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  • General

    • Current Issues

      Current Issues is a one semester Social Studies elective that takes a close look at the media surrounding us. We analyze the unique place in history occupied by the United States that allowed media to develop and flourish. From there we investigate the origins of Newspaper, Television, Internet, and Advertising. After looking at the past history of various mediums of mass communication, students then take a look at current efforts and future endeavors of each communication tool. Finally students end the course in a disruptive innovation on the research paper–with collaborative research done in a Wiki Space. Students stay connected with current events as they are happening and learn perspective about the media that we interact with on a day to day basis.

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    • Creative Commons License
      Current Issues course materials created by the Open High School of Utah are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. This course contains open educational resources produced by other organizations which may use a different open license. Please confirm the license status of these third-party resources before reusing them. See OpenCourseWare for additional information about licensing.

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  • Topic 1

    • Unit 1: History of Free Speech and the Role of Media in a Democratic Society

    • http://www.flickr.com/photos/8060641@N07/ / CC BY-SA 2.0Week 1: Free Speech




    • INTRODUCTION to Week 1 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 1 File
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #1 Page
    • READ: Freedom of Speech Defined Page
    • WATCH: The Right of Free Speech Page
    • READ: History of Free Speech Page
    • READ: What took place in an Inquisition? Page
    • VIEW: History of Free Speech Page
    • READ: Revolutions that Changed the World (Part 1) Page
    • READ: Revolutions that Changed the World (Part 2) Page

  • Topic 2

    • http://www.flickr.com/photos/tukatuka/ / CC BY 2.0Week 2: Democracy and Freedom





    • INTRODUCTION to Week 2 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 2 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #2 Page
    • READ: What is Democracy? Page
    • WATCH: Democracy is . . . Page
    • READ: When Tocqueville Came to Visit Page
    • READ: Role of the Press in a Democratic Society Page
    • READ: Worldwide Press Freedom Index Page
    • WATCH: When a Government does not uphold freedom of speech Page

  • Topic 3

    • http://www.flickr.com/photos/opendemocracy/ / CC BY-SA 2.0Week 3: Media and Rules the Media Should Follow





    • INTRODUCTION to Week 3 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 3 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #3 Page
    • READ: What is the Media? Page
    • Newspapers Page
    • Magazines Page
    • Television Page
    • Film Page
    • The Internet Page
    • Radio Page
    • Talk Radio Page
    • READ: The Role of the Journalist in Media Page
    • WATCH: Rich Media, Poor Democracy Page
    • READ: The Nine Elements of Journalism Page
    • WATCH: Rules of Journalism Explained Page

  • Topic 4

    • http://www.flickr.com/photos/timothygreigdotcom/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0Week 4: Media Literacy





    • INTRODUCTION to Week 4 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 4 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #4 Page
    • READ: Media Literacy Page
    • READ: Become a Skeptic Page
    • SELF CHECK: How much do you know about Media Literacy? Page
    • VIEW: Media Poster URL

  • Topic 5

    • Unit 2 The Role of Newspapers

    • http://www.flickr.com/photos/8078381@N03/ / CC BY 2.0Week 5: The History of Newspapers






    • INTRODUCTION to Week 5 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 5 URL
    • WATCH: Week in Rap #5 Page
    • READ: Newspapers Page
    • READ: Shout Out to Gutenberg Page
    • WATCH: The Tale of Johannes Gutenberg Page
    • WATCH: The Impact of Gutenberg's Invention Page
    • READ: Newspapers in Europe Page
    • READ: Newspapers in the United States Page
    • WATCH: Yellow Journalism Page
    • VIEW: Important Figures in Journalism Page

  • Topic 6

    • http://www.flickr.com/photos/programwitch/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0Week 6: The Components of a Newspaper





    • INTRODUCTION to Week 6 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 6 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #6 Page

  • Topic 7

    • http://www.flickr.com/photos/allaboutgeorge/ / CC BY 2.0Week 7: The Future of Newspapers and Journalism






    • INTRODUCTION to Week 7 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 7 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #7 Page
    • VIEW: The Future of Newspapers Page
    • READ: Citizen Journalism Page

  • Topic 8

    • Unit 3: The Role of Television

    • Week 8

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 8 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 8 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #8 Page
    • READ: Idaho Farm Boy Makes Good Page
    • WATCH: Television is History Page
    • READ: As American as Mom, Apple Pie, and Television Page
    • READ: The Golden Age of Television Page
    • READ: Television Programing Page
    • READ: Situational Comedy Page
    • READ: Dramatic Series Page
    • READ: Reality Television Page
    • READ: Soap Operas Page
    • READ: Game Shows Page
    • READ: Talk Shows Page
    • READ: The Television Commercial Page
    • READ: How much is that Commercial? Page

