Category: Communications and Media

READING ASSIGNMENT 
Week 2 Reading – 128 pages
Elements of argument: A text and reader (13th ed.):
Chapter 4 (pp 89-126);
Chapter 5 (pp 127-166);
Chapter 6 (pp 167-190);
Part 7 (pp 621-648)
Post one three-paragraph response to the essays found within the reading assignments for this week. Select one from chapters 4, 5, and 6. Use a header before each paragraph identifying the essay and page numbers. Be sure to go into detail and include direct citations from the essays you choose. Please ensure you use APA formatting as not doing so will result in a 20% deduction.
You will get an A if each paragraph has at least 4-5 sentences, your responses to the essays are clear, and you give detailed textual support for your claims. You will get a B if your responses are a bit unclear or there are more expressions of feelings/opinions than specific examples. You will get a C if your responses are not clear, you have very little textual support, your tone borders on the inappropriate, or you have quite a few errors. You will get a D or F if your paragraphs are very short, you contradict yourself, you have no real support, your tone is offensive, or you have so many errors the meaning is not clear.

ASSIGNMENT: For this Touchstone, you will deliver a 5–7 minute informative speech on a topic of your choice. The speech can be for any context, but it must be informative. Below is a list of example informative speech topics for your reference.
Type of Informative Speech Purpose Examples
Object To inform an audience about something visible or tangible
The human body
An episode of The Family Guy
A car engine
Equipment for riding a horse
Process To explain a series of actions or steps with a defined ending point
How the modern electoral college works
How an ice cream sandwich is made
How to drive a car
How to study for a test
Event To discuss or describe an occurrence of importance
The Battles of Lexington and Concord
A person’s first week at college
The invention of the telephone
The Norman invasion of England
Concept To discuss or explain an abstract idea or notion
The origins of the universe
Love at first sight
Optical illusions
Patriotism vs. nationalism
In order to foster learning and growth, all work you submit must be newly written specifically for this course. Any plagiarized or recycled work will result in a Plagiarism Detected alert. Review Touchstones: Academic Integrity Guidelines for more about plagiarism and the Plagiarism Detected alert. For guidance on the use of generative AI technology, review Ethical Standards and Appropriate Use of AI.
Touchstone Support Videos
Evaluating Your Sources
Maintaining Relevance and Balance
A. Directions
Step 1: Select Informative Topic/Issue
Your speech should be consistently informative in nature. Identify your audience, purpose, and thesis. Imagine your audience and how you would want to convey your message to this audience.
Refer back to the following lessons for support:
Informative and Persuasive Speeches
Choosing and Developing a Good Topic
Informative Speeches: Definition and Types
Step 2: Consider Purpose, Thesis, and Audience
Identify your purpose, thesis, and audience. Imagine your audience and how you would want to convey your message to this audience. As you start to plan your speech, ask yourself the following questions:
What are you hoping to achieve with this speech?
Who will be in your audience? What do you know about them?
What is the key message of your speech?
Refer back to the following lessons for support:
Informative Speeches: Subjects, Goals, and Scope
Sample Informative Speech
Step 3: Find Credible Sources
Utilize your program resources, the internet, or a local library to find three credible sources that are relevant to your speech. As you look for sources, consider the following questions in your search to help ensure credibility:
How recent is the data or information presented in your source?
When was the source published? If the source is a website, when was the website last updated?
What does the source cover?
How well-researched and detailed is the source? How much depth is the topic covered in?
How is this content and level of detail relevant to your purpose, audience, and message?
How is the author qualified to speak on the topic?
What is the author’s purpose?
What biases might they have?
Is the information the author’s opinion alone or is it supported by cited facts?
Who funds the website or publication?
Are there items endorsed or for sale? If so, what items?
What is the reputation of the website or publication?
Refer back to the following lessons for support:
Gathering Information
Sources of Information: The Library
Sources of Information: The Internet
Evaluating Sources
Step 4: Identify Pieces of Evidence
Read through your sources to identify five pieces of evidence that support and reinforce your thesis. Be sure to use at least three different types of pieces of evidence from the following list:
Statistic
Analogy
Definition
Visual
Story
Testimony
Refer back to the following lessons for support:
Supporting Your Ideas
Using Examples
Using Statistics, Analogies, and Definitions to Support Your Ideas
Using Visuals, Testimony, and Storytelling to Support Your Ideas
Step 5: Create Notes
Create notes or bullet points that you can refer to while presenting your speech. You should not read your speech word for word from your notes. Make sure to cite at least three sources or pieces of evidence as you deliver your speech.
Step 6: Use Clear Language
Ensure that the language you use is consistently clear and appropriate to the audience, which helps the audience connect with you and your topic. Explain any technical jargon you use where necessary.
Refer back to the following lessons for support:
