Abstract
This paper explores the influence of think tanks in the realm of public opinion and policy shaping. The focus is primarily on the Fraser Institute and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) and their respective histories. The paper explains that these think tanks stand at opposite ends of the political spectrum, and opines that the CCPA was created as an opposition to the Fraser Institute.

From the Paper
"In 1974, the Fraser Institute was created out of a concern that the government was becoming too big. Founded by a group of economists including T. Patrick Boyle, the Fraser Institute was established as an "independent non-partisan research and educational organization." While their mission statement claims that the institute is nonpartisan and they receive no funding from any political party, the Fraser Institute has developed a reputation for its conservative leanings and has been categorized as a conservative advocacy think tank by many scholars.
"They have advocated that the solution to education performance is "to give individual schools more autonomy and empower parents to choose the school that will best serve their child's educational needs" They are also well-known for their economic viewpoints that emphasize reducing the role of government. Their view on tax rates is that they "continue to hinder economic progress and competitiveness...because they discourage the very productive behavior we need more of.""

Tags:canadian, policy, journalism

Abstract
This paper discusses the importance of whistle blowing in journalism as a pillar to the free press and a democratic society. The author provides several examples of individuals who were all a significant force for change in the evolution of whistle blowing. The paper concludes that whistleblowers will always remain a necessary force in the press because as long as there is corporate competition or politicians with agendas, whistleblowers will be required in their capacity as watchdogs of democracy and ethics.

From the Paper
"What followed was an explosion in the media. Just a few months after Darby handed over the photos, the television programme 60 Minutes II broke the story. The New Yorker picked up the story and detailed Darby's involvement. Then, while eating lunch in the mess hall one day, a group of soldiers witnessed Donald Rumsfeld on television addressing Abu Ghraib. Rumsfeld paid tribute to Darby and commended him for his action.
"The secret was out now and word spread fast around unit of Darby's so-called betrayal. The reaction was so threatening to Darby that he was sent home early and told that he would probably never be able to return home. The experience terrified Darby. He was forced to move to a secure military base and was ostracized by members of the
community, some of them his own familyv. Like so many cases of whistle blowing, the costs ended up being high for Darby."

Tags:whistleblower journalism fca, false claims act, inspectors general act

Abstract
This paper delves into the Reefer Madness campaign and how it shaped the perception of marijuana and its users for decades. The paper explains that the racism of a misguided campaign still remains in the minds of those who experienced the reefer madness hysteria, and is a prime example of a bias in communication. Music's influence on the issue is also discussed. The author stresses the importance of fact selection, story development, and preconceived notions of subject matter in journalism, and defines how counter cultures can develop as a result of biased reporting.

Outline:

Introduction
Marijuana in the Media
Counter Culture and the Bias of Communication

From the Paper
"Smoking marijuana became defined as a social problem in the late 1910s and early 1920s. Early reports of a drug being carried across the border by Mexican immigrants surfaced in the South Western United States1. The drug spread through other low income workers that were mostly Black and soon the drug was almost solely viewed as the vice of colored men who desired nothing more than to hurt young white women. Border towns were the first to adopt any form prohibition law against the drug as a measure of controlling immigrant workers. In 1914 El Paso, Texas became one of the first cities to ban the sale and possession of the drug.
"Other states facing large numbers of Black and Mexican laborers that used the drug began to prohibit the drug. In 1915 California drafted laws, as did Louisiana in 1924 and New York in 1927."

Tags:marijuana, hemp, journalism

Abstract
In this case analysis, the current business situation of the TV Guide Corporation is investigated. This analysis is done from a marketing perspective, and assesses and applies marketing concepts to a real-life situation at TV Guide magazine. In this case study, a situational analysis, which reviews TV Guide corporation, and its main product, TV Guide, along with additional offerings is shown. A brief history of TV Guide is given; the corporation's current business situation is assessed. A comprehensive SWOT analysis is given. This analysis lists the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) that are faced by TV Guide. A comprehensive recommendation for the marketing strategy is given for TV Guide. Finally, a conclusion summarizes the important information given in the other sections.