  • Topic 9

    • Week 9

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 9 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 9 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #9 Page
    • READ: Broadcast Journalism Page
    • READ: News Jobs Page
    • READ: Bias in the News Page
    • READ: The Local News Page
    • READ: History of National News Page
    • VIEW: The News Anchors Page
    • READ: The News on Public Television Page
    • READ: The Advent of Cable News Page

  • Topic 10

    • Week 10

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 10 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 10 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #10 Page
    • READ: The Rise of Infotainment Page
    • READ: Hard vs. Soft News Page
    • READ: Infotainers Page
    • READ: Weekend Update = News Downgrade? Page
    • EXPLORE: 30 Years of Weekend Update URL
    • READ: Project Censored Page

  • Topic 11

    • Unit 4: The Internet

    • Week 11

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 11 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 11 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #11 Page
    • READ: The Internet Page
    • WATCH: History of the Internet Page
    • READ: The Internet is Born ARPANET Page
    • READ: The Internet Grows Page
    • READ: The World Wide Web Page
    • READ: American Online Page
    • READ: The Internet Explodes Page
    • READ: Explosive Growth Examined Page
    • READ: The Internet Today Page
    • READ: Why Openness Matters Page
    • READ: The New Free Culture Page

  • Topic 12

    • Week 12

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 12 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 12 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #12 Page
    • READ: Web 2.0 Page
    • READ: Connecting Page
    • READ: Digital Communication Page
    • VIEW: The Pitfalls of Online Communication Page
    • READ: The Internet Becomes Social Page
    • WATCH: The Social Media Revolution Page
    • READ: The Napster Revolution Page
    • VIEW: The YouTube Revolution Page
    • VIEW: The Rise of Blogging Page
    • VIEW: Why RSS Matters Page
    • READ: The Podcast Revolution Page
    • READ: Twitter. What are you doing now? Page
    • VIEW: World Wide Collaboration Page

  • Topic 13

    • Week 13

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 13 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 13 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #13 Page
    • VIEW: Google History The Real G-Force Page
    • WATCH: The News Aggregator Page
    • VIEW: The Internet Meme Page
    • VIEW: Revolution Page
    • VIEW: The Future Page
    • READ: Web 3.0 Page
    • READ: Geocontent Page
    • READ: There is an App for That Page
    • VIEW: The iPad Page

  • Topic 14

    • Unit 5 Advertising

    • Week 14

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 14 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 14 URL
    • Week in Rap #14 Page
    • READ: Advertising Page
    • READ: The History of Advertising Page
    • READ: The Lemon Ad Page
    • READ: The Importance of Persuasion Page
    • READ: The Birth of Psychology and Advertising Page
    • READ: Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Page

  • Topic 15

    • Week 15

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 15 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 15 URL
    • Week in Rap #15 Page
    • READ: The Appeal of Slogans Page
    • VIEW: Slogans and Pass-a-long Advertising Page
    • READ: History of Branding Page
    • READ: Importance of a Brand Page
    • READ: Brand Names Page
    • VIEW: A Brand Alphabet Page
    • VIEW: The World's Biggest Brands Page
    • READ: Iconic Brands Page
    • CASE STUDY: Apple Computers Page

  • Topic 16

    • Week 16

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 16 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 16 URL
    • Week in Rap #16 Page
    • VIEW: Shift in Advertising Page
    • VIEW: Predictions for Advertising Page
    • READ: Interactive Advertising Page
    • VIEW: Sprint's Interactive Ad Page
    • CASE STUDY: Lincoln and Music “The Stars Did Align Page
    • READ: Customer Engagement Page
    • VIEW: Levels of Customer Engagement Chart Page
    • READ: Contextual Advertising Page
    • VIEW: A Town Called Google Page
    • READ: Outdoor Advertising Page
    • EXPLORE: Creative Outdoor Advertising URL

  • Topic 17

    • Unit 6 Propaganda and PSA's

    • Week 17

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 17 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 17 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #17 Page
    • READ: Defining Propaganda Page
    • READ: Public Service Announcements Page
    • CASE STUDY: The Foundation for a Better Life Page
    • EXPLORE: Values.com URL

  • Topic 18

    • Week 18

    • INTRODUCTION to Week 18 Page
    • PRINT: Checklist for Week 18 URL
    • VIEW: Week in Rap #18 Page
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