I need a solid topic for writing a commentary or media critique essay.

Answer 1

Hi. One that I really like and I've had students come to me with the subject already assigned to them is the effects of cable news on American Politics. I don't know how old you are, but about a decade ago Fox news wasn't conservative, MSNBC wasn't liberal, they just reported the news. These networks taking political stances was probably born out of the 2008 presidential election where the "red state/blue state" divisions were in the spotlight and Barack Obama was elected as the first president with Black ancestry. It could also be the related to the recession of 2008 throwing the country into financial problems. These cable channels are paid for high ratings so in a recession with the political climate already full of tension, they seemed to have found a way to be more profitable by taking political sides. But, this means that very few people are watching neutral news where only the news is reported. They watch pundits (look up that word) do a lot of speculating about political news and giving commentary that is sided with the views of the viewers political party. So, is cable news too involved in politics?

If you choose this subject I suggest that you watch PBS news either on TV or YouTube for a few night. PBS programming is funded by donations and not advertising dollars (as a reward for high ratings) so that it can deliver high quality educational programming. I want you to notice how PBS news does far more news reporting and far less telling the viewer what to think, taking political sides, and turning the "news" into a talk show.