To:   Com Frontiers Strategists

From:  Larry Elin

Subject:  TRF 483/683 Book Reviews

Your book reviews are always addressed to a particular person at a particular company, in the form of a memo.  Imagine that you work for this person, and he or she has tasked you with reading a certain book, and reporting on whether or not there is something there that he/she should know.  For example, you may be asked to read a book by a futurist about the future of copyright, for your boss, Shoshana Cohen, a producer at Smithsonian Channel.

Each Book Review should be about 750 words. For each review, provide a discussion of the piece.   This is a fairly open-ended assignment meant to inspire active engagement with the material, so there is a very broad range of approaches you can take to it. The primary requirement is that you approach the material from an analytical perspective. This will usually mean doing one or more of the following:

• exploring what kind of current events, or future trends are affected/involved in the issues the authors discuss.  Try hard to connect an author’s generalized approach or argument, to the media sector
• applying the ideas or information beyond their immediate context
• explaining why the ideas matter in a broader business, political, social and/or cultural sense than what the authors focus on – Why are they important to be writing about at all?
• connecting the ideas presented in the book to work of other authors, either that we have discussed in class previously or with whom you are familiar from other contexts
• addressing any problems with the authors’ arguments or research
  • If you choose to take this angle, then be careful of how you criticize the article.  Sometimes, there will be legitimate problems with the way the authors present their research or ideas.  More often, they may be looking at an issue in a different way from what you would like to see, but that does not necessarily mean the research itself is seriously flawed; rather, it probably means there is room for future work.  Be sure to frame your argument appropriately.

Due When/Where?

• Book Reviews are to be posted on the course Website on the dates specified in the syllabus and schedule.
• Reviews are due no later than 24 hours before class. That way, we all have a chance to read your review before we hear you present it.
• The point of this assignment is for students to engage in the readings thoroughly in order to bring insightful thoughts and comments to the class presentation.

Grading guide:

A:  Engages with book on an analytical/critical level. Examines not only what the author says but why her/his points matter (or are flawed). Brings something new to the topic. Goes beyond expressing an opinion to explain how the topic relates to the media. Has been thoroughly proofread.

B:  Illustrates a firm understanding of the book and its main points. Presents an opinion about the material or issue, such as agree/disagree.  May have a few mechanical errors.

C:  Summarizes the book. May reflect on the material in a personal manner, such as providing anecdotes or personal history. Arguments about content not well supported. Contains more than a few mechanical errors.

D:  Does not reflect an understanding of the author’s main points. Presents arguments based on poorly formed logic. Difficult to tell whether student read the material or not.  Seems like he/she just finished it this morning.