Research. Pt 1

Engl. 122
Documented Argument: Research Stage , Part 1

Where do you start?

Before you can write an argument, first you need to develop your expertise on a specific topic. To be successful in this class, you must develop an understanding of the wide reaching complications of your topic. Mostly, this comes down to what a great teacher of writing once said is like picking hunting dogs. There are plenty of good dogs out there, but you need to find one that will hunt.

But first, you need to pick something to explore. How? Start looking. There’s a pile of dogs before you, start checking them out.

Today, using only the library databases, you will develop three separate topics to add to a list that will be compiled by the class as a whole. You must take this seriously for it to be effective. If you don’t and pick the first three you come across, you will be subject not only to a lesser grade, but to the widespread scorn of the class.

To start, go the library.cudenver.edu site.

Next, click “Databases A-Z” then enter “CQ Researcher” in the “Search By Title” box.

Topic 1:
*Here is your task, from the “Issue Tracker” tab (left side) on CQ Researcher, scroll and peruse your way through these topics, noting those that seem interesting. Also, you can use the “Pro/Con” tab for this. CQ Researcher is a good place to start.

Click on the topics to reveal the sub-topics. Find some you like, look at the Pro/Con articles and the other tabs on the left-hand side, and consider whether this topic is meaty and interesting enough to look into more deeply.

Click around and read and find at least three interesting facts/quotes/ideas. List them.

Now, put your topic into question form. For example, I picked “Advertising.” I write down, based on what I have found from exploring CQ Researcher: “Does the govt. effectively regulate advertising directed at kids?”

Develop other, ancillary questions if needed. Ie “What are the effects of the increase of advertising and the “advertising /marketing siege” on average Americans? On values? What values are presented most frequently in ads, what message is conveyed?” etc. Just brainstorm, poke around, and come up with more ideas.

Now: List, based on info. from CQ’s “Next Step” and “Contacts” tabs four good sources to turn to for more info. on this topic.

Topics 2 & 3, repeat, but with different topics.

These must be emailed to me (Jeffrey.becker@ccd.edu) before the start of class on Tues. 9/ 22 so I can compile the list.


Here is my sample:

Topic: Advertising
Interesting Facts/Quotes/Ideas:
A. “Drug companies, owing to their clear conflict of interest, are not the ones to educate people about the drugs that they are selling,” two former editors of The New England Journal of Medicine argue. “DTC ads mainly benefit the bottom line of the drug industry, not the public. They mislead consumers more than they inform them, and they pressure physicians to prescribe new, expensive, and often marginally helpful drugs, although a more conservative option might be better for the patient. That is probably why DTC ads are not permitted in other advanced countries less in the thrall of the pharmaceutical industry.” Footnote 10
B. In 2003, Companies spent 243 billion in advertising in the US.
C. Courts largely favor the advertiser. Corporations are granted First amendment rights (including free speech) even though they are not people.
Research Questions:
A. What are the effects of the increase of advertising and the “advertising /marketing siege” on average Americans?
B. On values? What values are presented most frequently in ads, what message is conveyed?”
C. Does the govt. effectively regulate advertising directed at kids?”
D. Should drug companies be allowed to market prescription drugs?
Next Steps/Sources:
A. “Capturing the Minds of Our Children,” The San Francisco Chronicle , Dec. 14, 2003, p. D4. Parents and children are at a huge disadvantage against marketers using sophisticated advertising combined with the latest research into child development.
B. Center for Science in the Public Interest
1875 Connecticut Ave. N.W., Suite 300, Washington, DC 20009
(202) 332-9110
www.cspinet.org
The nonprofit advocacy group tracks a broad variety of issues, including advertising and its impacts on nutrition.
C. Langvardt, Arlen W. , “The Incremental Strengthening of First Amendment Protection for Commercial Speech: Lessons from Greater New Orleans Broadcasting,” American Business Law Journal , June 22, 2000, p. 587. A business law professor at the University of Indiana details the Supreme Court's approach to commercial-speech issues over the past 25 years.