“Parents should not be allowed to post pictures of their children on social media without their consent.”

The research paper is the first in two separate projects this semester that are related by topic.
You will choose a topic to explore through this semester, and these major projects will seek to
examine this topic in a different way, all providing opportunities to demonstrate many of the
critical competencies of this course.
The goal of this research paper is for you to demonstrate that you can 1) craft a narrow topic for a
paper, 2) organize it logically, 3) use valid research to explain and support your arguments, and 4)
can write clearly, with few grammatical errors. ALL TOPICS MUST BE APPROVED BY THE
PROFESSOR OF THE CLASS. Since this is often the most difficult decision for students, and since it
is not easy to discuss via email, I am available by phone or Zoom meeting to discuss your topics
with you. Carefully consider what aspect of media or current events you would like to focus on
this semester. I cannot choose a topic for you, but I can help you find one (the sooner the better).
Your research paper must
1) be at least four FULL pages in length (this does not include the cover sheet or the final
References page).
2) include at least TWO valid citations for each main point (total six to eight separate sources
depending on number of main points) to provide evidence and explanation for your point.
AT LEAST TWO OF THE SOURCES USED FOR YOUR PAPER MUST BE OBTAINED FROM THE
MERCY DATABASES.
3) Your paper should include at least one example, statistic, or quotation/paraphrase as
evidence.
4) Each article used as evidence should be cited within the body of the paper (in-text) with a
full citation on the final (References) page. Use APA citation format for your papers this
semester. You do not need to include an abstract or a list of contents.
5) The rubrics (grade weighting) used to grade this paper are contained on the following
page. You should read through these rubrics before submitting your paper to be sure that
you respond to the requirements of the paper.