How to Use Your Knowledge of the Audience
Mind Your Audience
Tailor Abstraction to Your Audience
Make It Memorable and Enhance Audience Understanding
Step 7: Practice Speech
Practice presenting your speech. Deliver a speech that is 5–7 minutes in length.
Refer back to the following lesson for support:
Best Practices in Public Speaking
Step 8: Review Rubric
Before filming, review the rubric to ensure that you understand how you will be evaluated.
Step 9: Film Speech
Film yourself presenting the speech. Be sure that you can be easily seen and heard—at minimum, your head and shoulders should be visible in your video, and you should make eye contact with your audience by directing your speech toward the camera.
Important: Be sure that your speech’s purpose, audience, and thesis are clear. If you choose, you can state this information at the beginning of your video before you begin your speech.
Refer back to the following lessons for support:
Audience
The Purpose and Thesis Statement
Step 10: Review Video
Review your video to ensure that you can be seen and heard. Refilm as needed. Your speech should be delivered in one video with no cuts or editing.
Step 11: Review Checklist and Requirements
Review the checklist and requirements to ensure that your Touchstone is complete.
Step 12: Submit
Upload your video using the blue button at the top of this page.
Refer to the checklist below throughout the writing process. Do not submit your Touchstone until it meets these guidelines.
❒ I have selected a speech purpose that is informative.
❒ My speech has an introduction, body, and conclusion.
❒ The introduction includes my key message (thesis).
❒ The body includes my main points and support.
❒ I have selected sources that are credible and support that is relevant.
❒ I have used language that is appropriate to my audience.
❒ The conclusion summarizes my main points and includes a call to action.
❒ I have filmed a video of myself presenting my speech.
❒ The video of my speech is 5–7 minutes in length.
❒ I have reviewed the video, and I can be easily heard and seen.
❒ I have adhered to all of the requirements.
❒ I have read through the rubric, and I understand how my Touchstone will be evaluated.
B. Rubric
Advanced (100%) Proficient (85%) Acceptable (75%) Needs Improvement (50%) Nonperformance (0%)
Purpose, Audience, and Thesis: Informative Speech (15 points)
Effectively define and align purpose, audience, and thesis.
States a purpose, audience, and thesis within the speech that are aligned, clear, and specific. States a purpose, audience, and thesis within the speech that are somewhat vague, lacking in detail, or are not well aligned. States a purpose, audience, and thesis within the speech that are mostly vague, lacking in detail, or not well aligned. Purpose, audience, and thesis are not well aligned, vague, or lacking in detail, or one element (purpose, audience, or thesis) has not been stated within the speech. Does not state a purpose, audience, and/or thesis within the speech.
Sources (20 points)
Identify credible and relevant sources to support the speech.
Incorporates three different sources throughout the speech that are relevant and credible. Incorporates three different sources throughout the speech; however, one of the sources is lacking in relevance and/or credibility. Incorporates three different sources throughout the speech; however, two of the sources are lacking in relevance and/or credibility, or only two sources are included. Incorporates at least two different sources throughout the speech; however, all of the sources are lacking in relevance and/or credibility, or only one source is included. Incorporates only one source or does not list any sources and/or listed sources are all lacking in relevance and/or credibility.
Support (20 points)
Provide multiple types and pieces of evidence to support the thesis.
Includes five different pieces of support that directly support the thesis. Includes three or more different types of support. Includes five different pieces of support; however, one or two pieces of support do not directly support the thesis. Includes two different types of support. Includes three or four pieces of support; however, most pieces of support do not directly support the thesis. Includes one type of support. Includes less than three pieces of support. Most of the pieces of support do not directly support the thesis. Includes one type of support. Pieces of support used do not support the thesis, or the speech includes no support.
Language (15 points)
Choose the right language to convey your message.
Language is consistently clear and appropriate to the audience, helping the audience connect with the speaker and the topic. Where necessary, technical jargon is explained. Language is predominantly clear and appropriate to the audience, generally helping the audience connect with the speaker and the topic. Language is frequently clear but inconsistent with the audience and often fails to help the audience connect with the speaker or the topic. Language is mostly unclear or inconsistent with the audience and often fails to help the audience connect with the speaker or the topic. Language does not help the audience connect with the speaker or the topic.
Time Management (10 points)
Make effective use of the time without either finishing early or going over by more than a few seconds.
Makes effective use of the 5–7 minutes without either finishing early or going over by more than a few seconds. Runs a little short or a little long of the 5–7 minutes by no more than 30 seconds. Runs a little short or a little long of the 5–7 minutes by no more than a minute. Runs short or long of the 5–7 minutes by well over a minute. Speech is so brief or so long that it is not an appropriate response to the assignment.

