, Wattenberg illustrates the vast decline of newspaper consumption; even the U.S. President isn’t reading newspapers (11). Using tables throughout chapter one to illustrate the drastic differences within the last 50 years, the author exemplifies a 35% point decrease from 1957 to 2004. He speculates that perhaps young adults don’t like to read, but proves that is not the case as surveys have shown that education levels have risen overall, and access to books and reading has also increased over the years; thereby concluding that young people read, but do not typically read the newspaper. While there are several newspaper websites available, young adults do not frequently read those websites either. Although TV news information is not as detailed as it is in newspapers, young people have an ability to make up for their disinterest in newspapers by watching the news headlines (30). Chapter one makes a strong case...
Moses, Annie M., and Benson McMullen. "What Television Can (And Can't) Do To Promote Early Literacy Development." YC: Young Children 64.2 (2009): 80-89. Education Research Complete. Web. 18 Apr. 2014.
In his novel, Amusing Ourselves to Death, Postman describes to the reader, in detail, the immediate and future dangers of television. The argument starts out in a logical manner, explaining first the differences between today's media-driven society, and yesterday's "typographic America". Postman goes on to discuss in the second half of his book the effects of today's media, politics on television, religion on television, and finally televised educational programs. He explains that the media consists of "fragments of news" (Postman, 1985, p.97), and politics are merely a fashion show. Although Postman's arguments regarding the brevity of the American attention span and the importance of today's mass media are logical, I do not agree with his opinion of television's inability to educate.
In Jonathan Choi’s article “In a Defense of Newspapers” Choi attempts to persuade his audience that newspapers need to be valued and protected as important news sources. Choi uses various rhetorical devices to increase the persuasiveness of his argument. Choi uses evidence in the form of data and examples, a humorous and entertaining tone, and ethos to convince his readers that newspapers need to be protected.
The vital difference between the tradition youth education curriculum and the television curriculum lies within the main objective. The main objective for traditional education in schools is to encourage the development of language. The main objective for television is to demand attention to images. Neil Postman writes, “we face rapid dissolution of the assumptions of an education organized around the slow-moving printed word, and the equally rapid emergence of a new education based on the speed-of-light electronic image” (p.
Throughout Chapter 5 of “Covering America” by Christopher Daly, there were a few newspapers that changed journalism. The St. Louis Dispatch, the World, and The Examiner played a major role in journalism and set themselves apart from other previous newspapers. Joseph Pulitzer started both the St. Louis Dispatch and the World. According to Daly, Pulitzer used his paper to, “crusade against
In our society entertainment has become an immense part of our daily lives. We spend extensive periods of time watching TV, which in general has become a habit for many individuals, and a necessity for others. In the article Television as teacher by Neil Postman he argues that television does not help us learn what is necessary for further education, and that it shouldn’t be utilized as a main learning tool because it undermines the techniques applied in teaching centers. Some of these technics are obtaining a previous education before practicing the advanced learning, paying attention to the material being provided, and retaining the information given for future references. Nonetheless I agree with Postman’s point of view that Television is
The Prime Minister of Spain once told an American, “The newspapers in your country seem to be more powerful than the government.” This statement was never more true than in 1898 during the Spanish-American War. The rulers of the New York newspaper empire, Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst, battled against one another in the ultimate test of journalism. With a real war on the horizon, these men fought to produce the most sensational stories Americans had ever read; and, as a result, they brought forth a new age in the American newspaper business, an age of fighting for the little guy, and beating back tyranny one paper at a time.
Journalism shapes democracy - with newspapers playing a crucial role in. In the 19th century, Britain’s newspapers were a luxury only the wealthy could afford and have access to. The United States thought differently, they believed “a free press, making information as widely available as possible, was regarded as a important pillar of the new democracy- so much so that it was enshrined in the Bill of Rights.” (172) President Jefferson believing a free press did more good than harm, “The attempts to curtail a press freedom in the 1790s and 1800s actually strengthened it, establishing the right to criticize the administration and supporting vigorous and lively political debates.” (172) This started to shape the newspaper industry. The Sun
Our minds have changed from being able to focus and read a lengthy paper, to distracted and skimming for the little highlights to give us information. Media used to be lengthy pages full of information. Now it has turned into short snippets of the bold points in the articles, “Television programs add text crawls and pop-up ads, and magazines and newspapers shorten their articles, introduce capsule summaries, and crowd their pages with easy-to-browse info-snippets” (Carr 5). Media has played on our short attention span and constantly wondering mind by adding bright colors and bold prints to the many stories all around us. The days of one-page articles are over. Now one page turns into five to ten links, three sub-links, and twenty other sidebars.
Mass Media. Ed. William Dudley. Farmington Hills, MI: Thompson Gale, 2005. 121-130.
..., DF (2010). Generation M2: Media in the lives of 8-18 year olds. Merlo Park CA: Henry J Kaiser Foundation
If one asked “What is media literacy?” a majority of people would be puzzled. Some would say that it is the ‘written’ part of media that is not usually seen or a written layout of how media should be produced. The bulk of people would say they have no idea what media literacy is. People in today’s society should be informed about media literacy. Society should be informed of what media literacy exactly is and how it applies to the field of communications.
I intend to conduct research into the widespread fall of newspaper sales, and how the Internet is causing this, if it is even. Furthermore I will branch out into whether the journalists themselves are to blame, or simply because of citizens’ lack of interest in news, whether it is in the newspaper or the television. I will also investigate how people read their news; do they purchase a broadsheet? What interests them? How much does the Internet take the place of the newspaper? These are all questions and more that I intend to research thoroughly, perhaps with the help of the general public.