science fair project dealing with the news?

Question

I'm doing a science project on what the news on televison portrays more, positive stories of negative stories. i really like this idea, but im kind of lost with what exactly what i want to do. i plan on taking the top 2 news stations from each of the 2 neighboring cities i live near and watching them for 3 days taking down what I see. does anyone have any suggestion with this project? do u think it is a good idea? thanks a lot!!!!!

Answer 1

You've certainly picked an interesting topic, and one of interest to many. Be sure to remember that 'good' news or 'bad' news is largely in the eye of the beholder: it's subjective. Also, since news is no longer presented as a sequence of facts that we, as individuals, get to interpret, it is often more complicated to make assessments accurately. If there is a story about the increase in beef consumption, that is good news for the cattle ranchers, but bad news for chicken farmers, fishermen, and vegetarians. The recent fluctuations in oil prices are good for some, bad for others – and so on. Today, due to the need for numerous 24-hour news stations to keep feeding viewers stories, the approach is to be personal, and to create emotionally heightened presentations to draw viewers in. Unfortunately, these presentations cause viewers to be lazy, and simply accept what is being told to them. You can see this phenomenon very clearly when comparing Fox News to CNN: Fox will try to sway your perspective in one direction, while CNN tends to go in the opposite direction. Lastly, the words and pictures used to convey today's news dramatically affect whether a viewer will see it as good or bad. There is all the difference in the world between different ways of saying the same thing: one could be actual news, the other more of a soap opera style of delivery to hold interest. Allow me to demonstrate briefly, and then I'll let you get back to your interesting project.

NEWS: Next Thursday the leaders of North Korea, Syria, Iran, and Venezuela will meet for three days in Damascus to discuss trade agreements.

BIAS: Next Thursday, the dictators and authoritarian leaders of several anti-American countries will be holding a closed meeting in the heart of terrorist-laden Damascus. Though the exact purpose of the meeting is being kept secret, it is thought by many to be the first in a series of meetings aimed at creating an anti-American alliance based on the control of oil supplies. There are growing concerns that the meeting might lead to even more serious complications in the already stressed Middle-Eastern region.

Good luck!

Answer 2

You are doing a study, but it's not a science project and you might find that hurts your marks.

You might want to pick a science project with some science in it.