Round Table Prompt

The rise of the telegraph made daily journalism possible during
the Civil War, a period when the press took clearly partisan sides.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So what did I learn this semester?

 That is the overarching theme of our Breakfast Round Table. 

But you don't need to take that question literally and narrowly. Think more broadly about how studying the history of American journalism for a full semester has shaped your thinking and how you view the press and the world in which it operates.

Questions to spark your thinking:

In learning about American journalism from the very beginning, 1776, did anything surprise you about the early periods? Did anything about the early periods remind you of the period we live in today?

As you saw American journalism evolve through several timelines, what insights did you gain into the role of the press in society? how it should properly function to fulfill that role? what the relationship should be between the press and the government?

Were there moments in time when you think the press in this country fell down on the job? Explain.

What role did the blogs play for you throughout the semester? Did writing about various historical developments and people help you understand the history? Did the blogs help you improve your writing? Did doing the blogs make you realize anything about your desire to be a journalist?

What role did the movies play for you throughout the semester? Did the movies help bring the history to life in a meaningful way? Did they help deepen your understanding of the periods depicted and the journalists and their struggles during those times? Did you ever feel that something from the timelines was jumping off the screen?

If you had to compare journalism in this country right as an echo of an earlier period you learned about, which one would it be? Why so? Examples?

A Must-See Movie

Here is the original four-minute trailer for "Citizen Kane," which is a dramatic version of the life and career of William Randolph Hearst. It's considered one of the greatest movies of all time.