Critical Media Literacy

Part 1. Refer to Annex A
Look at the Straits Times coverage of the death of Jamal Khashoggi on October 21, headlined:
“Khashoggi Strangled by Saudi Agents: Riyadh.” You may also research other coverage of the
event.
a) Describe and demonstrate the main difficulty journalists would have encountered in writing
this story. Explain with reference to Chomsky and Herman’s theory of news filters. Limit
your answer to 200 words. (30 marks)
b) Often, using anonymous quotes or sources affects the credibility of a news story. State the
effect in this case of using quotes from unnamed officials. Describe whether or not it
undermines the credibility of the coverage. Limit your answer to 400 words. (40 marks)
c) According to the 5 Core Concepts of media literacy, media messages are constructed to gain
profit and/or power, and they have embedded values and points of view. That is, they seek to
create certain effects in their audience. List and demonstrate the effect in the article of
inserting the quote by the anonymous man in Saudi Arabia saying it was a sad day for his
country. Limit your answer to 120 words. (10 marks)
d) According to the 5 Core Concepts of media literacy, media messages are constructed to gain
profit and/or power, and they have embedded values and points of view. That is, they seek to
create certain effects in their recipients. Explain and develop the reasons why the writer used
the fiancee’s tweet as the final quote in the story. Demonstrate what purpose such a quote
would serve. Limit your answer to 150 words. (20 marks)