The subject is Develop a PR campaign for a local（Suzhou） animal shelter to raise awareness about pet adoption and  raise funds to support  its operations,  animal care,  and facility improvements.
1，Design a website landing page mock-up that contains relevant information and visuals.

I have my PPT and speech done. We need to record the PPTX. Have to use virtual sound and loom to do it.

According to data from Statista (2023), the average American adult spends more than half of each day (13 hours, 8 minutes) consuming media across various platforms. This includes watching television, browsing the internet, listening to music, reading books, and using mobile devices. The impact of media consumption on individuals can vary depending on the content and context of what they consume. 
Objective:
To assess the implications of your media consumption. 
Skills:
For this activity, you will be applying critical thinking skills to formulate and support your conclusions on a problem or issue. 
Activity: 
For this exercise, choose a day this week and catalogue all the mass media you consume during that day. Then, reflect on your media use and write a 1–2 page (about 250-500 words) essay that addresses the following questions:   
How does your daily media consumption influence your personal and social well-being? 
What has the impact of increased consumption been on your family, your friends, and your community?  What do you see as the implications for society of this increasing media consumption?   
Requirements:
A thoughtful, thorough 1-2 pages (about 250-500 words), double-spaced essay in 12-point Times Roman or similar serif font, with all the basic components for a beginning, middle, and end.
The first paragraph should contain a thesis that introduces your main idea or position on the question posed to you in the assignment prompt. What is the point you intend to make in your answer?
The middle paragraphs should provide information, examples, and details to support your main idea or position. This is where you should show use because statements and detail what you know or think about the topic.
The final paragraph should sum up your main idea or position on the topic.  
Support your comments with relevant information that you researched in the course’s learning resources.
Use APA-style in-text citations to cite the sources of the information that you used in assembling ideas for your argument. 
Create a matching APA reference list at the end of the document. 
(make sure Turnitin Score is 20% or below for all assignments; otherwise, revisions will have to be made before grading).
Reference: 
Statista. (2023, January 9). Time spent per day with digital versus traditional media in the United States from 2011 to 2023. https://www.statista.com/statistics/565628/time-spent-digital-traditional-media-usa/

Write 500 words on using 3 sources
Topic:
Animal Rights and Experimentation-Examine the ethical justifications for and against using animals in scientific studies, educational experiments, and cosmetic testing.

