Future of Media Work – Spring 2023 Top Tips for Writing Essays
This is a theory essay, which means that students are being tested on your ability to engage with taught material on academic theories:
Once you have chosen your essay question, decide which lectures are most relevant to your essay – there will be at least three relevant lectures.
Go through the lecture notes again to refresh your memory on the key academic debates. These academic debates should be reflected in your essay.
Do not lift material directly from lecture notes. Instead, you are expected to draw on academic readings from the module outline, and to find your own academic readings, then build your argument using your own words.
Do not introduce random theories into your essay that don’t help to analyse media work. Chucking random theories into your essays will not earn marks!
Personal knowledge and experience of media work can help bring your essay arguments to life. However, use personal anecdotes sparingly, and base the majority of your essay on academic material and evidence-based examples.
When selecting examples of media work you may find it easier to focus on two occupations or fields that you are most familiar with e.g. journalism plus news editing/production; or photography plus film and audiovisual production; or advertising plus graphic design. This will allow you to focus your reading when looking for industry examples. Avoid focusing your examples on a single company, this will weaken your essay.
Define key terms at the start of your essay. Draw your definitions from academic readings, not from the dictionary. Examples of terms that will need defining include:
‘Traditional media publishers’ vs ‘digital platforms’ (e.g. defined by Nielsen & Ganter, 2022; or Gillespie, 2010)
‘Upstream’ vs ‘downstream’ work (defined in Bourne’s 2022 chapter, which also defines ‘disarticulated media skills’)
‘M-shaped skills’ (defined by Fiore-Gartland & Tanweer, 2016)
‘Platform economy’ (e.g. defined by Kovalainen et al, A. 2020)
‘Artificial Intelligence’ or ‘Generative AI’ (e.g. defined by McQuillan, 2022).
Remember the module is about the future of media work. Keep this focus as your essay progresses:
• For instance, when referring to a profession’s unique skillset, explain what that unique skill set is.
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If writing about algorithmic bias explain how this bias affects media work. (You can find articles written by journalists, writers and other media and creative workers explaining how programmed algorithmic biases affect their work.)
If writing about the history of advertising, connect this history to the evolution of media work, rather than to the impact of advertising on consumers.
If writing about how AI is used in media work, there are several industry and academic readings itemising AI-media applications (.g. Chan-Olmstead, 2019)
If discussing the ethical considerations or potential harms pose by AI, then relate these considerations to the processes and outputs of media work (rather than focusing on AI’s impact on consumers, for example).
Work on an essay plan with a clear essay structure before writing your essay:
Focus tightly on the essay question right from the start of the essay.
Build a clear argument and analysis by drawing on, and citing, academic
literature.
Make use of good sub-headings to drive your argument forward.
Make sure your illustrations and anecdotes are about media work, not random
examples.
Avoid making the same point repetitively. You won’t pick up any extra marks for
repetition. If you’ve run out of points to make, this usually means you have not done enough academic reading and/or have not backed up your arguments with evidence, examples or illustrations.
Students often ask how many references they should include in their work. For an essay of this length, the average well-cited essay includes about 10-12 references, the majority of which should be academic readings. If you are drawing on a number of industry articles, news stories and blogs to illustrate your arguments, the number of references may double.
Refresh your memory on how to cite authors properly:
visit Goldsmiths Library’s page on referencing: https://tinyurl.com/4zyt5ehk.
Do not invent citations.
Do not rely on generative AI tools such as ChatGPT for citations as these AI
tools are known to ‘hallucinate’ authors, or mix and match citations.
Apply critical thinking and healthy scepticism when reading industry articles. These articles are often written for PR and marketing purposes, so they may make exaggerated claims or projections (positive or negative) about the industry’s future.
Readings you could also use:
1. O’Regan, R. & Carah, N. (2021) The Promotional Culture of Social Media and Search Platforms: An original article by Tom O’Regan and a commentary by Nicholas Carah, Media International Australia, 180 (1) 64-82.
2. https://www.poynter.org/commentary/2023/journalists-lose-blue-checkmarks-twitter/
3. Klinger, U. & Svensson J. (2018) The End of Media Logics? On Algorithms and Agency. New Media & Society, 20 (12) 4653-4670.
4. Kovalainen, A.; Vallas, S.P. & Poutanen, S. (2020) Theorizing Work in the Contemporary Platform Economy, In: Poutanen, S. et al (2020) Digital Work and the Platform Economy: Understanding Tasks, Skills and Capabilities in the New Era, Routledge, pp. 31-55.
