Abbreviated Assignment Prompt The primary assignment for this module asks you to imagine that you are working for a data advocacy organization and have been tasked to write a newspaper op-ed (600 - 750 words) that advances your organization’s mission in the public sphere. You should choose an existing data advocacy organization and use the organization’s datasets, visualizations, or statistical reports as a primary source for your own op-ed. Then, choose a specific newspaper who has an audience you desire to reach. This newspaper may be local or national. Your challenges is to deploy effective rhetorical strategies and genre conventions commonly used in the op-ed genre to write a compelling and persuasive argument for the specific audience of that newspaper.

You will be evaluated on the basis of your op-ed’s capacity to:

  1. demonstrate command of genre conventions and rhetorical tactics common to newspaper op-eds;
  2. incorporate your chosen organization’s data points as evidence in support of claims, appeals, and examples that are likely to resonate with general readers;
  3. craft a clear, well-structured argument that reflects the mission and values of their chosen data advocacy organization.