Newspaper Article

This Homework is due on Monday 13th June


Task  
You are going to write an article for a newspaper about genetic engineering. 


Helpful Website: http://www.iptv.org/exploremore/ge/default.cfm


You need to know who is involved, what is involved, why it is an issue, and all its future possibilities. You are going to take that knowledge and create a newspaper that contains one of the following three articles. You will write a general news article, a human interest article, or an issue article.

In other words, you are going to select a topic, identify an issue related to that topic, investigate the people, information, problems and views related to this topic, and create an article that will let our readers know one of the following:

1. What the topic is. (This is the general news article that introduces the basics of the topic.)
2. Who is involved in this topic. (This is the human interest article that profiles an expert or stakeholder involved in the topic.)
3. What is an interesting or important issue of this topic. (This is an in-depth investigation of a compelling issue that relates to your topic.)

A few reporting tips:
Issues are the really hot items. They might be "Should cloning be allowed for endangered species?" or "Should the federal government restrict medical research involving genetic testing?" or even "Will genetically engineered crops help or harm the environment?"
Use your best reporting skills and look for the facts. Report what is true and be fair with your coverage of the subject. This is not your opinion, but rather the facts, statistics, and examples you’ve learned in your research.

Process
There are several basic steps you will need to accomplish.

1. First, choose one of the topics and look through the Web site to get familiar with the topic of your choice.
2. Investigate the sub-topics of your chosen topic. What interests you? environment? people? medicine? laws? business?
3. Pick an issue that interests you. Remember, an issue is one of those burning questions that really gets people thinking about your topic.
4. Remember to think about your audience. Ask yourself: Who is my audience? What do they need to know? Why should they care? Are they students? Adults?
5. Follow the instructions for one of the three articles (below).
6. Write your article and have fun!

Types of Articles (choose one)


General News Article:

1. Choose a topic–select one of the Explore More Web sites for your research.
2. Investigate the topic and sub-topics involved.
3. What general facts, information, statistics do you find? What are some of the major concerns about this topic?
4. Write an article that would explain the topic to readers.

Human Interest Article

1. Stakeholders are people who have something to lose or gain. When you think about your stakeholders, ask yourself why they care about your topic. They might have social, economic, political, religious, personal, or cultural reasons for feeling as they do. Find out about these people and how they feel. Look for people who have different opinions and views on your topic. What are your stakeholders' viewpoints? Why do they have these viewpoints? Make sure to look in the Viewpoints sections for video clips and transcripts. Research other sources for different viewpoints. (The other Web links are a great place to start.)
2. Find a stakeholder with an interesting viewpoint. Find out the background of the stakeholder and the "why" behind the viewpoint.
3. Write an article that explains the stakeholder’s situation and viewpoint in a fair and unbiased manner. Use quotes, facts, examples, and statistics where needed.

Issue Article

1. Skim through the Web site to find the issues that interest you.
2. Take notes on issues that you find during your pre-research.
3. Do not limit yourself to what you see listed as an "issue." Choose something that interests you.
4. Write your issue as a question and then define your issue by explaining what it is to the reader.
5. Write an article that reports your issue. Find out the what, who, when, where, why and how of it. Explain what the issue is, who is involved with this issue, why this is an issue, and why people should be interested in this issue (what causes people to have an opinion).