EXAMPLE WRITING PROCESS

 

My Words

 In writing the narratives, we wanted to represent the individual's point of view as accurately as possible. Thus, when writing the stories, we conveyed some disturbing racial slurs, stereotypical comments, and prejudicial remarks. I find it disturbing to repeat such slurs, but there is also a danger in pretending they don't exist. Many communication scholars believe that the field should be an agent of social change. Muted voices need to be heard as a vehicle to increase understanding. Based on the interaction with these prisoners, hatred toward various groups and ethnicities is alive and well. Thus, we hope the reader will carefully consider these words, think about where they might come from and why the might exist. Further, for people who work with individuals in the violent urban core, we hope that these words—as despicable as they might be—help you to understand the muted voice of the individual offender.

 

Focus on Facts from Communication and Mass Media Elite: My Survey of Literature

 In writing the narratives, we wanted to represent the individual's point of view as accurately as possible. Thus, when writing the stories, we conveyed some disturbing racial slurs, stereotypical comments, and prejudicial remarks. I find it disturbing to repeat such slurs, but there is also a danger in pretending they don't exist. Many communication scholars believe that the field should be an agent of social change. Muted voices need to be heard as a vehicle to increase understanding. Based on the interaction with these prisoners, hatred toward various groups and ethnicities is alive and well. Surveys suggest that racial prejudice continues even in communities that actively work for change (Messner). Thus, we hope the reader will carefully consider these words, think about where they might come from and why the might exist. Further, for people who work with individuals in the violent urban core, we hope that these words—as despicable as they might be—help you to understand the muted voice of the individual offender.

 Research in communication suggests that media may at least be partly responsible for distorted responses to offenders (Barnett),

 

"little is known about the impact of racially coded words and phrases" (Hurwitz, p. 101)

 

Federico and Sidanius suggested that the ideas of "poorly educated individuals" is influenced by prejudices (p. 147).

 

Possible Sources

Yes Messner, B., & Vail, M. (2009). A “City at War”: Commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Communication Studies, 60(1), 17-31. doi:10.1080/10510970802623567.

No Parisi, P. (1998). A Sort of Compassion: The Washington Post Explains the ''Crisis in Urban America''. Howard Journal of Communications, 9(3), 187-203. doi:10.1080/106461798246989.

Yes Barnett, B. (2003). Guilty and Threatening: Visual Bias in Television News Crime Stories. Journalism & Communication Monographs, 5(3), 103-155. Retrieved from Communication & Mass Media Complete database.

Yes Hurwitz, J., & Peffley, M. (2005). PLAYING THE RACE CARD IN THE POST-WILLIE HORTON ERA. Public Opinion Quarterly, 69(1), 99-112. doi:10.1093/poq/nfi004.

Yes Federico, C., & Sidanius, J. (2002). SOPHISTICATION AND THE ANTECEDENTS OF WHITES' RACIAL POLICY ATTITUDES: RACISM, IDEOLOGY, AND AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN AMERICA. Public Opinion Quarterly, 66(2), 145-176. Retrieved from Communication & Mass Media Complete database.

 

Focus on Facts from Criminal Justice Database

 

Carroll (2004) discussed research about racism, including fears, negative attitudes, and punitive behaviors whites may hold against blacks (p. 303).

 

Ray et al. link racial violence to abusive language use.

 

No WHEN WOMEN Kill TOGETHER
Katherine Ramsland. Forensic Examiner. Springfield: Spring 2007. Vol. 16, Iss. 1; p. 64 (3 pages)

.

No Why Whites Favor Spending More Money to Fight Crime: The Role of Racial Prejudice
STEVEN E. BARKAN, STEVEN F. COHN. Social Problems. Berkeley: May 2005. Vol. 52, Iss. 2; p. 300

 

Yes PRISON SITING, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, RACISM, AND JUSTICE REINVESTMENT
Leo Carroll. Criminology & Public Policy. Columbus: Jul 2004. Vol. 3, Iss. 3; p. 481 (8 pages)

 

Yes Shame, Rage and Racist Violence
Larry Ray, David Smith, Liz Wastell. The British Journal of Criminology. London: May 2004. Vol. 44, Iss. 3; p. 350

 

Ignore The Social Construction Of the Minority Drug Problem
Covington, Jeanette. Social Justice. San Francisco: Winter 1996. Vol. 23, Iss. 4; p. 117

 

Focus on Being Scientific: Taking Out Opinion

 

 In writing the narratives, wethe authors wanted to represent the individual offender's point of view as accurately as possible. Thus, when writing the stories, we the reader will encounter conveyed some disturbing racial slurs, stereotypical comments, and prejudicial remarks. I find itAlthough the authors find it disturbing to repeat such slurs, but there is also a danger in pretending they don't exist. As Hurwitz explained "little is known about the impact of racially coded words and phrases" (p. 101), and the tendency to avoid discussion of racism may have negative consequences.

Many communication scholars believe that the field should be an agent of social change. Muted voices need to be heard as a vehicle to increase understanding.

Based on the interaction with these prisoners, hatred toward various groups and ethnicities influences communication behaviorsis alive and well. As suggested by Messner () In communication studies, research has suggested that media may at least be partly responsible for distorted responses to offenders (Barnett), Surveys suggest that racial prejudice continues even in communities that actively work for change (Messner). Thus, we hope the reader will carefully, this communication is included as a way to consider these words, think about where they might come from and why the might exist. Federico and Sidanius suggested that the ideas of "poorly educated individuals" is influenced by prejudices (p. 147). Carroll (2004) discussed research about racism, including fears, negative attitudes, and punitive behaviors whites may hold against blacks (p. 303). Ray et al. link racial violence to abusive language use. Thus, Further, for people who work with individuals in the violent urban core, we hope that these words—as despicable as they might be—help you to understand the muted voice of the individual offenderrepresent individual perspectives.

