ISF100J The Social Life of Computing Paper 3: Decision Making Algorithms and Social Media
Paper 3 (Policy Brief)
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Due May 5 by 11:59pm Points 20
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For this assignment you will be writing a paper of roughly 2500 words (excluding the bibliography) that takes the form of a "policy brief." A policy brief is an analytical document that offers a diagnosis of an outstanding issue and proposes some guidelines on how it might be fixed or alleviated. Your policy brief should advance your own specific argument--by drawing on and synthesizing the sources that I have provided (make sure you cite them).
Unlike the other papers we wrote in this course, you will be writing this brief as an expert on the particular topic you choose for a particular audience: some group of stakeholders around an issue. At the beginning of the brief, you need to state what audience you are writing for. That said, you should place a priority on clear expression, and not assume the audience is taking this class or has read the sources.
For your policy brief, you can pick ONE of the following two topics (make sure you indicate in your paper which one you picked): (A) Decision-making Algorithms or, (B) Social Media If you click on the topic, you can read a brief description and find a list of journalistic and scholarly sources about that topic.
Your policy brief should have the following sections. [For more tips on writing a policy brief, see the source (https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/policy-briefs/) that I've drawn on for the prompt.]
Title: A good title quickly communicates the contents of the brief in a memorable way. Make the title more descriptive than just "Social Media" or "Decision-making algorithms"; think of a pithy way to summarize the problem you're solving and the policy you're proposing.
Executive Summary (200 words): Your Executive Summary includes an overview of the problem, its diagnosis, the alternatives for action, and the recommended policy action. It is a synopsis of your Policy Brief. Your Executive Summary must also include the target audience for your policy brief and why you have chosen to address this particular audience.
Problem Diagnosis (800 words): This section breaks down the issue for your reader by situating it within a broader socio-historical analysis. What is the outstanding problem you propose to solve? Why has the problem arisen? Why does it take the form it does? What choices were made along the way to get there? Who made those choices? Who are the actors involved (engineers, publics, states, advertisers, corporations)? What exactly is at stake in defining the problem this way? Alternatives for Action (800 words): This section discusses the different options or policies possible to address the problem. It should be fair and accurate at describing the key options while also pointing out their advantages and disadvantages. The alternatives for action should be socio-
technical, similar to the way we have analyzed computing in the class (i.e., "we need to build more accurate algorithm" is not an alternative in the context of this class; and in any case, it's not really possible to build an algorithm that is always accurate). You don't have to propose any laws necessarily. As a policy analyst, your job is to outline the trade-offs in alternative social arrangements around computing. Your policies do not have to come directly from your sources; but please do try to ground them in the sources provided.
Recommendations (200 words): In this section, you pick your preferred option from the alternatives that you listed previously and explain why. It contains the most detailed explanation of the concrete steps to be taken to address the issue.
Sources: This should be a bibliography of the sources that you have used for your argument. The sources should be cited in the body of the brief using the (Author Date) citation format.
You will have access to two types of sources: research papers and journalistic articles. Your paper must draw on at least three journalistic articles and at least three research papers. It is okay to draw on some sources more than others.
Please refer to this document on guidelines about how to use sources in the text of your
paper: Guidelines for Writing. In general, I have no preference for particular citations styles or writing formats. Pick anything as long as you use it consistently.
You can use other articles if you like but those are only after you've used the required number of articles from the sources I have provided. In general, we expect you to rely more on the sources we've used in this class than something you may have read elsewhere.
Here's an op-ed (which means it's less than a 1000 words) that is also a policy brief: Kreiss, Daniel and Matt Perault. 2019. Four Ways to Fix Social Media's Political Ads Problem -- Without Banning Them. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/16/opinion/twitter-facebook-political- ads.html (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/16/opinion/twitter-facebook-political-ads.html) . [pdf
Here are two sample policy briefs written by students in the last edition of this course.
Paper 3 (Policy Brief) Rubric
Criteria Ratings Pts | ||||
Title and Executive Summary (1) The Summary clearly mentions the audience for this brief and why this audience was selected. (4) The Summary recommends a course of action and explains why that action is most suitable. | 2 pts | 1 pts | 0.5 pts | 2 pts |
Problem Diagnosis (1) The paper articulates its definition of the problem clearly and its broad significance. (3) The paper describes the people and institutions implicated in the problem. | 6 pts | 4 pts | 2 pts | 6 pts |
Alternatives for Action
(1) The paper frames at least two alternatives for action.
(2) The alternatives are grounded in socio-technical factors highlighted in the Problem Diagnosis section.
(3) The alternatives for action are somewhat practical (rather than pie-in- the-sky) and make sense for the audience of the brief.
(4) The paper describes the pros and cons of each alternative for the people and institutions implicated in the problem.
(5) The paper draws on the sources in
6 pts
All criteria are fulfilled successfully.
4 pts
Only some of the criteria are fulfilled successfully.
2 pts
Most criteria are not fulfilled successfully.
