MECO 6929 CHINESE MEDIA STUDIES IN GLOBAL CONTEXTS
News Digest (10% of unit assessment), S2 2022
You must complete all assignments to pass the unit.
Description
This assignment is designed to:
1) motivate you to read about the latest developments in one of the media sectors covered in the unit,
2) provide you with knowledge of the real-life contexts of the topics discussed in weeks 6-13, and
3) provide feedback to you about your presentation skills for improving performance in the Critique
presentation.
Submission and deadline
The news digest asks for two components, both in English:
1) a file (docx, doc, or rtf–not pdf) containing the content of an oral presentation submitted to the
unit’s Canvas site by 9 am, August 20, 2022 (Saturday), and
2) a presentation in class in week 4 or 5 according to the following schedule.
It is up to you whether you use a PowerPoint or any other visual element to support the
presentation. If you do, you will be given feedback about the use of visuals for presentation, which
will benefit your Critique presentation. You are not required to submit the PowerPoint file.
Late submission of either component will receive penalty for the entire assignment according to the
Faculty policy of 5 marks per calendar day.
Work of either component submitted more than 10 days after the due date gets a mark of zero for the
entire assignment. This means if you do not do the presentation, you get zero mark for this
assignment.
Topic on which you do news readings
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China and the global film industry
Chinese television and globalization
Foreign-language news media of the PRC
China and journalism in global contexts
Online gaming of China
China’s social media entertainment
Public participation on the Internet in China
Networked digital technologies and the Chinese party-state
Week in which you share
the news digest
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5
Word requirements
1) News digest: a maximum of 1,000 words.
2) Presentation of digest: a maximum 6 minutes.
There is no allowance for exceeding the word or time limit.
Every word in your submitted file including in-text citations but excluding the reference list counts
towards the word length.
Marks are deducted for overrun of word count or time.
Tasks
1. Choose one of the topics covered in the unit in weeks 6-13, shown in the table above.
2. Read the news readings on the Reading Guide about the topic. Each of the news readings report
one new change related to the topic.
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3. Decide which two of the changes reported in the news readings are the most important.
Look up other news (not academic) articles that give further details about the same or similar
developments. Integrate the details you read and write a digest for each of the two changes.
For example, in the news reading “China to Open up Cinema Sector to Foreign Entities,” it is
reported that the new list published by the National Development and Reform Commission
(NDRC) that prohibited areas of foreign investment no longer included two areas related to the
film industry—"the construction and operation of cinemas,” and “investment into film production
companies, distribution companies, cinema chain companies and film import companies.” The list
was to come into effect on July 30, 2019 and the prohibition was to be lifted by the end of 2019.
This means foreign investment will be permitted to enter these two areas of China’s film industry
then.
Now go and look for further details about this change, such as whether the lift means foreign
companies can wholly own cinemas, film production companies, distribution companies, cinema
chain companies or film import companies in China.
4. Share with the class your news digest in your allocated time.
Expectations
1. Most of the words of your news digest should be used to report the details of facts of the
two changes.
2. Briefly explain why the two changes are important after you present the two changes. Do
not mix your analysis with the facts in your writing. You may provide background
information and/or cite scholars in explaining the importance of the changes, but make
sure that this part is brief.
3. Make sure you do not write an essay that gives an overview of the topic.
4. Make sure you do not copy and paste substantial parts of any article you read into your news
digest.
5. Start your digest of each of the changes in a format like this:
• In [month] [year], several news organizations including [name of organization] and [name of
organization] reported that….
Or this
• On [date] [month] [year], [name of news organization] reported that…. This is the latest of similar
reports published earlier by [name of news organizations] and [name of organizations]. These
reports state that….
6. Try to give an in-text citation to every piece of information included in your news digest. Then
list the cited sources in a reference list at the end of your news digest.
7. Make sure you consult credible materials only. Chinese-language materials could be consulted but
they must form less than 40% of the reference list.
Follow this format in referencing Chinese sources:
Qian, G. (2009, May 19). 川震校舍倒塌报道始末 (Chronology of the prohibition on reporting
about the collapse of school buildings in the Sichuan earthquake). 中国报道周刊 (China
Report Weekly) . Retrieved from https://www.china-week.com/html/5029.htm
8. Please use the APA 7th citation style (https://libguides.library.usyd.edu.au/citation/apa7)
Marking criteria
Accurate reporting of information about the changes
Extent of research
Sound explanation of the importance of the changes
Use of credible sources
Effective and original expression of ideas; spelling, punctuation, format*
Correct and appropriate citations; complete reference list in APA 7th style*
Total
Percentage
30
20
10
10
20
10
100
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The presentation loses marks according to the following criteria. The percentage shows the maximum
deduction that may be made.
Does not meet requirement of the assignment
-100
(Submissions that do not address the required task will not be marked according to the
above criteria and will receive no mark.)
Content of the submitted copy differs from the content shared in class
-100
Overrun of presentation time or word length
-20
Late submission (according to Faculty policy)
-5/calendar day
*Submissions that consist of content copied and pasted extensively from other sources, even if
cited, will lose all the marks in these two criteria and likely in some of the other criteria. Serious
cases will be referred to the Faculty for suspected plagiarism investigations.
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