Selecting a Topic and Brainstorming Worksheet

Complete the following and post as an attachment.

What two objects, people, subjects, or concepts are you going to compare and/or contrast?
The two objects to which I am going to compare and contrast are how children are affected by the media today versus how they were affected by media in the early 1990s.

What are the similarities between the two objects, people, subjects, or concepts? List as many similarities that you can think of. The similarities that each time period represents are that each generation children were subjected to the media in some way shape or form. Television, music and the celebrities that are big during these times. A lot of the toys advertised on television now are the same toys that were advertised on television back in the early 90s and similar are the cartoons that are shown now are re-makes of cartoons that were shown during that time. Music is a big influencing factor and it has a similar effect to children today as it did back then. Celebrities too have influenced children in similar ways that they dress the same and want to be those people that they see.
What are the differences between the two objects, people, subjects, or concepts? List as many differences that you can think of. Television seems to be a bigger factor in children today than it used to be. Celebrities’ back then did not promote scantily clad and half naked fashions. They also did not promote the baggy to the knees fashion that seems to be showing up all over the states. The music was a lot tamer back in the early 90s than it is today in both content and lyrics, the lyrics of music in the 90s were more subtly hinted than the more blunt lyrics of today where sex, drugs and alcohol as well as violence is more abrasive than it has ever been.
Are you going to focus on similarities, differences, or both? Explain your rationale.
I am going to focus on both the similarities as well as the differences. I want to be able to show my audience the positives and the negatives in the changes that have been made through the years in media as to how it had negatively and positively affected our children. I think by showing both an equal amount of both I can better let my audience know

What do you want your readers to learn and understand after reading your essay? What is the purpose of your essay?
The purpose of the essay is to show just how largely the media has effected children today versus how they had effected children that lived in the early 1990s. I want my readers to walk away knowing the major differences in the time periods and how it is effected the way that children act and the knowledge that they have been learning through media.

What 3 parallel points of comparison and/or contrast will you address in your essay? For example, if you were going to compare and contrast two teachers, your parallel points might be teacher’s homework policy, teacher’s classroom conduct policy, and teacher’s demeanor. My three parallel points I will be comparing and contrasting in my essay are Television, Celebrities and Music. Each of these forms of media I feel has had the biggest influence on children throughout their respective generations both in good and in bad ways.
Explain why this is an appropriate and workable topic selection for the final assignment.
This is a workable and appropriate topic because I will effectively show how much change has happened between the early 1990s and today as the media affects children as well as where they are similar in how they effect them. There is a lot of material to work with on the subject and I feel that it will be both informative as well as educational to those who may not know much about the changes that have occurred.