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Sample Passage 1:
As you read the passage below, consider how Peter S. Goodman uses
Evidence, such as facts or examples, to support claims.
Reasoning to develop ideas and to connect claims and evidence.
Stylistic or persuasive elements, such as word choice or appeals to emotion, to add power to the ideas expressed.
Adapted from Peter S. Goodman, “Foreign News at a Crisis Point.” ©2013 by TheHuffingtonPost.com, Inc. Originally published September 25, 2013. Peter Goodman is the executive business and global news editor at TheHuffingtonPost.com.
1. Back in 2003, American Journalism Review produced a census of foreign correspondents then employed by newspapers based in the United States, and found 307 full-time people. When AJR repeated the exercise in the summer of 2011, the count had dropped to 234. And even that number was significantly inflated by the inclusion of contract writers who had replaced full-time staffers.
2. In the intervening eight years, 20 American news organizations had entirely eliminated their foreign bureaus.
3. The same AJR survey zeroed in on a representative sampling of American papers from across the country and found that the space devoted to foreign news had shrunk by 53 percent over the previous quarter-century.
4. All of this decline was playing out at a time when the U.S. was embroils in two overseas wars, with hundreds of thousands of Americans deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. It was happening as domestic politics grappled with the merits and consequences of a global war on terror，as a Great Recession was blamed in part on global imbalances in savings, and as world leaders debated a global trade treaty and pacts aimed at addressing climate change. It unfolded as American workers heard increasingly that their wages and job security were under assault by competition from counterparts on the other side of oceans.
5. In short, news of the world is becoming palpably more relevant to the day-to-day experiences of American readers, and it is rapidly disappearing.
6. Yet the same forces that have assailed print media, eroding foreign news along the way, may be fashioning a useful response. Several nonprofit outlets have popped up to finance foreign reporting, and a for-profit outfit, GlobalPost, has dispatched a team of 18 senior correspondents into the field, supplemented by dozens of stringers and freelancers....
7. We are intent on forging fresh platforms for user-generated content: testimonials, snapshots and video clips from readers documenting issues in need of attention. Too often these sorts of efforts wind up feeling marginal or even patronizing: “Dear peasant, here's your chance to speak to the pros about what’s happening in your tiny little corner of the world.” We see user-generated content as a genuine reporting tool, one that operates on the premise that we can only be in so many places at once. Crowd-sourcing is a fundamental advantage of the web, so why not embrace it as a means of piecing together a broader and more textured understanding of events?
8. We all know the power of Twitter, Facebook arid other forms of social media to connect readers in one place with images and impressions from situations unfolding far away. We know the force of social media during the Arab Spring, as activists convened and reacted to changing circumstances.... Facts and insights reside on social media, waiting to be harvested by the digitally literate contemporary correspondent.
9. And yet those of us who have been engaged in foreign reporting for many years will confess to unease over many of the developments unfolding online, even as we recognize the trends are as unstoppable as globalization or the weather. Too often it seems as if professional foreign correspondents, the people paid to use their expertise while serving as informational filters, are being replaced by citizen journalists who function largely as funnels, pouring insight along with speculation, propaganda and other white noise into the mix.
10. We can celebrate the democratization of media, the breakdown of monopolies, the rise of innovative means of telling stories, and the inclusion of a diversity of voices, and still ask whether the results are making us better informed. Indeed, we have a professional responsibility to continually ask that question while seeking to engineer new models that can channel the web in the interest of better informing readers….
11. We need to embrace the present and gear for the future. These are days in which newsrooms simply must be entrepreneurial and creative in pursuit of new means of reporting and paying for it. That makes this a particularly interesting time to be doing the work, but it also requires forthright attention to a central demand: We need to put back what the Internet has taken away. We need to turn the void into something fresh and compelling. We need to re-examine and update how we gather information and how we engage readers, while retaining the core values of serious-minded journalism.
12. This will not be easy.... But the alternative—accepting ignorance and parochialism—is simply not an option.
Write an essay in which you explain how Peter S. Goodman builds an argument to persuade his audience that news organizations should increase the amount of professional foreign news coverage provided to people in the United States. In your essay, analyze how Goodman uses one or more of the features listed in the box above (or features of your own choice) to strengthen the logic and persuasiveness of his argument. Be sure that your analysis focuses on the most relevant features of the passage.
Sample Student Essays
STUDENT SAMPLE 1— SCORES: 1/1/1
In the Article, “Foreign News at a Crisis Point” by Peter S. Goodman ©2013 by TheHuffington Post.com, the author builds up an argument to persuade his audience. He provided information about American Journalism Review to let people in the community know how it started.
