Listed below are the elements to my beat development:

• Notes from any journalists you talk to
  • As far as I know this area I am covering is untouched by others. I personally do not know many journalists but I always have Dr. Loggins as well as Nick and Russell for advice on how to properly cover this topic. I have also read through Margret Allen’s post, “Welcome to the wild and whacky world of journalism”. She is a great local source that I will most likely seek advice from if I need a good push in the right direction. A quote that came from Margrets post that stood out to me was he stating, “Sadly, many citizens care less for news, and instead prefer information that validates their pre-existing views. It can be easier to call it all fake news and dismiss it, than to take responsibility for sifting through the information. But to keep a democracy alive, citizens must care about facts and information, so they can choose those who govern them”. This stood out to me because my beat can be thrown into this area of fake news or political bias. My goal is to do thorough research to make sure information is accurate to make it easier to understand for those who do not pay attention to politics.
• Notes on how you will cover the beat in person
  • Due to the coronavirus pandemic there will not be many opportunities to venture out to speak with individuals about their thoughts on the topic at hand. However, being from Hays will present a great opportunity for me to be able to reach out to friends and family who are involved in the community to get their take. The closest I believe I will be able to cover the beat in person will be conducting the interviews.

• A document with links to online resources
  • Fortunately for me, this topic will be covered extensively throughout the fall until November. I will be able to find the candidates information and updates via their political websites. There will also be plenty of opinionated articles on social media platforms that will be a good way to gain a different perspective. I will be looking extensively at fact checking sites with large data and events that are mentioned in the debates/rallies. Finding reliable resources will be a big part of my beat development. Attached is a document with all of the online sources I will be using.

• A reference list for offline material that can help
  • My library should be pretty consistent the entire semester. Once I can find reliable sources that will fact check and make the information spoken about is not false or too far fetched. I have also reached out to political science instructors to see if they would be interested in helping with interviews. 

• A calendar you created of important events in your beat through the end of the semester
  •  A few dates for this beat that are important are on September 29th, October 15th, and October 22nd when the candidates go head to head in their debates. The Vice Presidents will debate on October 7th. The final date that is important is the election day which is November 3rd. Here is a link to a google calendar. https://calendar.google.com/calendar/u/0/r/month/2020/11/1?tab=rc

• Archival notes
  •  I have done research on the individuals I have reached out to within the political science department. Both people have different perspectives, education backgrounds, and are instructors for different classes that will help add a good variety to their quotes.

 

• My 5 W’s:
  • Who-Presidential Candidates-Vice Presidential CandidatesWhat

    -What is their background and policies planning to implement

    When

    -most recent speeches/speech dates

    Where

    -Speech locations/interview locations

    Why

    -Why it is beneficial to the general public

    How

    -How the policies will effect the general public.

• Lede:
  • Are you upset with the current events going in the United States? Or, are you happy with the state of our nation? Either way, there is a way for your opinion to be factored in to the next four years of success or failures. How you may ask? By enforcing your rights according to the 15th amendment. Every four years our nation takes a vote on who will be our President lead our country. Over the next two months the two party leaders from the republicans and democrats will go head to head in trying win the majority of our nations votes. As an American it is our right to vote and what better time to use the right given to you than in the 2020 election. As a voter it is important to understand a few things: who the candidates are, what their background is, what their policies will be, when they will be publicly speaking, where to view these speeches and consume their information, why these candidates are important, why their policies are meaningful, and how these policies will effect the general population.
• Nut Graph
  • Often politics is something people tend to avoid. Or, they believe that their opinion does not matter. This could not be farther from the truth. Young voters especially believe that either they do not know enough about the candidates, or they think that their vote does not matter. Here is why changing this mindset is so important. Often people with opinions have friends, and those friends have friends. Generally people with similar interests are friends. Not only does one friend’s opinion matter, but if others with similar views register to vote there is a better chance for change to be made. It does not matter one’s political affiliation or views. Change is made when the people of the United States come together and agree on what is best for the nation. Now, this may come with a little effort and research but it is a lot easier than one may think. This article will cover all of the aspects involved with the upcoming election to keep people informed and educated on all of the information that a presidential election entails.
• Transcribe at least three quotes you can use from at least two different people.
  • I have reached out to two political science professors who will offer their two cents on the candidates, events that happen throughout the campaign, and a local perspective.