Purpose: The purpose of this assignment is for you to research a country you are interested in or have a passion for and explore its geography and culture. Choose a country or culture you are not affiliated with and/or culturally a part of. Imagine yourself in the role of a tour guide leading us through the beauty and excitement of the country of your choice.
Please be very cautious as to avoid playing into any negative or offensive stereotyping of your selected country or culture.  Engaging in this type of behavior in your essay will not be tolerated and may result in a failing grade.  I trust that all of you will be fine, but if you have any questions as to what constitutes stereotyping, please feel free to consult with me. 
Requirements:
In this assignment you will upload your completed essay and works cited page.  
Write a 4-7 page paper researching and addressing all of the following aspects of the country/culture of your choice:
Geography/Capital/important lakes, oceans, mountains etc.
Food/Famous Cuisine
Religions
Cultures
Various Peoples
Dress/Fashion
(Cultural/Traditional Customary & Contemporary Modern Fashion)
Music/Arts/Sports
Entertainment
Tourist Attractions/Special Structures
Languages Spoken
Educational System
Problems experienced by the country (current push factors)
Education
Economics/Currency
Other additional/unique/important factors or features of your country
Culture and communication patterns (high-low context, Hofstede)
Skills: The purpose of this assignment is to help you practice the following skills that are essential to your success in school and your professional life beyond school. In this assignment you will:
Access and collect needed information from appropriate primary and secondary sources.
Synthesize information to develop informed views about countries and their cultures
Compose a well-organized, clear, concise and balanced report to expand your knowledge on a subject of your interest.
Knowledge: This assignment will also help you become familiar with the following important knowledge in the field of communication studies:
Cultural influences on communication
How to communicate content in a brief and persuasive manner
Conducting scholarly research formats for documenting in-text sources and creating reference pages
Task: To complete this assignment, you should:
Select a country that you feel passionate about researching and want to explore to learn more about.
You can click on the following link to search countries: https://history.state.gov/countries/allLinks to an external site.
Watch the library tutorial on Canvas (location) to familiarize yourself with credible sources.
Collect 5-7 sources that help you gain insight into the above mentioned topics (geography, dance, arts, etc.)
Write a 4-7 page paper reporting on your findings of your country and its culture. Devote at least one paragraph to describe the communication patterns in your country. Research especially Edward T. Hall’s low- and high-context communication (see below) and Geert Hofstede’s research on individualism etc. (Chapter 8 in our textbook and see below). Cite your sources in your paper MLA or APA style.
Paper Format:
Title page: Name, Title (think of something creative), date
5-7 text pages
Reference page: list the 5-7 sources you found in alphabetical order in MLA or APA style.
Point breakdown:
Paper: 100 Points
Sources to begin your culture and communication research with:
Click on these links and read the relevant information about cultural differences in communication. If you cannot find your country explicitly listed, research which of the listed countries are culturally similar to yours.
Edward T. Hall
https://online.seu.edu/articles/high-and-low-context-cultures/Links to an external site.
https://www2.pacific.edu/sis/culture/pub/context_cultures_high_and_lo.htmLinks to an external site.
Geert Hofstede
https://geerthofstede.com/culture-geert-hofstede-gert-jan-hofstede/6d-model-of-national-culture/Links to an external site.
https://www.hofstede-insights.com/product/compare-countries/Links to an external site.

Essay overview:
Write an essay to explore the role of the urban space in film. Your essay should demonstrate a good understanding of the complexities of representation and the city in films. 
The theme：City and the dystopian imagination; 
CITY IS NewYork, And the Film is, X-men: days of future past (2014) 
The cities and urban sites represented in films reflect prevailing cultural norms, societal structures and ideologies. You must engage one of the claims/arguments about the relationship between film and the city in the  academic sources I have uploaded.. The purpose is not to repeat what is being argued in the academic sources. Instead, you should examine and analyse the argument in the literature and then critique it or develop it further. You should provide your own interpretations of the chosen film(s), defend and justify your arguments, propose your own responses to the references. In your essay, you should refer closely to the aspects of film form and style of the chosen film(s) such as mise-en-scène, cinematography, sound and editing. 

I need a visual aid for my persuasive speech that I have to record at home for my online public speaking class. I will more than likely print the powerpoint out and place it on a posterboard to be used during my recording of my speech at home. I will attach my whole speech outline, however I just want slides created for my second main point in the outline, the cost analysis of smoke detectors with 9v batteries versus 10 year lithium ion batteries. I am looking for the slides to be simple but catchy overall, including pictures of the smoke detectors, spare batteries, and the cost analysis information i have provided in the outline. I would like the cost analysis data to be summed up well so it is not too wordy on each slide. I want the slide to show the cost of each style smoke detector, cost of spare batteries, and the 10 year savings that occurs when buying the 10-year lithium ion style smoke detector compared to the 9v standard smoke detector. I have highlighted the content for reference of the slides in red on my outline. I also am attaching smoke detector photos and battery photo of the models i am speaking to for pricing in the speech.

●      This assignment offers you the opportunity to express an understanding of the reading and to draw comparisons between readings and class discussion. Further it allows you to ask pertinent questions about the material. Students should closely read their selected article and write an 800–1000 word (around 3-4 pages, double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font, one-inch margins) assessment that discusses the following:
●      Explain the main idea or concept offered in the reading. 
●      Critically assess the reading under examination. That is, what did you learn? What surprised you about the reading? 
●      What are the arguments proffered by the authors? What is convincing about the arguments presented? What is not as convincing?
●      Find a current event and find a corresponding outside article and connect it to the main concepts from the readings. Cite this article in a works cited page with a link. 
●      Explain how, if you had the opportunity, you would conduct a study that was interested in similar questions. What data would you analyze? Why? 
●      Lastly, develop and describe at least four pertinent questions about the reading. For your questions you should:  
o      Ask for further clarity in reference to the main concepts.  
o      Think about potential flaws or inadequacies of the author’s ideas. 
o      Ask whether the author’s ideas might be used in explaining a different and/or original example. 
o      Investigate the logic of the author’s thinking and attempt to follow it to its logical conclusion.