“We need to embrace the present and gear for the future.” This means that the author wants to find new ways of communicating with the community now, that will help later on in the future. This is important because the author wants better media to transmit to the public. “We all know the power of Twitter, Facebook, and other forms of Social media to connect leaders in one Place with images and [unfinished]
Sample 1 Scoring Explanation: This response scored a 1/1/1.
Reading—1: This response demonstrates little comprehension of Goodman’s text. Although the inclusion of two quotations from the text (“we need to embrace the present…”; “We all know the power of Twitter, Facebook…”) suggests that the writer has read the passage, the writer does not provide any actual indication of an understanding of the text. The writer fails to show a clear understanding of Goodman’s central claim, saying vaguely that the author wants better media to transit to the public. The response id further limited by vague references to details from the passage that are largely unconnected to the passage’s central idea, such as when the writer stats that Goodman provided information about American Journalism Review to let people in the community know how it started. Overall, this response demonstrates inadequate reading comprehension.
Analysis—1: This response demonstrates little understanding of the analytical task. The writer makes few attempts to analyze the source text. What attempts are offered either repeat the prompt without elaboration (the author builds up an argument to persuade his audience) or merely paraphrase the text in a general way (This means that the author wants to find new ways of communicating). The brief response consists mostly of quotations taken from the passage, with very few of the writer’s own ideas included. Overall, this response demonstrates inadequate analysis.
Writing—1: This response demonstrates little cohesion and inadequate skill in the use and control of language. While the writer does include a very basic central claim (the author builds up an argument to persuade his audience), the response does not have a discernible progression of ideas. Much of the brief response is comprised of quotations from Goodman’s text, and the language that is the writer’s own is repetitive and vague. For example, the writer states that Goodman shares information with his readers to let people in the community know how it started, with no clear indication of what “it” refers to. Overall, this response demonstrates inadequate writing.
STUDENT SAMPLE 2— SCORES: 2/1/2
In the article “Foreign News At a Crisis Point”, Peter S. Goodman argues that the news organizations should increase the amount of Foreign news coverage offered to the Americans.
Peter S. Goodman offers many explanation of why the American public needs more professional Foreign news coverage. He appeals to our emotions when he states that it’s seen very often that when news organization ask for a review by a reader/viewer they might end up to feel marginal. Goodman gives an idea to fix that problem and says, “Crowd-Sourcing is a fundamental advantage of the web, so why not embrace it as means of piecing together a broader and more textual understanding of events?” He talks about this because he believes that the news should add what the people want to hear and not what the reporters want to talk about.
He also states a fact from the American Journalism Review, the AJR sampled many newspapers from across the country and they observed that the space of which belonged to foreign news had shrunk by 53%over the previous quarter-century. Goodman took this into consideration and noticed that the decline was taking place around the time in which America was in the middle of two wars overseas. It was also around the time the government viewed the consequences and merits of global war on terrorism.
Peter S. Goodman offered many reason for which Foreign news should be increased so the American public could view it and they all have great support and add relavence to the viewer.
Sample 2 Scoring Explanation: This response scored a 2/1/2.
Reading—2: This response demonstrates some comprehension of Goodman’s text. The writer shows an understanding of Goodman’s central idea, stating that news organizations should increase the amount of Foreign news coverage offered to the Americans. While the writer includes some details from the source text (it’s seen very often that when news organization ask for a review by a reader/viewer they might end up to feel marginal); Goodman… noticed that the decline was taking place around the time in which America was in the middle of two wars overseas), these details are, for the most part, unconnected to the central idea. The use of textual evidence is limited, and therefore it is unclear whether the writer understands how important details related to the central idea. Further, the writer demonstrates some evidence of having misinterpreted the argument, stating that Goodman talks about this because he believes that the news should add what the people want to hear and not what the reporters want to talk about. Overall, the response demonstrates partially successful reading comprehension.
Analysis—1: This response demonstrates very little understanding of the analytical task. The writer does identify an argumentative strategy in Goodman’s text when the writer says Goodman appeals to our emotions; however, the writer does not analyze this moment further or provide elaboration about how the example appeals to the audience’s emotions. Instead, the writer reverts to summary and writes that Goodman gives an idea to fix that problem. Throughout the rest of the response, the writer only describes Goodman’s use of evidence by summarizing parts of the text rather than providing analysis. Overall, this response demonstrates inadequate analysis.
