Find a current argument (from the past week) in one of the following sources: The New York Times <

nytimes.com

>, NPR <

npr.org

>, The Washington Post <

washingtonpost.com

>, Newsweek <

newsweek.com

>, BBC <

bbc.com

>, The New Yorker <

newyorker.com

> or National Geographic <

nationalgeographic.com

>. Articles should be approximately 1-2 pages long. 

• An argument can come in many forms. If it is an issue about which people hold different views, or that can provide for multiple perspectives, it can probably be classified as an argument.
• Please choose an article that contains an argument that you are genuinely interested in learning more about over the course of this semester. You will be working on a semester long research project, and you may use this assignment as the starting point for your research inquiry. You can still change your mind about what you’d like to research at this point, but it would be wise to explore a topic that you’d at least like to know more about.   
• However, please stay away from hot-button issues such as gun control, the death penalty, abortion, or anything else that you would not be willing to change your mind about. 

2. Once you have located an article, answer the following questions on the discussion board. For this discussion, you may write in paragraph form or number your answers.

a) When and where was your article published? Include the article title, the author’s name, the name of the publication, the date it was published, and the date you accessed it. Both of these dates must be after the start date of this course. Please make sure that you follow this template exactly: Bernstein, Mark. “10 Tips on Writing the Living Web.” A List Apart: For People Who Make Websites, 16 Aug. 2002,

alistapart.com/article/writeliving

. Accessed 4 May 2009.

1. Give a brief overview (1-2 sentences) of the article’s topic. What is the main claim being made about that topic in this article? Does the author take a stance, and if so, what is it? If the author appears neutral, what perspectives are presented regarding the topic? In other words, what argument is being made in this article, or what argument(s) could be made using the information found in this article?
2. What is your response to the argument? (Not the topic overall, but the specific claim or information that’s presented in this particular article.) 
3. Why were you interested in this article?