INSTRUCTIONS

Part 1

The need to know?
Just how much do you need to know?
Who was Veronica Guerin? Can you name five other journalists who have met a similar fate over the past two decades and describes the circumstances?

Can you name the top 10 countries where freedom of the press is non-existent and ten leaders who are at the top of the human rights violations list?

<sub>COVERING INTERNATIONAL NEWS
The purpose of this Critical Process exercise is to sharpen your analytical approach to news. Over a period of three weekdays, study the New York Times, USA Today, and one local daily paper. Devise a chart and a descriptive scheme so that you can compare how each of the three papers covers international news. You should consider international news to be any news story that is predominantly about a country or about another nation’s relationship with the United States.
1. Description. Count the total number of international news stories in each paper. Which foreign cities are covered? Which countries? What are the subjects of these stories (civil wars, anti-Americanism, natural disasters, travelogue profiles, etc.)? Prepare a descriptive chart to show the differences among the three papers.
2. Analysis. Using your chart as a guide, write two or three paragraphs discussing patterns that emerge. What locales get the most attention? What kinds of stories appear most frequently? In other words, what kind of issue or event makes another country newsworthy? Do not try to summarize your chart here. Instead, focus on three or four intriguing patterns that you noticed.
3. Interpretation. Write a two- or three-paragraph critical interpretation of your findings. What does your analysis mean? Why do some countries appear more frequently than others? Why do certain kinds of stories seem to get featured?

4. Evaluation. Discuss the limitations of your study. Which paper seemed to do the best job of covering the rest of the world? Why? Do you think newspapers give us enough information about other people’s cultures and experiences?
5. Engagement. Either individually or with a group of students, write a letter or e-mail to your local editor. Report your findings. In the note, discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the local coverage of international news and other cultures. Mention what the paper does well in this area, and suggest what the paper might do better. What kind of response did you get?
The below websites will help you in your research:
http://www.fair.org
http://www.freedomforum.org
http://www.assignmenteditor.com
http://www.projectcensored.org
http://www.nielsenmedia.com
http://www.poynter.org
http://www.rtnda.org/pages/about-rtndf.php
http://tvnews.vanderbilt.edu
http://www.indexonline.org
http://www.rsf.org</sub>

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News Media Analysis: Veronica Geurin

Introduction

In 1996, Veronica Geurin was shot...