Writing—2: This response demonstrates limited cohesion and writing skill. The writer includes a central claim, but the introductory paragraph is not effective. Individual paragraphs display some progression of ideas, but there is little to connect ideas between paragraphs or in the response as a whole. The writer’s word choice is general, and sentence structures follow a simple, repretitive subject-verb structure (Peter S. Goodman offers; He appeals; Goodman gives; He talks). Some language errors (embrace; taking place) detract from the quality of writing throughout the essay but do not seriously impede understanding. Overall, this response demonstrates partially successful writing.
STUDENT SAMPLE 3— SCORES: 3/2/3
Peter Goodman’s purpose in writing “Foreign News at a Crisis Point” was to persuade his audience that the news should include more information about the world as a whole. Goodman’s argument becomes powerful through the use of pathos, using evidence, and also embracing reasoning.
Goodman is extremely persuasive in his argument when he brings pathos into effect. He uses pathos to appeal to the emotions of the readers. He plays out the hard times of the U.S. by saying “American workers heard increasingly that their ways and job security were under assault” and “hundreds of hundreds of thousands of Americans deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan.” This information is used to show the reader why the news coverage in foreign countries is diminishing. Goodman wants the reader to know that he understands why coverage is focusing more on the United States but not that it’s a good thing.
Goodman uses evidence to support his claims that coverage of foreign news is dwindling. Goodman says “20 American news organizations had entirely eliminated their foreign bureaus.” He also explains “in the summer of 2011, the count (of full time foreign correspondents) had dropped to 234.” This factual information is used so that Goodman had researched the information and persuades readers to believe Goodman’s argument.
Goodman also uses reasoning to show readers that there can always be improvement. He says, “these are days in which newsrooms simply must be entreprenuial and creative in pursuit of new means of reporting and paying for it.” Goodman uses the argument that we have to take matters into our own hands to prepare and change the future. Goodman’s advice to change now internet focused journalism is comes from a strong skill of reasoning.
Goodman uses pathos evidence and reasoning to persuade readers that foreign news coverage needs to be increased. He plays on the reader’s emotions by talking about issues that matter to them. He provides facts to show that his argument is valid. He also uses reasoning to come up with a solution to the issue. Goodman uses these features to successfully make a persuasive argument about the amount of professional foreign news coverage provided to Americans.
Sample 3 Scoring Explanation: This response scored a 3/2/3.
Reading—3: This response demonstrates effective comprehension of the source text in terms of both the central idea and important details. The writer accurately paraphrases the central claim of Goodman’s text(Peter Goodman’s purpose in writing “Foreign News at a Crisis Point” was to persuade his audience that the news should include more information about the world as a whole). The writer also makes use of appropriate textual evidence to demonstrates an understanding of key details (He plays out the hard times of the U.S. by saying “American workers heard increasingly that their ways and job security were under assault” and “hundreds of thousands of Americans deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan”; Goodman uses evidence to support his claims that coverage of foreign news is dwindling. Goodman says “20 American news organizations had entirely eliminated their foreign bureaus”). The response is free of errors of fact or interpretation. Overall, this response demonstrates proficient reading comprehension.
Analysis—2: This response demonstrates a limited understanding of the analytical task and offers an incomplete analysis of how Goodman build his argument. The writer identifies some important pieces of evidence in Goodman’s text and attempts to describe their use (This factual information is used so that Goodman had researched the information and persuades readers to believe Goodman’s argument), but the writer’s reliance on assertions leads only to limited analysis. For example, in the third body paragraph, which discussed Goodman’s use of reasoning, the writer merely paraphrases a selected quotation from the text (He says, “these are days in which newsrooms simply must be entreprenuial and creative in pursuit of new means of reporting and paying for it.” Goodman uses the argument that we have to take matters into our own hands to prepare and change the future) and then asserts circularly that Goodman’s advice comes from a strong skill of reasoning. Overall, this response demonstrates partially successful analysis.
Writing—3: The writer demonstrates effective use and command of language in this response, and the response as a whole is cohesive. The response includes a precise central claim (Goodman’s argument becomes powerful through the use of pathos, using evidence, and also embracing reasoning). The brief but focused introduction establishes the framework for the writer’s organizational structure, which the writer follows faithfully in the body of the response, progressing from idea to idea and ending with a competent conclusion that summarizes the response. The response displays variety in sentence structure (He uses pathos to appeal to the emotion of the readers; coverage of foreign news is dwindling; Goodman uses these features to successfully make a persuasive argument about the amount of professional foreign news coverage provided to Americans) and generally good control of the conventions of standard written English. Overall, this response demonstrates proficient writing.
