PROJECT: POINT OF VIEW Imagine that you are watching a parade through a knothole in a fence. All that you can see of the parade is happening right in front of the knothole. Sometimes you cannot even see what is going on because other spectators are walking in front of the knothole, blocking your view. Watching a parade in this way would be frustrating.

Now, imagine watching the same parade from a balcony. From there, you can see the entire parade. You can see what floats have gone by, which ones are passing by now, and which ones will be coming up next. The mood from the balcony is much more festive. You cheer as each float goes by. You are excited to be attending the parade.

In these two scenarios, the parade itself did not change. What really changed was your point of view. Sometimes studying history can seem like looking through a knothole in a fence. And like your opinion of the parade, opinions and interpretations of historical events can also change. It all depends on our point of view.

The writing of history is often influenced by an author's point of view. For this project, you will be asked to think about points of view in editorial writing. You may find that an author's point of view influences how events are interpreted.

OBJECTIVES
Look for examples of perspective and bias in news editorials.
Write a summary statement about your findings.
Materials:
a community, state, or national newspaper
Directions:
Find a current community, state, or national newspaper. Select and read two different news editorials from those newspapers. Remember, editorials can usually be found in "Opinion" or "Viewpoint" sections.

What is the title and who is the author of the editorial?
What is the name and publication date of the newspaper?
What is the topic of the editorial?
What are the major points of the editorial?
Are there clues about what the author's perspective is? If so, give an example.
Is there evidence of bias? If so, give an example.
What might contribute to an author's biased opinion?
How might someone else have interpreted the same event?
Is one interpretation "right" or "better" than another? Explain.