Please read the draft ideas below to construct a Position Paper following the outline.
1. Description: the issue of abortion has been grabbing most of my attention, and I believe that of most people in the US. Several media agencies have reported the same event but with entirely different perspectives. So I want to dig deeper into how media sources sway people’s cognition on matters. I have heard and read about strong opinions regarding the overrule of legalizing abortion in the US. In a Newyork Times post written by Stephanie Nolen, a female editor, an example of a Brazilian woman taking abortion drugs at home bought from local black market dealers and couldn’t stop bleeding for weeks was used to show the problematic side of the US trying to ban access to abortion medication. The report states that when women need medication but don’t have legal rights to buy the medicines from legal agencies, their only hope would be the black market and drug dealers since the illegalization of abortion medicine will, in turn, prosper the black market supply and demand.
2. Analysis: Female rights and gender equality have been an uprising issue over the past decade. However, regardless of the effort women put into obtaining their rights, men still decide what is right for them and what is not. As Nolen pointed out in her article, the availability of legal abortion medicine only served women the best to avoid life-threatening infections and complications. According to Nolen, medication and abortion legalization are vital for women’s health and wellbeing.
3. Interpretation: I am more than assured of two things through reading articles published in different media sources. One is access to abortion medication should not be banned because, without legal rights to these medications, women have no choice but to turn to illegal organizations and personnel for medicine with no assurance of liability. Second, women’s ability to carry a child is more than supreme honor. Their decision should be respected instead of controlled by a population of male figures who assume they know what’s right for women. The Newyork Times has claimed its neutral standpoint in all matters, so the only biased part in this report would be that the reporter is female. But if we look at the issue from another perspective, would a male reporter be interested in writing an article like this? At least, from what I have observed, most articles on this topic were written by a female reporter. Viewing the issue from another perspective, media play a massive role in alternating and influencing people’s viewpoints on the matter. Most articles on media sites regarding the ruling of abortion rights have been described as more of a political matter than a health care problem. So I wonder, in our modern world, is political stands more important than the health and well-being of all women in the United States? Last but not least, media accuracy also plays a huge role. Studies show that according to an article published by Msmagazine written by Zoe Larkin, media reports are often inaccurate, thus leaving out important information and data that will show their readers where the rest of the population stands on the issue. Larkin mentioned that while 77% of the population supports the landmark abortion ruling in Roe v. Wade, the misleading information from coverage on most media sites still reports the issue of abortion as a controversy making readers less certain where they should stand on the issue.
4. Evaluation: As mentioned in previous paragraphs, I hold a strong opinion on this matter. In this particular case, I stand on the same side as Nolen. This is one of the reasons why I am not confident if I should focus on this topic since it would be hard for me to speak against this article, considering that we are both women who want women to be treated with righteousness. Some of the articles written by Chinese reporters posted in Chinese media are similar to Nolen and mine. But they tend to lean toward the political spectrum more as a way to find a weak spot in the US political system. Therefore, those articles are not the ones I agree with the most.
5. Engagement: Speaking of engagement in the matter, there are many options. For people like myself who stand against the ruling decision made by the US, we can write articles like Nolen did and seek publicity to spread the word to more people in the world. The number of views on social media sources is vital to support writers like Nolen. Like many media sources stick the article with the most views on top of their page, we as readers could do the minimum to support Nolen and many other writers like her by sharing the article with people we know and getting more views for the report for publicity. Another direct and easy way would be sharing our ideas on other media networks like Facebook, Instagram, Wechat, etc. An ambitious goal would be to raise enough voices to sway the US government into considering another ruling on this issue. But to do that, we need to stand as one to find enough evidence to prove the negative effects banning abortion can bring to women around the US.
Source: https://msmagazine.com/2020/07/01/abortion-media-c…
outline:
I. Introduction
A. Introduce the topic B. Provide background on the topic C. Assert the thesis (your view of the issue)
II. Counter Argument
A. Summarize the counterclaims B. Provide supporting information C. Refute the counterclaims D. Give evidence
III. Your Argument (at least 3 body paragraphs)
A. Assert your claims 1. Give your opinion 2. Provide support
IV. Conclusion
A. Restate your argument B. Provide a plan of action
Requirements:
- Pick a contemporary media event that you would like to analyze closely. Make a decisive claim in one sentence (bold this sentence), then organize your argument around the following three elements:
- Economics
- Legal
- Semiotic
- Include an introductory and concluding paragraph. Do not go over the page limit. An advanced paper might find a way to incorporate history, particularly the history of technology, into their argument.
- Use at least one embedded quote
- 3 pages (not including citation page) MLA format 12 pt times new roman double spaced with conventional margins