STUDENT SAMPLE 4— SCORES: 3/3/3
Logic, reason, and rhetoric create a strong persuasive argument. Peter S. Goodman utilizes these tools in his article “Foreign News At a Crisis Point”. Goodman presents a cause and effect argument as well, by presenting the facts and revealing their consequences. When truly persuades his audience is his use of logic, reason, and rhetoric. These occur in forms of examples, explanations and conclusions, and persuasive and rhetorical statements.
Goodman’s use of logic occurs throughout his article, but is most prevelant in the beginning. Examples and statistical presentations initially draw interest from readers. Goodman begins with a census from year 2003 and year 2011 that reveals the major decline of foreign correspondents employed by newspapers based in the United States. The numbers themselves raise a concern in the audiences mind, but may not capture their attention. Goodman then presents more appalling examples, including the sharp decrease of space devoted to foreign news over quarter century in order to further capture the reader’s attention and raise concern. The connection between the decline in foreign news and increased American involvement overseas heightens curiosity for the reader. Goodman employs logic, basic reasoning and evidence presentation in order to raise concern, curiosity, and questions from the reader.
Goodman’s use of reason is present throughout the entire article. After Goodman’s presentation of his statistics and facts, he raises more concern about how to increase these statistics and factual numbers. Goodman uses reason to recognize that it would be more “genuine” and better informing for readers to hear of first hand experiences. The reader of his article begins to wonder how Goodman plans to increase the amount of professional foreign news coverage for Americans, and Goodman utilizes reason to draw a simple solution. Social media sites provide an outlet for individuals to have a voice “electronically” speaking. Goodman uses reason to reveal to the reader that first-hand knowledge is best and social media sites provide easy access, so why not create an outlet for people who know more to say more? Goodman also utilizes reason to present the problem of inaccurate information on social media sites. He further builds and enhances his argument when he states that there must be a way to “engage readers, while retaining the core values of journalism.” Goodman also uses reason to evoke agreement within the reader’s mind when he draws simple conclusions and presents simple solutions. Reason allows Goodman to construct upon his solid foundation of evidence that creates his argument.
Rhetoric seals the deal in Goodman’s argument. After presenting the facts using logic, and making connections using reason, Goodman utilizes rhetoric to place the cherry on the top of his argument. Rhetoric is crucial in an argument because it determines how the reader feels after reading an article. Goodman utilizes rhetoric after he presents the fundamental advantage of crowd-sourcing on the web, when he asks a rhetorical question. Goodman presents obvious and exciting information that seems more than reasonable, and asks whether this great idea should be practiced or not. A rhetoric question is meant to evoke either disagreement or agreement of the author’s purpose. In this case, Goodman’s use of rhetoric evokes agreement from the reader. In his final stanza, after presenting all methods of reform, Goodman utilizes rhetoric to once again state the obvious. Goodman presents his solutions, the asks if it is better to stay ignorant and parochial; the answer to his statement is obvious, and causes the reader to agree with him.
Great persuasive essays utilize the tools of persuasion. Goodman began his argument with logic, combined in reason, and finalized with rhetoric. A flow of examples to connections, to solutions, and consequences propels the reader into agreement with the author. Goodman solidifies his argument and builds his argument with logic, reason, and rhetoric, allowing for a reader to be in more agreement and satisfaction of his argument.
Sample 4 Scoring Explanation: This response scored a 3/3/3.
Reading—3: This response demonstrates effective comprehension of the source text. Although the central idea is never explicitly stated in the introduction, the writer accurately captures the main focus of Goodman’s argument: his concern for the major decline of foreign correspondents employed by newspapers based in the United States. The writer also accurately paraphrases (Goodman begins with a census from year 2003 and year 2011) and directly quotes important details from the source text, demonstrating effective comprehension. In the second body paragraph, for example, the writer demonstrating understanding of Goodman’s discussion of the benefits and drawbacks of social media, effectively tracing Goodman’s argument from the value of first-hand knowledge to the problem of inaccurate information on social media sites. Overall, this response demonstrates proficient reading comprehension.
