You chose a world event that occurred sometime between April 1 and October 15 and drafted a
thesis argument. Now, you will create a post of about 1,000 words not include bibliography that
explains, from a critical and global perspective, how the trajectory of this event was shaped by
various information systems.
Your goal is to evaluate the authenticity and credibility of information reported about this
world event, so the essay should demonstrate your understanding of the diverse and complex
nature of information, bringing order to, and maximizing the value of, the information for the
audience it reaches.
True to the title of this course, your essay will help you come full circle, in that you must explain
how we know what we know about this world event. Thus, your essay should state a thesis
argument, and your paper should analyze, how the event was covered or how information
about the event was manipulated or suppressed. Finally, your essay should address what all
that means on a global level.
Your writing should CRITICALLY examine HOW WE KNOW WHAT WE KNOW about your event.
You need to challenge assumptions and expand the bounds of debate. Don’t give a recap of the
event.
As voracious readers, your instructor and writing coach already KNOWS what happened. Think
instead of how the public got the information and how it might have been influenced –
manipulated, suppressed, etc.
Look at all the different players and facets involved in the event.
Media, business, government, and the public from countries around the world may have been
affected. Be careful of sweeping generalizations such as, “the media only want sensational
stories”, or, “the government always lies.” Back up your claims with facts and expert opinions
that are cited.
The concepts covered in the course should be the building blocks of your essay. Descriptions of
events do not constitute analysis, which is the application of learned concepts to create new
ways of looking at the world. Answer some or all of these questions:
• How does the rhetorical triangle apply in your analysis?
• Who’s keeping secrets? Who’s penetrating secrets?
• Who’s manipulating information?
• How is information created, harvested, conveyed, and used?
For the first purpose, you have select a national or international event and do a thorough-going
read of articles related to that event. Imagine that you are tearing apart an engine, piece by
piece, examining every part for wear, tear and defective workmanship. Remember, information
usually is a collection of a lot of moving parts. Challenge assumptions, expand the bounds of
debate and make sure your analysis is beneficial to global society.
For the second purpose, how do the readings/web explorations this semester frame your
examination of the event? What role, if any, did secrecy, revelation, intellectual property,
freedom of information or suppression play in this event?
Review readings and video lectures to focus your thinking. Was there an example of how lies
protect secrets or how secrets protect lies? Or, perhaps, how was rhetoric used to shape and
convey the event? Use every lens you’ve been provided this semester to examine the event and
select those that bring it into focus.
If you do that, you’ll be in great shape to tackle the third purpose, which is to determine how a
person, movement or technology influenced this event. How did one or more of those alter the
global culture? How do any (or all) of those bring desirable or undesirable change?
Visual media are an important part of the final essay. Use images, videos, and web links as
evidence to illustrate your thesis. You should have a minimum of 5 article or web sources, one
of which is scholarly. Use MLA for your citation format, but don’t worry about indentations or
margins. Remember to examine everything that is covered in class: readings, assignments,
discussions, tutorials, as potential tools useful to crafting your final assignment.
