Instructions

Please select a popular culture artifact and analyze it using concepts related to our course. Examples of artifacts include films, television shows, books/novels/short stories, advertisements, Internet sites, etc. Focus your analysis on any significant issues/processes/ideas that stand out in the artifact and reveal organizational communication concepts. For example, if you are doing an analysis of the television series The Office, you may address issues such as the main character’s management style. Or you may discuss organizational culture in the office and what is interesting/problematic about this particular organization. You should focus on concepts covered in the first half (through week 7) of the semester for this assignment. (Becoming a Learner: Matthew L. Sanders; What is Organizational Communication? By Matt Koschman; Eisenberg et al Systems Perspective; Keyton J. Positioning Culture; Watkins Micheal: What is Organizational Culture; Cheney et al: Organizational Identity)

This paper’s objective is to engage your thinking about organizational communication concepts as experienced through popular culture (i.e., film, television, book, etc.). Instead of looking inward as we did in the previous paper (vocational culture), I want you to look outward and observe communication dynamics in organizational contexts. An overarching guiding question is: Knowing what you now know about organizing processes, what does this knowledge allow you to “see” when you look out into society as depicted in contemporary popular culture (?)

The criteria below will be used to assess the quality of your essay. Your manuscript must include all the major sections outlined below. Also, please refer to the written assignment guidelines in this document to ensure that your paper meets the minimum criteria.

Assessment Criteria
I. Introduction (1 paragraph )

1. A thought-provoking attention getter (e.g., a statistic, quote, brief personal anecdote, etc.) that effectively introduces your topic
2. A clear thesis statement (paper’s central idea)
3. A preview of the main points in the body of the paper

II. Body (4 pages)

1. Identify your specific popular culture text (film, TV show, etc.) and

articulate your reason(s) for choosing it.

1. Also, provide a brief paragraph where you summarize/overview the situation that you are analyzing in the pop culture text.
2. Write an analysis where you make explicit connections between your chosen popular culture artifact and specific organizational communication concepts.

4. Optional: Use (2-3) of these questions to structure the body:

1. What major organizational communication concepts does this artifact highlight (e.g., bureaucracy, organizational culture, systems theory, identity and identification, etc.)? How are they depicted? What is their significance in the popular culture artifact that you chose?
2. What are the central organizational problems/issues that this artifact illustrates? Explain why they are problematic.
3. How do specific course concepts help you understand your chosen artifact more in depth? Elaborate.
4. What are the artifact’s underlying assumptions regarding organizing (e.g., culture can be used to “fix” the organization)?
5. How do the organizational issues depicted in your chosen artifact relate to other current social/cultural issues (e.g., globalization is expanding organizations’ boundaries, etc.)?

1. Conclusion (10% of grade): 1 paragraph
   1. The paper has a clear concluding paragraph that re-states the thesis (main idea)
   2. Summarize the essay’s main points
   3. Provide an elegant closing statement where you prompt the reader to continue reflecting on this topic

1. Grammar, Style, and Format

• Paper must be 5 double-spaced pages excluding cover page and references
• All papers must have a cover page with only the following information on it: 1) paper title, 2) your name, 3) class name, and 4) assignment date.
• Must be typed in 12-point font size and in Times New Roman font style, double- spaced
• Document must be uploaded using a Microsoft Word Document (.docx)
• Paper citations must be formatted in APA for citation style.
• Paper should have in-text citations for any cited research.
• Paper should have at least 3-5 sources cited in the text (from the textbook and/or outside sources is acceptable).
• Paper must have a reference list in APA style at the end of the document.
• All text in the document must have 1-inch margins all around the page.
• Must meet the minimum page length requirement (all written pages of text must be full pages – no partial pages please).
• Paragraphs’ first sentences must be indented five spaces to the right (Use the TAB Key to indent your paragraphs’ first line).
• I expect all submitted work to be of college-level quality. This means proper punctuation, spelling, grammar, style, and organization. I will not accept papers that are poorly formatted.