CRV: Game for Change - What To Do With News

The Game for change was a ton of fun, especially since I found a good subject early. It didn’t take long to decide that I would base my game on the common problem of major news being presented out of context and then that news would be blown out of proportion. Not that quickly jumping for news when it happens is bad on the reporter’s end, but it can turn out to be unprofessional when they don’t gather the necessary additional research. As this was once explained in the Jackson Free Press: “…adding the necessary context to a story is time-consuming, painstaking work.” (http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2014/apr/02/importance-context/) This article goes on to give an example of a numerical statistic that was reported to support an argument, but no additional statistics or sources were given to back it up. We can tend to think that one simple thing can represent a bigger idea, especially one that falls in our favor. Another great example of this is in religious arguments, like this example, where a woman posted bible verses that, on their own, seem to excuse Abortion, but a separate Christian journalist proved them otherwise. (http://www.news-press.com/story/opinion/contributors/2015/11/04/text-without-context-prove-bible-pardons-abortion/75150952/)

Alternatively, the writer would care more about what the readers get more than what side they are trying to argue for. The American Press Institute says, “Another virtue of asking ‘what does my audience need to know?’ is that it can create new entry points into stories – such as asking, what background would a newcomer who is affected, or has a stake in the story, need to know so that they might care about it? (http://www.americanpressinstitute.org/journalism-essentials/makes-good-story/good-stories-provide-context/). This is very true as I have heard countless online articles going this way and that over one story, until sufficient evidence is brought forth that narrows it down to one version, or the readers just don’t care anymore.

This game I developed places one in the shoes of a reporter who is presented with what seems like a major news event about to happen. Your job is to choose the right directions to take in acting upon it. You can get very unprofessional and even idiotic, or you can get hands on and do some work. The multiple story lines definitely separate from the "single story" perspective as presented by Chimamanda Adichie in "The Danger of a Single Story". Through multiple play-throughs, we get to know this issue from multiple sides.

Here's the game!