Analysis—3: This response demonstrates an understanding of the analytical task and offers an effective analysis of the source text. The writer discusses how various elements of the text are used to build Goodman’s argument and how they contribute to the text’s persuasiveness. For example, the writer dis¬cusses Goodman's use of statistical evidence as well as Goodman’s use of rea¬soning in the analysis of the social media argument (He further builds and enhances his argument when he states that there must be a way to “engage read¬ers, while retaining the core values of journalism”). The writer then discusses how Goodman makes effective use of rhetoric toward the end of paragraph 7 of the passage by posing a rhetorical question (Goodman utilizes rhetoric after he presents the fundamental advantage of crowd-sourcing on the web, when he asks a rhetorical question). Although the response occasionally relies upon assertions about the elements of persuasive arguments (Goodman's use of logic occurs throughout his article; Goodman employs logic, basic reasoning and evidence presentation in order to raise concern, curiosity, and questions from the reader, Reason allows Goodman to construct upon his solid foundation of evidence; Rhetoric seals the deal), the writer provides effective support in other places (for example in the discussion of Goodman’s use of rhetoric in the third body paragraph). Overall, this response demonstrates proficient analysis.
Writing—3: This response is generally cohesive and demonstrates effective use of language. The writer provides an effective introduction that lays out in broad strokes the ways in which Goodman builds his argument (What truly persuades his audience is his use of logic, reason, and rhetoric. These occur informs of examples, explanations and conclusions, and persuasive and rhetorical statements). The response also includes a summarizing conclu¬sion. The three body paragraphs are structured around the three features the writer has chosen to focus on: logic, reason, and rhetoric. Within each paragraph, there is a clear progression of ideas, though there are few transi¬tions between paragraphs. Although the response sometimes demonstrates awkwardness and repetitive phrasing (Goodman's use of reason; Goodman uses reason; Goodman also uses reason), the writer^ word choice is generally effective. The response demonstrates some variety in sentence structure and also maintains a formal style and objective tone. Overall, this response demonstrates proficient writing.
STUDENT SAMPLE 5— SCORES: 3/3/4
Peter S. Goodman builds a solid argument for the growing need for foreign news coverage and utilizes concrete evidence, logical reasoning and persuasive appeals to not only expose the paucity of international news feeds, but also convince his audience that it is crucial that news organizations increase the amount of foreign news coverage provided to American.
Goodman begins by clearly laying out the raw statistics from a census produced by the American Journalism Review to show the dramatic decline of foreign correspondents and bureaus that had been “entirely eliminated” by American news organizations over the past decayed. In an attempt to point out the incredulous absurdity of these facts, Goodman goes on to discuss the context of the decrease in foreign coverage by providing examples of real world events that affected all Americans. Goodman uses this irony—that in the wake of pivotal global changes like war, global trade treaties and the war on terror, the foreign coverage in the U.S. was diminishing rather than growing—to try to show the American audience that this argument is very much relevant to their everyday lives. He hones in on examples that resonate with many Americans, like the threat to their wages and job security posed by international counterparts, in order to grab the reader’s attention and connect his claims to their “day-to-day experiences”. This also serves as a way to persuade leaders of the increasing importance of the need for a stronger stream of foreign news coverage by appealing to the audience’s emotions and insinuation that they are missing out on critical information that pertains directly to their lives.
Goodman employs stylistic elements through his careful choice of words that strengthen the argument and make a more powerful impression on the reader. He alludes to the “forces” that have destructively “eroded foreign news”, but also remains intent on solving this issue by boldly “forging fresh platforms” that will relay a wider range of news to the American people. He appeals to the individual, always referencing the practical need for “user-generated” content available to all people.
Goodman closes his argument by condemning ignorance and calling for action in an exigency.
[unfinished]
Scoring Explanation Sample 5: This response scored a 3/3/4.
Reading—3: This response demonstrates effective comprehension of the source text, citing both the central idea and important details in Goodman’s piece. The writer accurately paraphrases the central claim of Goodman’s text (Goodman builds a solid argument for the growing need for foreign news coverage... [to] convince his audience that it is crucial that news organiza¬tions increase the amount of foreign news coverage provided to Americans). The writer also demonstrates an understanding of the details of Goodman’s text: Goodman’s use of raw statistics; the context for the decrease in foreign coverage; that Goodman condemn[s] ignorance and call[s] for action. The response is also free of errors of fact or interpretation. Overall, this response demonstrates proficient reading comprehension.
