Mass media has a tremendous effect on politics in the United States. Effectively communicating a political message can mean the difference between winning and losing an election. Students in the Media and Politics, taught by Assistant Professor of Political Science, Angela Bos, worked in teams to develop a communication plan for an Ohio candidate. Based on course readings and class research, the teams drafted a memo and created a political ad. Using Canon cameras purchased by the Mellon grant, students travelled to local sites shooting video to include in their ad, and used iMovie to add photos and text effects. A video premiere event was held in the library where students would show their ads and explain the theory behind their creative decision making.

Funded by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to the Five Colleges of Ohio [Next Steps in the Next Generation Library: Integrating Digital Collections into the Liberal Arts Curriculum, 2010]