Social Media Toolbox
Law Review
How can your journalism class ensure they use social media responsibly and legally? The sixth lesson in a 16-part Social Media Toolbox series asks pupils to dig deep into the legal aspects of social media use by school publications....
Curated OER
Ethics and Hazelwood: What Journalists Should and Can Write
Students explore the code of ethics in journalism. In this journalism ethics lesson, students use Hazelwood and Tinker to explore journalism ethics. Students compare ethics of journalists and pirates, read a related article, write their...
PBS
Facts vs. Opinions vs. Informed Opinions and their Role in Journalism
Do reporters write about what they see, or what they think? Examine the differences between investigative writing and opinion writing with a lesson from PBS. Learners look over different examples of each kind of reporting, and convince...
Newseum
Bias Through History: Analyzing Historical Sources
Young journalists use the E.S.C.A.P.E. (evidence, source, context, audience, purpose, and execution) strategy to evaluate historical and contemporary examples of bias in the news. The class then uses the provided discussion questions to...
iCivics
Mini Lesson A: Monetization
Advertising is everywhere! Does your class know that their attention span is for sale, even when they're watching a simple news story? The second installment in a five-part series from iCivics examines the relationship between news...
Facebook
What Is Verification?
One of the most important skills news consumers and social media users must develop is the ability to determine the veracity of stories they read or view. Here's an interactive lesson plan that teaches high schoolers how to verify news...
Curated OER
Case Studies in Journalistic Ethics - Number 3
Students investigate ethical decision making when using photos in journalism. In this ethics in journalism lesson plan, students read about the ethical use of images in media, discuss recent controversial photos, and look at online case...
Curated OER
Teaching Ethical Situations
Learners use journalism ethics standards to learn how to write ethically correct news stories. In this journalism and ethics lesson plan, students review journalism standards for ethics. Learners use the standards as they analyze example...
Facebook
Versions of Media Texts
Verification of provenance and the original source of an image or video can be a long and winding process. Young journalists learn about the difficulty of finding the original source of a scrape, a copy of an original news story, and...
Curated OER
The Eye of the Beholder: A Media Literacy Activity
Students explore the impact the news media have on shaping perceptions and opinions in general and in their coverage of the presidential campaign.
Curated OER
Plagiarism in the Real World
How would you feel if someone plagiarized your work? After class members turn in an assigned newspaper article, you rewrite the piece using elements of their writing. Then you claim you will be selling the story and that you will profit...
Social Media Toolbox
Verification
When you're putting together a great story, you've got to consider the source! Scholars discover the dangers of errors in reporting during the 14th activity in a 16-part Social Media Toolbox series. Groups collaborate to create a source...
Newseum
Case Study: The Execution of Ruth Snyder (1928)
The case of the 1928 execution of Ruth Snyder takes center stage in a lesson that asks young journalists to consider the ethics involved in publishing an image of an execution. A series of discussion questions ask individuals how they...
Facing History and Ourselves
The Power of Images
One picture but a thousand stories. As a part of a case study of how the death of Michael Brown was reported by professional news sources and on social media class members examine the reactions of various groups to a photograph taken by...
iCivics
Lesson 2: Misinformation
Fake news is a hot topic right now ... but what is it? Intrepid young investigators track down the facts that separate journalistic mistakes and misinformation through reading, research, and discussion. Part three in a five-lesson series...
Newseum
You Can’t Say That: Right to Know vs. Security Risk
Print or block? That is the question young journalists debate as part of their study of the freedom of the press. Half the class represents the journalists' legal team, and the other half represents the government's legal team. Teams...
Facebook
The Verification Steps
Provenance, source, date, location, and motivation. High schoolers learn how to verify the authenticity of news stories and posts by following a seven-step process. They then use the strategy to determine the original site that posted a...
Curated OER
Forming a Code of Ethics
Learners discuss and create a code of ethics for their student newspaper.
Curated OER
Case Studies in Journalistic Ethics No. 2
Learners use texts on media ethics and various Web sites to explore real world examples of media law issues. For this media ethics lesson, students examine the Food Lion case using a transcript from the court of appeals session and...
Curated OER
Contraceptives and conscience
Students read The New Republic article and/or watch the News Ohio streaming video package. They employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different...
Curated OER
To Report or Not To Report?
Students examine the reasons why reporters do not report all they know about a given event. They identify basic journalist ethics at stake when a story isn't reported. They compare these issues with those in their local community.
Curated OER
Exploring Ethical Issues
Learners learn about ethical issues and its connection to journalism. Students examine examples of ethical issues some journalists have faced. in small groups, learners collaborate to write a code of ethics for their school newspaper....
Curated OER
Law & Ethics for Photojournalists
Students identify and discuss First Amendment rights, examine how to make sound legal judgements regarding photographs of private individuals, examine difference between public and private figures as far as libel law is concerned,...
PBS
Copyright and Fair Use
When is using someone else's copyrighted material appropriate? Learn about copyright and fair use with a lesson from PBS.org. Scholars read through a reference sheet about authors' rights and users' rights, and then create posters for a...