AP Argumentative Prompt Adapted from McGraw-Hill, 5 Steps to a 5

Sample Prompt In his famous “Vast Wasteland” address to the National Association of Broadcasters in May of 1961, Newton Minow, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, spoke about the power of television to influence the taste, knowledge, and opinions of its viewers around the world. Carefully read the following, paying close attention to how timely it is today, especially in light of the worldwide Internet. Minow ended his speech warning that “The power of instantaneous sight and sound is without precedent in mankind’s history. This is an awesome power. It has limitless capabilities for good—and for evil. And it carries with it awesome responsibilities—responsibilities which you and [the government] cannot escape…” Using your own knowledge and your experiences or reading, write a carefully constructed essay that defends, challenges, or qualifies Minow’s ideas.

What does it require of me? Understand the nature of the position taken in the prompt Take a specific stand—defend, challenge, or qualify (agree in part or under certain conditions)—with the assertion in the prompt Clearly and logically support your claim

So, basically… Read the prompt and identify the claim you’re addressing. Disagree with it, agree with it, or agree in part or under certain conditions. Justify your agreement/disagreement/qualification with sound reasoning/claims. Back up the reasoning/claims with specific examples.

Prewriting DO IT! Just spend two minutes or so making a list, chart, web, outline…anything that identifies your thesis statement, provides smaller claims to support your thesis (the why), gives specific evidence for your claims, and identifies your organizational structure. Aim for two to three claims with one or two specific examples for support for each. Establish the organization for your essay in the prewriting—DO NOT figure it out as you go along writing the essay (doing this=disaster).

From Where Can I Draw My Evidence? Literature History Current Events Personal Experiences (not too much) Pop Culture (not too much)

Can I Lie? That’s between you and your own moral authority. If you choose to commit a falsehood, it better be convincing. FYI: All the AP readers do all day long is read essays on this prompt for money. They are pretty good at identifying the BS.

What about counterclaims? Feel free to address and refute counterclaims if you can, but it is not a requirement. I have seen many high-scoring essays that don’t address counterclaims. HOWEVER…if you have an argument that will always beg a question or lead directly to a counterclaim, you should address and refute it. It is always smart to be aware of possible counterclaims and to avoid logical fallacies to your arguments so that you can ensure your arguments are logical.

Is there a “right” stance to take? Nope! Take the stance you feel you can best support. Don’t try to figure out what you think the AP test is trying to get you to say. It’s not trying to get you to say anything. It doesn’t care, and neither do the readers.

Why So Serious? This is the prompt for which you are allowed to be informal, personal, formal, ironic, irreverent, or funny. Just make sure the tone supports your purpose. Also, make sure you’re good at using this tone so it doesn’t fall flat. Also, make sure you don’t offend anyone.

Timing General Guidelines: 1-3 min. reading and annotating the prompt 1-3 min. brainstorming and deciding on a position 10-12 min. planning your essay 20 min. writing the essay 2-3 min. proofreading

Introductions The introduction must do the following: Refer specifically to the prompt (include authors and contexts if possible) Clearly state your position on the given issue

Sample Opening A I agree with Newton Minow’s assertion to the National Association of Broadcasters that “The power of instantaneous sight and sound is…an awesome power…[with] capabilities for good---and for evil.” However, I disagree with his placing the responsibility for this power squarely in the hands of the broadcasters and the government.

Sample Opening B Imagine—you have limitless capabilities for good and evil—you, not Superman, can control the world with your super powers. And, what are your powers? Do you have x-ray vision, morphability, immortality? NO--you have the most awesome power ever devised---you can instantaneously influence the taste, knowledge, and opinions of mankind around the world. You are Supernet! And you have a super headache because you agree with Newton Minow, who waned the National Association of Broadcasters in1961 that “You have an awesome responsibility.”

Sample Opening C Nowhere is the awesome power for good and evil of modern technology more clearly seen than in the Internet’s pervasiveness and influence. Newton Minow was right on target in 1961 when he warned the National Association of Broadcasters that the power of TV has “limitless capabilities for good—and for evil.”

Organization You can organize your essay in whatever way best suits your purpose, but the organization must be CLEAR, and you really should figure it out BEFORE YOU START WRITING THE ESSAY! Options: Use the prompt for the basis of your organization (i.e. Minow’s argument says technology can be for good or for evil, but it carries with it enormous responsibility. Therefore, you might organize your essay into three parts that address the media’s capacity for good, its capacity for evil, and the enormous responsibilities that members of the media bear. Base your organization around your examples (i.e. Maybe you agree, and you provide three specific examples of how technology has great power for good, power for evil, and the media bear great responsibility, and you have one paragraph for each example). Base your organization around your argument (especially if you’re qualifying—maybe you use two paragraphs to discuss the part of the argument with which you agree and one to discuss the part with which you disagree)