From the Paper
"Interestingly, TV Guide corporation is much more than its most well known product, the TV Guide. Since the publication of McDonald's article TV Guide has become much more diversified, and global. It operates four main business units. These are: TV Guide Television Group, TV Guide Interactive Group, TV Guide Magazine Group, and United Video Group. TV Guide markets and distributes products to over 100 million cable and satellite homes each and every week.
Perhaps the biggest news in the TV Guide area is the formation of Gemstar-TV Guide international on July 12, 2000. This company formed when Gemstar International Group merged with the TV Guide Company. Gemstar-TV Guide International now has television listing products licensed to over 180 companies, in industries like cable, satellite, Internet, personal computers and consumer electronics."

Tags:iGUIDE, Prevue, Networks

Abstract
This paper presents a research proposal to investigate the possible correlations between exposure to fashion magazines and young women's romantic beliefs, sexual attitudes and the actual quality of their romantic relationships. The paper discusses these issues with regards to the impact that magazines have on self-image in general.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Literature Review
Romance
Sex
Processing the Magazines' Distorted Values
Theoretical Framework
Factors on Readers' Vulnerability
Appearance-Oriented: Beauty and the Perfect Body
Research Design
Sample
Data Collection
Independent Variables
Dependent Variables
Research Questions/Hypotheses & Limitations
Conclusion
Appendix

From the Paper
"Cosmopolitan and Glamour, the two best-selling fashion magazines in the world, sell sex in their content more than anything else (McCleneghan 2003). Their main profit comes from advertisements of cosmetic products, not the actual sales. In 2000, a supposedly flat year for magazine advertising, their ads revenue has grown more than 5% (McCleneghan 2003). Marchand (1985) suggests America has entered a "consumption ethic" where the media is sending cultural messages to construct individuals' desires through changing their self-concept (McCracken 1992); and that desire is commodified and sold back to the individuals. In the fashion discourse, magazines target 17-24 year-old young women in promoting sex and their beauty products because they are single and they are in relationships; they have more disposable income for clothing, beauty products, entertainment and magazines (McCleneghan 2003). Along with the increasingly explicit sexual content in the magazines, correlated or not, is a "sexual revolution" in the past two decades (Netting 1992). There are several trends in single youths' sexual behavior: the increased premarital sexual activity in North America; decrease in age of first intercourse; and the rise in number of premarital partners (Netting, 1992). In 1980, 41% of women had no prior sexual experience; in 1990, the percentage of these sexually-inexperienced women dropped to 21%. Extensive studies have attempted to show the impact--mostly negative--on young women who are exposed to the sexually-explicit fashion magazines--their self-esteem, body image and attitudes towards sex (Attwood 2005; David 2005; Jackson 2005; Lindner 2004; Machin & Thornborrow 2003). In this review, the aim is to extend on the impact of magazines beyond the personal level, showing the possible effects it brings to these young women's romantic relationships: their romantic/relationship beliefs, their sexual attitudes and in turn the satisfaction of their love life."

Tags:media, esteem, image, romance

Abstract
This paper uses examples from advertisements, TV, newspapers, and/or electronic texts to demonstrate how cultural narratives are received by our society from the media and then become practices that are further supported by the media. The paper examines three different theories about cultural changes, theories that have resulted from society changes and cultural narratives, then relates them to today's society and looks at the influence of the media with regard to these theories.

From the Paper
"Culture is defined as "the results of practicing the art of refinement and civilization" (Chambers). It is the ever-changing culture of Australia that the study of Text and Contexts has recognized. With this change comes an added focus on theories that are common practices in today's society. Cultural narratives are the ways of civilization and its changes. Cultural narratives can be created and developed by many sources, one of which is the media. The media plays an ever-defining role in the construction of our culture, through these cultural narratives. Technological advancements are increasing playing a role in the media's effects on cultural development. Basically, the media defines our culture with or without our knowledge of this. We are constantly bombarded with influences each and every day. Gradually, media's role in society will be nothing more than seen as a tool in shaping who we are, and portray how life should be lived."