Analysis—3:
The response demonstrates an understanding of the analytical task and offers an effective analysis of the source text. The writer discusses how various elements of the text are used to build Goodman's argument and how they contribute to the text’s persuasiveness: Goodman begins by clearly laying out the raw statistics... to show the dramatic decline of foreign correspondents and bureaus; Goodman uses this irony—that in the wake of pivotal global changes like war, global trade treaties and the war on terror, the foreign coverage . . . was diminishing rather than growing—to try to show . . . that this argument is very much relevant to their everyday lives. The writer then I discusses how Goodman employs stylistic elements to further the argument, competently selecting textual evidence of the author’s strong, deliberate language, namely the “forces” that have destructively “eroded foreign news.”Had the writer elaborated more on this discussion, perhaps by explaining how these words make a powerful impression on the reader, this response might have moved from a competent evaluation into a more advanced analysis. Overall, this response demonstrates proficient analysis.
Writing—4:
This response is cohesive and demonstrates highly effective use and control of language. The writer presents a generally skillful, concise introduction, which is also the response’s central claim: Peter S. Goodman builds a solid argument for the growing need for foreign news coverage and utilizes concrete evidence, logical reasoning and persuasive appeals to not only expose the paucity of international news feeds, but also convince his audience that it is crucial that news organizations increase the amount of for¬eign news coverage provided to Americans. The writer employs precise word choice throughout the response (dramatic decline, discuss the context of the decrease, uses this irony, hones in on examples, make a more powerful impression on the reader, appeals to the individual, always referencing the practi¬cal need). Although the writer was not able to finish the response, the two existing body paragraphs are tightly focused and deliberately structured to advance the writer’s analysis of Goodman’s use of concrete evidence and stylistic elements (mainly choice of words and persuasive appeals). The response maintains a formal style and objective tone and contains clear transitions (Goodman begins by clearly laying out; Goldman [sic] closes his argument) to guide the reader. Overall, this response demonstrates advanced writing skill.
STUDENT SAMPLE 6— SCORES: 4/3/3
Over the years what is going on in the outside world has started to affect us more. Whether it is a war that is going to effect us physically or even an oil disaster that will effect us economically. However, this news is not always covered. The U.S. news focuses more on what is going on in our own country then outside of it we are not well informed to the world around us. Peter S. Goodman uses many different types of evidence to support his claims and persuade his audience that news organizations should increase the amount of professional foreign news coverage provide to Americans.
Within the first three paragraphs of this article the author offers many statistical evidence. He throws out numbers. As a reader this appeals to a logical thinking audience. Also, many people will start to believe that this author is a credible source. He appears to know what he is talking about Peter S. Goodman appears to have done some research on this topic and proves this within his first three paragraphs. The author uses the numbers “307” and “234” in the first paragraph. He wanted to illustrate to this audience the decreasing amount of foreign correspondents that are employed by news companies within the U.S. Right away Goodman shows the audience the subject of the article. He establishes his purpose. He wants to call for a change. The author never out and says this in the first paragraph, but he subtely hints at it. Next he shows how many news organizations no longer have “foreign bureaus”. Again he throws out a number, “53 percent” to show how much foreign news has decreased within the United States. All these facts are to support his claim that foreign news has shrunk within the United States over the years. He feels as if this should change so people are better informed. Peter S. Goodman then shifts from using statistical evidence to historical evidence.
Peter S. Goodman talks about things that are going on in the world around us today. He brings up many issues that have just recently occurred. As a reader I now start to question whether I know what about them? These are all questions the author has put into the readers’ mind. First, he starts off with the war in Iraq and Afghanistan which almost every reader would know about. There are issues that many of them had to deal with personality. Some of their family members may be serving overseas. The author makes a personal connection with the audience. They know the feeling of not knowing exactly what is going on overseas. They constantly question what is happening and whether their loved ones are safe. The author then claims that world news has started to have an affect on our day to day lives in the US. He illustrates how our wages and economy depend on what is going on outside of the United States. Peter S. Goodman transitions from historical evidence to things that we use for news such as social media to make a connection to his audience.
The author starts to talk about how we now rely on social media for our world news. He again backs up his claim that we need more “professional” foreign coverage in the United States. He explains how common people are providing the news. This may make for “speculation, propaganda, and other white noise into the mix.” These people are not professional writers. Also, most of them are not neutral on an issues. He shows that common people are bias. They all have an opinion and share it. Instead of saying what is actually going on; they may say what they think is going on. The author uses the examples of bias saying there was not new organization reporting on this. All of our news came from social media. People talk these accounts as truth. They do not realize that they are not filtered. He compares "professional foreign correspondents” to "informational filers” while he compares "citizen journalists” to "funnels". Professional reporters that would investigate foreign issues would report back what they know is true. Only facts would be included. However, every day people that writing on the web would say anything and everything they could think of. He uses this comparison to show his audience the different ways they are given information. He wants to show them that right now they are depending on opinions when in fact they should be depending on facts. The author goes from how people are obtaining their information to how he thinks people should obtain their information.