 Research in communication suggests that media may at least be partly responsible for distorted responses to offenders (Barnett),

 

"little is known about the impact of racially coded words and phrases" (Hurwitz, p. 101)

 

Federico and Sidanius suggested that the ideas of "poorly educated individuals" is influenced by prejudices (p. 147).

 

Possible Sources

Yes Messner, B., & Vail, M. (2009). A “City at War”: Commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Communication Studies, 60(1), 17-31. doi:10.1080/10510970802623567.

No Parisi, P. (1998). A Sort of Compassion: The Washington Post Explains the ''Crisis in Urban America''. Howard Journal of Communications, 9(3), 187-203. doi:10.1080/106461798246989.

Yes Barnett, B. (2003). Guilty and Threatening: Visual Bias in Television News Crime Stories. Journalism & Communication Monographs, 5(3), 103-155. Retrieved from Communication & Mass Media Complete database.

Yes Hurwitz, J., & Peffley, M. (2005). PLAYING THE RACE CARD IN THE POST-WILLIE HORTON ERA. Public Opinion Quarterly, 69(1), 99-112. doi:10.1093/poq/nfi004.

Yes Federico, C., & Sidanius, J. (2002). SOPHISTICATION AND THE ANTECEDENTS OF WHITES' RACIAL POLICY ATTITUDES: RACISM, IDEOLOGY, AND AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN AMERICA. Public Opinion Quarterly, 66(2), 145-176. Retrieved from Communication & Mass Media Complete database.

 

Focus on Facts from Criminal Justice Database

 

Carroll (2004) discussed research about racism, including fears, negative attitudes, and punitive behaviors whites may hold against blacks (p. 303).

 

Ray et al. link racial violence to abusive language use.

 

No WHEN WOMEN Kill TOGETHER
Katherine Ramsland. Forensic Examiner. Springfield: Spring 2007. Vol. 16, Iss. 1; p. 64 (3 pages)

.

No Why Whites Favor Spending More Money to Fight Crime: The Role of Racial Prejudice
STEVEN E. BARKAN, STEVEN F. COHN. Social Problems. Berkeley: May 2005. Vol. 52, Iss. 2; p. 300

 

Yes PRISON SITING, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, RACISM, AND JUSTICE REINVESTMENT
Leo Carroll. Criminology & Public Policy. Columbus: Jul 2004. Vol. 3, Iss. 3; p. 481 (8 pages)

 

Yes Shame, Rage and Racist Violence
Larry Ray, David Smith, Liz Wastell. The British Journal of Criminology. London: May 2004. Vol. 44, Iss. 3; p. 350

 

Ignore The Social Construction Of the Minority Drug Problem
Covington, Jeanette. Social Justice. San Francisco: Winter 1996. Vol. 23, Iss. 4; p. 117

 

Final Paragraph

 In writing the narratives, the authors sought to represent the individual offender's point of view as accurately as possible. Thus, when writing the stories, the reader will encounter racial slurs, stereotypical comments, and prejudicial remarks about groups of individuals. Although the authors find it disturbing to repeat such slurs, there is also a danger in pretending they don't exist. As Hurwitz and Peffley (2005) explained: "Little is known about the impact of racially coded words and phrases" (p. 101), and the tendency to avoid discussion of racism may have negative consequences. Meanwhile, some scholarship has linked racial violence to abusive language use (Ray, Smith, & Wastell, 2004).

The research seems to emphasize White attitudes toward minorities. Carroll (2004) discussed the complicated research about racism, including fears, negative attitudes, and punitive behaviors whites may hold against blacks (p. 303). Based on the interaction with these offenders, for some individuals, hatred toward various groups and ethnicities influences communication behaviors. Research has suggested that media may at least be partly responsible for distorted responses to offenders (Barnett, 2003). Despite the efforts of some communities, racial prejudice continues even in communities that actively work for change (Messner & Vail, 2009).

Thus, the prejudicial words spoken by the offenders appear worthy of examination. This communication is included as a way to consider these words. Federico and Sidanius, for example, suggested that the ideas of "poorly educated individuals" are influenced by prejudices (p. 147). There are many possible explanations. By reading the words, one can reflect about where they might come from, contemplate why the might exist, and speculate about appropriate responses. Thus, for people who work with individuals in the violent urban core, these words—as despicable as they might be—represent individual perspectives.

References

Barnett, B. (2003). Guilty and threatening: Visual bias in television news crime stories. Journalism & Communication Monographs, 5(3), 103-155.

Carroll, L. (2004). Prison sitting, rural development, racism, and justice reinvestment. Criminology & Public Policy, 3(3), 481-489.

Federico, C., & Sidanius, J. (2002). Sophistication and the antecedents of whites' racial policy attitudes: Racism, ideology, and affirmative action in America. Public Opinion Quarterly, 66(2), 145-176.

Hurwitz, J., & Peffley, M. (2005). Playing the race card in the post-Willie Horton era. Public Opinion Quarterly, 69(1), 99-112. doi:10.1093/poq/nfi004.

Messner, B., & Vail, M. (2009). A “city at war”: Commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Communication Studies, 60(1), 17-31. doi:10.1080/10510970802623567.

Ray, L, Smith, D., Wastell, L. (2004). Shame, rage and racist violence. The British Journal of Criminology, 44(3); 350.