Tags:norms, western, civilization, shapes, society, marxism, queer, theory, feminism, post-modernism

Abstract
This essay discusses several themes found in the newspapers of the time of the Second World War on the day of December 15 1941 , showing the usefulness as well as ineffectiveness of these sources for historians. The author examines sources that include authentic documents, personal accounts, diaries, memoirs, and newspapers.

From the Paper
"By researching and studying various aspects of newspapers from times of war, we are able to determine their usefulness to historians as sources. Newspapers contain a wide variety of information on many different subjects, some of which are useful and some of which prove inadequate. Newspapers, especially during times of war, contain large amounts of factual information, such as accounts of battles and gains and losses of military assets. By studying the way in which this information is expressed in newspapers, and by comparing it to other sources, we are able to conclude that this factual information contained in newspapers is usually incorrect, inaccurate or misleading. In this sense, newspapers prove useless to historians as a source. In contrast, newspapers prove to be extremely useful as a source for determining both social and political attitudes of the time."

Tags:second, war, world, globe, mail, times, london, battle, age, german

Abstract
This paper provides an historical overview and an in-depth look at one of the most famous murder cases of all times. The author of the life after prison for Evelyn Dick. Many photos are also included.

From the Paper
"The Torso murder case is one of the most sensationalized and talked about murder cases in Canadian history. At the time the story was a journalist's dream, a story of scandal, mystery and the bizarre. The case became front-page material for months on end. Not only the public, but also the journalistic and publishing communities, were enthralled by the case. Now more than half a century after the crime was committed, the Evelyn Dick case still arouses much public interest. It seems, however, the public remains largely unaware of what the details of the case actually were and what transpired legally after the dismembered body of John Dick was recovered."

Tags:canadian, criminals, dick, evelyn, famous, murder, murders, torso, trial, life, crime

Abstract
This paper examines the relationships between major news sources around the world comparing international coverage of major news events to that of North American coverage. The paper compares news reports from many different newspapers from all over the world, including South Africa, Australia, Israel, Canada. The writer points out the differences between the various international news reports on the same topics.

From the Paper
"The business and economical news from six major news sources have been carefully observed over the past six weeks. When discussing the economic or business news, world trade or welfare, the various media sources examined proved to take a multitude of approaches. Whereas most sources do indeed have separate sections entitled Business or Economy, which made for relatively easy comparisons, their focuses are truly unique. My findings include sources such as The Sunday Times (of South Africa), that focus on mainly local business happenings. On the rather surprising flip side, some sources were internationally influenced, such as The Sydney Morning Herald (of Australia), which seemingly minimized local issues in order to report on the significance of American business news. Upon saying this, in the international or "non-North American" sources observed, the Canadian business news was not only overshadowed by that of current U.S. economic updates, but downright ignored."

Tags:current, events, newspapers, journalism, times, post, herald, items

Abstract
This paper explains that, in the recent Muhammad cartoon controversy in Denmark, Cultural Editor Fleming Rose and the Danish newspaper "Jyllands-Posten" sacrificed what Muslims consider their freedom of religion to preserve Denmark's press freedom and the Danish people's freedom of speech. The author points out that, by examining the timeline of the controversy including the backlash to the cartoons, the views of Muslims around the world, Denmark and its values and Fleming Rose's explanation and apologies, this cartoon was not a malicious anti-Muslim act but rather one journalist's attempt to draw attention to a dangerous change in Denmark's freedoms and rights. The paper contends that the North American press coverage of the story fueled the situation by not including the back stories of both the Muslims in Denmark and the strong Danish tradition of freedom of speech.

From the Paper
"On September 30th, 2005, the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten published 12 editorial cartoons depicting Mohammed along with an editorial by Fleming Rose. Muslims in Denmark and around the world were outraged, and reacted by filing a complaint against the newspaper with Danish police on October 27th. By January 6th of the following year, the investigation was discontinued as no law had been broken. Danish Imams put together a dossier containing the 12 cartoons published by Jyllands-Posten, along with pictures from another Danish Newspaper, Weekendavisen, hate-mail consisting of pictures and letters they alleged were sent to Muslims in Denmark, and a televised interview with a prominent Dutch Member of Parliament and Islam critic, Hirsi Ali."

Tags:heritage, marginalize, freedom, backlash, apologies