MA 3 = evaluation of professional academic argumentThe purpose of this project to is view a documentary (of at least 40 minutes in length) about the same social issue you chose for this course and to write an analysis of how the documentary makers argued their case. The documentary should be a true documentary and labeled as such. A television series is typically not a documentary. This is a short, three-page essay, and must be written in essay format. That means it is NOT a question/answer format nor is it a bullet point format. It IS full sentences and paragraphs. Remember that every essay should have a title, MLA format, and college-level thinking.  Use these section headers: introduction, background, evaluation, conclusion.In the introduction, you should identify:

• the documentary’s name,
• how you viewed it (Netflix?), 
• where you viewed it and with whom (because where you are and who you are with contribute to how you pay attention and perceive the content),

• your own prior knowledge of the topic,
• who the documentary’s sponsor is and if that sponsor would have an intentional bias. Remember that every person has biases that are direct results of who we are and all the things that influence us. For example, I never knew anything about assisted living facilities until we had to find one for my mom. Now when I talk about assisted living care, I am seeing it through the eyes of a person worried about the costs and suspicious of why those costs are so shockingly high. If I were to create a documentary, I would probably show that bias. When foundations and companies sponsor someone to create a documentary, they expect it to be shown from a perspective that supports their interests. You will have to use deductive reasoning here. That means finding the sponsor, understanding why they want this documentary to be seen, and what they might want the audience to take away.

In the background, you should identify:

• the documentary’s topic,
• thesis (you will have to put this in your own words with your own thinking skills),
• style (a real examination of a topic? Interview-based? Reality t.v. filming? Bordering on an infomercial? A docudrama where actors reenact scenes?)Toulmin or Rogerian? Explain AND prove!
• Evidence: what types were used for the rational appeal? What types were used for the emotional appeal?
• Identify who the experts cited are and what their credentials are. 
• Identify any special effects that you think are used (music, voice overs, slow motion, filtering, unusual camera angles). Why was each one used and how effective was it?

In the evaluation section, present your evaluation of:

• the presentation style, experts used or cited, and MOST IMPORTANTLY, the evidence
• anything “left unsaid” or that should have been included but wasn’t,
• how accurate the representation of the problem was (based on your knowledge of the topic),
• opposing viewpoints – Were they presented? If not, was their absence noticeable? If opposing viewpoints were presented, how were they portrayed? Were they belittled? Were they dismissed without adequate proof? 
• reasons you would and wouldn’t suggest that others view this documentary,
• the intended audience. Who did the sponsors hope would see and be persuaded by this documentary? How do you know that?
• how the documentary might impact others different from the intended audience (i.e. gender, ethnicity, cultural, etc.),

In the conclusion section, discuss:

• one thing you learned about the topic from this documentary,
• the part you enjoyed the most and WHY
• the part you enjoyed the least and WHY
• final recommendation to potential viewers