With a presidential election looming on the horizon, now is the perfect time to incorporate essays that help students think about the cluster of issues surrounding any election: politics, social values, media, power, and more. One excellent essay to use when teaching the 2012 election is Steven Johnson’s “Listening to Feedback.” Johnson focuses on how feedback loops operate in the news media. His concepts can help students analyze the array of coverage around the election, while also helping them to think about how media functions in an interconnected digital world.