Peter S. Goodman uses his last few paragraphs to state his claims once again. He renforces the idea that we need to take back “what the Internet has taken away.” He supports this earlier in his article when he [shows] how we do not also receive the full story when we rely on day to day people to report the world news. The author wants to journalists to change the way they write. He believes that they will be much more successful in providing information to the public. They need to “engage” their readers. The author’s last few paragraphs arc used to restate his claims that he supported with evidence throughout his article.
The author uses many different types of evidence to back up his claims. He shows that he has researched his topic by providing statistical evidence that agrees with his opinions. He shows the decrease in the amount of foreign correspondents with this evidence. Then he shifts to historical evidence. This evidence is used to show how much the world around us has an impact on our society. Then he transitions to how we obtain information today. He shows we do not always receive the full story. He uses this to claim how we should gain our information. The author believes in more foreign correspondents. Throughout “Foreign News At a Crisis Point” Peter S. Goodman uses evidence to portray why we need to increase the amount of foreign news we receive instead the United States. In using the evidence he shows how and why the world around us constantly has an impact on us; this is why it is so important that the United States citizens have an accurate description of issues and situations that are developing in foreign nations.
Scoring Explanation Sample 6: This response scored a 4/3/3
Reading—4: This response demonstrates thorough comprehension of the source text and illustrates an understanding of the interrelation between the central idea and the important details of Goodman’s article. The writer paraphrases Goodman’s central claim (news organizations should increase the amount of professional foreign news coverage provided to Americans) and then accurately describes the statistical evidence that undergirds that claim (the decrease of foreign correspondents as well as the decrease of foreign bureaus). The writer goes on to discuss how Goodman ties the central claim to important details such as the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and the reliance on social media for our world news, thereby showing an understanding of these details. The response is free of errors of fact or interpretation. Overall, this response demonstrates advanced reading comprehension.
Analysis—3:
This response demonstrates good understanding of the analyt¬ical task and offers an effective analysis of the source text. The writer effectively analyzes how Goodman uses various elements of his text to build a persuasive argument. For example, the writer discusses two statistical pieces of evidence at the beginning of Goodman’s argument (The author uses the numbers “307” and “234”... to illustrate ... the decreasing amount of for-eign correspondents; he throws out a number, “53 percent” to show how much foreign news has decreased). The writer then discusses how Goodman shifts from statistical evidence to historical evidence to further his argument. Although the example then given is not historical but current, the writer competently evaluates the effect of this element of Goodman’s text (he starts off with the war in Iraq and Afghanistan which almost every reader would know about . . . the author makes a personal connection with the audience). Finally, the writer makes good analytical use of textual evidence, saying that Goodman compares “professional foreign correspondents” to "informational filters” while he compares “citizen journalists” to “funnels”. The writer then explains using this comparison illustrates ("filters” present facts, while “funnels" convey anything and everything they could think of) for Goodman’s audience. Overall, this response demonstrates proficient analysis.
Writing—3:
The response demonstrates effective use and command of lan¬guage and as a whole is cohesive. The response includes a precise central claim (Goodman uses many different types of evidence to support his claims and persuade his audience that news organizations should increase the amount of professional foreign news coverage). The effective introduction provides context for the analysis that follows and the conclusion effectively encapsulates that analysis. In addition, the writer progresses smoothly from idea to idea within and between paragraphs. Although the response displays a consistently formal and objective tone and good control of the conventions of standard written English, the writer sometimes relies on choppy sentence structure and awkward or repetitive phrasing (... the author offers many statistical evidence. He throws out numbers; He shows that common people are bias. They all have an opinion and share it). Overall, this response demon-strates proficient writing.
STUDENT SAMPLE 7— SCORES: 4/3/3
Media presentation from across the globe is vital to the upkeep and maintenance of our society. How this information is obtained and presented, if presented at all, is a different story, however. Goodman builds an argument to persuade his audience that news organizations should increase the amount of professional foreign news coverage to the Americas through the presentation of statistics, connections to social media as well as using specific diction to establish his argument.
