A well-written and thoroughly-researched paper that’s five pages long can easily receive an A grade and a poorly-written and badly-researched essay that’s seven pages long could receive a failing mark. The word count does not include the bibliography or endnotes. Here’s an important tip: I strongly encourage you to draft an outline of your paper before actually writing it. I would even suggest a rough outline even before you start researching, as this will help sharpen your focus and avoid going off on tangents. A good outline contains the following essential elements:

1) A thesis statement that outlines your paper’s main argument, i.e., “Citizen journalism has revolutionized the way we communicate because…., but there are trade-offs….”

2) The body of the paper that comprises a number of paragraphs that flesh out your thesis in the form of themes (i.e., one theme might be the history of the issue, another might focus on a technical aspect), all flowing in a logical progression.

3) Your conclusion, which sums up your arguments and takes the issue into the future.

4) A list of reference works or readings using the APA style guide. Here is an helpful link for the references that will ultimately be appended to your term paper: http://www.apastyle.org/learn/tutorials/basics-tutorial.aspx Please note that the bibliography or endnotes do not include in the word total of the paper. Here are the term-paper topics. Please choose one of them.

1) The term “fake news” reverberated in the aftermath of the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as reports emerged that some shady characters hoping to earn a quick buck were pumping out false stories about the candidates. Please explore this phenomenon, citing specific examples of fake news coverage, evaluating the impact of these highly dubious articles on society and democracy. Please note that there are concerns that fake news might be influencing political election campaigns in Europe. Be careful: Do not confuse the concept of fake news in 2016-2017 with previous definitions that focused on satirical news shows.

2) For years, Noam Chomsky has been a fierce critic of the mainstream news media, whom he argues serve the interests of the powerful elites. Do you believe that Chomsky’s contention still holds true in the era of citizen journalism, Twitter and other internet innovations? Or is Chomsky’s critique less relevant than ever?

3) WikiLeaks has been hailed by some observers as a great development in investigative journalism and freedom of the press, while critics argue that it has endangered lives and is the vainglorious enterprise of a megalomaniac. Most recently, WikiLeaks released a stream of embarrassing emails about Hillary Clinton in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Trace the origins of WikiLeaks, highlight some of its successes, and write critically about the organization. Assess its potential future while evaluating how the mainstream news media are making use of anonymous drop boxes and how alternative organizations like OpenLeaks.org are faring.

4) The growing popularity of celebrity gossip websites like TMZ.com, Radaronline.com and blogs like the “Queen of All Media,” perezhilton.com, have all exerted a strong influence on the mainstream news media. When the King of Pop died on June 25, 2009, TMZ broke the news of Michael Jackson’s death. Are these websites a breath of fresh air in the staid world of “old‐school” news media, or have they ushered in an age of triviality and stalkarazzi? Cite examples in the news media to support your views – pro or con.

5) Who would have thought that a New York investment fund, Golden Tree Asset Management, would indirectly own the Montreal Gazette and many other dailies Canada? In this paper, you will survey the fast‐changing contemporary Canadian news media landscape, with an emphasis on concentration of ownership, and determine whether these changes are beneficial or detrimental to democracy.

6) To many Westerners, Al Jazeera is the Arabic TV broadcaster that used to play the latest audio or video by the late Osama Bin Laden. Obviously, it’s much more than that. Please examine Al Jazeera in‐depth and critically, showing how it has evolved, the power it wields today and its impact.

7) Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, YouTube and blogs are all being used, to a greater and lesser extent, to advance the cause of citizen journalism. Almost everyone agrees that the average citizen is more involved in the production of news media today than at any other time in history. But there’s been a trade‐off: the diminished influence and power of the gate-keeping news editors. Do you think this is a good or bad thing? Cite detailed examples to support your position.

8) News waves appear to come and go with increasing frequency in today’s internet‐driven society. Examine a couple of news waves and show how the Twittersphere and the advent of “micro‐news” have contributed to the news coverage.

9) Convergence was the buzzword of giant media companies in the 1990s and early 2000s. But with the failure of the AOL‐Time Warner merger and the collapse of CanWest, some critics argue that media convergence is dead. Do you agree, or do you assert that corporate media convergence can still succeed? In either case, show how convergence has affected the quality of journalism. You can focus on any part of the world to back up your points.