Which role does the media play in the Presidency
The Presidency, the Media and Democracy
FOR THE FORMAT EVERYTHING IS IN THE ATTACHED FILE. NEED TO WATCH “All the President’s Men”. NEED TO ANSWER THE QUESTION
In a 4-6 page paper, answer the questions below in a paper format (paragraphs, please no listing of information by number) using the MLA citation style for references.Use 12 point font, Times New Roman, 1” margins (top, bottom & sides).
A. Movie Review: Write a review of the film in your own words while describing the main characters and their roles. The following points should be included in your review:
1. Which role does the media play in the Presidency?Is the role always appropriate, in your opinion? When have there been times of fairness or unfairness in your opinion?
2. Do you consider the media one of the checks and balances of our political system although not included in the Constitution? Do you believe that there are too many protections for the media or not enough?
3. Is there ever a time when you think the press should suppress a story about the President or his family?
4. Nixon was considered an expert at controlling the media. However, from early in his career, Nixon considered the Press his enemy. How did Nixon and other presidents control or attempt to control the press? Do you see any similarities to Nixon and Trump on how they viewed and controlled the media?
5. Whistleblowers are protected to come forward if they have information of corruption or wrongdoing within the government but what about leakers of information.Deep Throat served in the capacity we now call a whistle blower, one who provides information about illegal or suspect activities. There are laws now in place to protect such people from retaliation but there are also laws punishing people who leak government secrets. Under what circumstances are people who disclose to the press information about government actions justified?
There seems to be a lot of hypocrisy about leaks—each party seems to complain when leaks hurt their party or reveal something damaging. There are reports that during the last two month that candidate Trump repeated the term “Wikileaks” over a hundred times at rallies. Do you support leaked information like Wikileaks, DC Reports (stolen information) or leaks from within the government? Explain thoroughly.
6. What role did the Watergate tapes play in Nixon’s downfall? Do you think that all presidential conversations should be taped? Why or why not? How much does the public need to know?
Compare these issues to the President’s tweets about “taping” the conversations with James Comey.Why do you think Trump said this in his tweet? What did James Comey do in response to the President’s tweet? Did you perceive it as a threat from the President to intimidate a potential witness against him?What was the result of the President’s claim—true or not true? Who do you believe—the President’s account from his meetings/calls with Comey—or Comey’s account?
7. The NYT reported that Donald Trump Jr. met with a Kremlin-linked Russian lawyer who supposedly promised discrediting information on HRC’s campaign. Donald Trump, Jr. later confirmed that he did have a meeting at Trump tower with several people regarding Russian adoption at first but then the motive of finding out dirt on Hillary Clinton was revealed.
If he met to gain damaging information from a foreign country on an American candidate, does that violate any campaign laws? Should that action be only considered inappropriate if it didn’t yield the information being sought or is it still considered “collusion”?
In what ways do “dirty tricks” played upon an opponent in an election actually undermine the democratic process? Isn’t the potential for blackmail greater if you receive information or employ someone to “steal” documents or “emails”?
8. An opposition research firm which was initially hired by anonymous Republican donor but then picked up by Democrats led to the infamous Steele Dossier which has made salacious claims about Donald Trump and the efforts Russians had made over the years to blackmail him.Were any laws broken by the Democrats to conduct this opposition research?
9. How might ethical CIA and FBI agents have dealt with the illegal acts assigned to them in Nixon’s efforts to assure reelection? How were unethical FBI agents dealt with in the Trump/Russia investigation?(Lisa Page & Peter Strozk)
10. With the current investigations being conducted by congressional committees and the DOJ’s Special Counsel, what do you think the outcome will be? How long do you think it will take to complete these investigations? Should an independent commission be formed to address the fact that the Russians interfered in our elections by “active measures” such as a disinformation campaign (planting fake stories), etc. so that they cannot undermine our elections in the future?
11. Impeachment has been discussed in light on many of the President’s actions. Do you think that the GOP, which currently holds the majority of power in the House and Senate, will be able to take actions against this President if the investigation finds that he obstructed justice or that his campaign is found to have worked with the Russians to undermine the integrity of the 2016 election?
12. There’s been lots of discussion regarding Presidential pardons. Do you think that a president should be able to pardon themselves?Why or why not (must have support here for your position).
13. The media’s role is complex in a democracy and is often a two-way street. They report on the actions of politicians while also giving politician a platform for their policies they want to broadcast to constituents. Do you think there ought to be more protections for the press to do their jobs—reporting favorable or not on politicians? Do you think Trump is too thin skinned or is the media as unfair and dishonest as he purports?
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