This assignment involves a fair amount of detective work. You must find a meme or news story that you know to be factually wrong. In order to do so, you can use the fact-checking tools we discuss in class, or you can pick an item from the Snopes archives (https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/category/junk-news/). You should then find out as much about the meme or story as you can, being sure to go beyond the information provided by Snopes. Who created it? When did it first appear? Who is reposting it? Is there evidence that it is shaping opinions? With this research complete, you must complete a detailed rhetorical analysis of the item, using the techniques we have been discussing all semester. What is the implied argument? Is there evidence of a larger purpose? Why did the people who created the item choose to lie? What are they hoping to accomplish through misinformation? Like the other written assignments, the Junk News Essay must be thesis driven. You must make a clear argument supported by facts and logical arguments. The meme essay is due November 26. The essay must be typed, double-spaced, and should be approximately 2,000 words in length. It must be formatted and documented according to MLA guidelines. It must include at least five sources. NOTE: It is not enough to find a meme or news item with which you disagree or which is biased. You must work with one that can be proven false. Also, please note that there are numerous websites that include work similar to the assigned essay, including Snopes. If these websites are used at all, they should be used only as your starting point. You still have to do the hard work of investigation yourself. Please remember: I am familiar with those websites and will be checking suspicious work.