Goodman uses statistics and facts, as presented by the AJR, in order to show the loss of foreign correspondents reporting to the U.S. in order to persuade his audience that there is a need for more professional coverage. He begins his essay with the statistic saying that the level of professional foreign correspondents dropped from 307 full-time people to 234. This conveys that the number of people providing legitimate and credible information to news service in the U.S.is going down, thus alluding to the overall decrease in foreign Media. Goodman uses this to build his argument by envoking his audience to think that they may not be getting all the true media and facts presented. He uses the statistic of the shrinking correspondents to establish the fact that if this number is continually decreasing, there may be in the future a lack of unbiased media presentation, asking his audience to consider the importance of foreign news coverage.
Goodman connects to the vast implications of bias presented via social media to further build his argument. Reporters “know the power of Twitter, Facebook and other forms of social media” and, as they continue to rise in popularity in the distribution of media, are enabling the genesis of "citizen journalists who function largely as funnels… pouring white noise into the mix". Goodman further builds his argument here in order to persuade his audience by showing how with the rise of social media, more biased and superfluous information can be projected and wrongly viewed.
Goodman says this to evoke a concern within his audience about the truth in media. Blatantly put, Goodman accounts for that if you want unbiased foreign media people must turn from social media such as Twitter and Facebook and turn toward professional foreign media presentation. Presenting this idea of a passible falacy within social media greatly establishes his purpose as well as affirms his audience on whether they agree with him or not.
Also, Goodman uses specific diction to further establish his argument to persuade his audience. Goodman uses personal pronouns such as “we” to show that he personally is a part of the media presentation community, not only establishing his credibility on the subject but also aiding in his persuasion of his audience by allowing them to think he is an expert in the field. Through his word choice, Goodman further establishes his argument by ascribing the need for more foreign reporter not as a burden but as a challenge. This adds in the persuasion of his audience by showing them that this is a real problem and that there are people rising up to it, and so should they.
Goodman’s use of up-to-date references as well as connections to social media, use of statistics, and diction establish his argument of the need for more foreign reporters as well as persuading his audience of the need to do so.
Scoring Explanation Sample 7: This response scored a 4/3/3
Reading—4: This response demonstrates thorough comprehension of the source text and shows an understanding of the relationship between the central idea and the important details in Goodman’s piece. The writer includes the central claim of Goodman’s text (news organizations should increase the amount of professional foreign news coverage to the Americas) and even paraphrases the claim in broader terms (Media presentation from across the globe is vital to the upkeep and maintenance of our society). The writer also exhibits an under¬standing of the details in Goodman’s text (He begins his essay with the statistic saying that the level of professional foreign correspondents dropped from 307 full-¬time people to 234; if you want unbiased foreign media people must turn from social media such as Twitter and Facebook and turn toward professional foreign media presentation). The response is also free of errors of fact or interpretation. Overall, this response demonstrates advanced reading comprehension.
Analysis—3: This response demonstrates good understanding of the analytical task by offering an effective analysis of the source text. Focusing on the most relevant features of Goodman’s argument, the writer thoroughly discusses, for example, the use of Goodman’s opening statistic (the drop from 307 full-time foreign correspondents to 234), how it conveys that the number of people providing legitimate and credible information to news services...is going down, and how, therefore, Goodman [is] . . . envoking his audience to think that they may not be getting all the true . . . facts. The writer then follows up the point by saying that Goodman is asking his audience to consider the importance of foreign news coverage. The writer also competently selects relevant textual evidence from Goodman’s argument about the danger of social media, citing the evocative quotation "citizen journalists who function largely as funnels... pouring white noise into the mix.” Additionally, the writer analyzes the diction in Goodman’s text by discussing the author's deliberate choice of personal pronouns such as “we” to establish credibility on the subject. Overall, this response demonstrates proficient analysis.
Writing—3: This response demonstrates cohesion as well as effective use and command of language. The response includes a precise central claim (Goodman builds an argument to persuade his audience that news organization should increase the amount of professional foreign news coverage to the Americas through the presentation of statistics, connections to social media as well as using specific diction to establish his argument). The focused introduction establishes context for the writer’s analysis and provides the frame¬work for the response’s organizational structure. The writer then follows that framework faithfully in the body of the response, progressing dearly from idea to idea. The response displays variety in sentence structure and some precise word choice (vital to the upkeep and maintenance of our society, vast implications of bias, superfluous information), although the writer sometimes uses infelicitous phrasing and vocabulary (envoking his audience to think; a possible falacy within social media greatly establishes his purpose). Overall, this response demonstrates proficient writing.
