An abstract is a very short research paper or summary of research findings. (At the FCC, staffers brief Commissioners by writing short papers (briefs) and verbally explain the intricacies of the regulations.) Scholarly abstracts are composed of relatively short condensations of articles published in major journals and books. These summaries provide a more comprehensive overview of the content of the article than general or popular press analysis (Rubin, Rubin, and Piele, 1993). In that tradition, you are going to write four brief research papers on a variety of subjects. Each abstract should be about two pages long. It will be single spaced and set up with normal research indentations.

The first paragraph or two should summarize what you intend to cover in the abstract. Then, you should discuss the topic in sufficient detail to illustrate one or more of the following areas of analysis:

1. Why is this controversy, case, rule or proposal a topic of concern?
2. Is any current legislation pending?
3. Is some regulation about to be reviewed, revised, changed, or abolished? Why?
4. Do industry spokespersons agree with the upcoming legislation, rule or proposed changed?
5. How will the topic impact upon current broadcasting/cable/ telecommunication interests
6. How will the general public be impacted as a result of the proposed actions?

Of course, you do not need to discuss each of these points in every abstract. Indeed, if you covered all of these points, your abstracts would be much longer than the required two pages. (You may find it difficult to cut your first abstract down to two pages.)

After you research but before you write your abstract you should make an outline of the items you want to cover in your abstract. I strongly recommend that you draft an outline for your first abstract and discuss the draft with the research assistant or me before you type your final version. Additional writing help is attainable from the Writing Center in Swetman Hall.

You should remember that these topics are all current even though the actual ruling or regulation that pertains to the issue in question may have occurred some time ago. Some topics have just been argued in front of the Supreme Court and no final decision will be expected until June. Therefore, if you cannot locate a primary source more recent than 1995 and secondary sources from 1995-96, you should seriously question whether you have done sufficient research to complete the assignment. I will seriously question any abstract without current research.

Whenever a problem arises, please ask help from either the librarian on duty or our own class research assistant. On very rare occasions you may not be able to locate any primary sources that you need. If this is the case, please contact me, and we will telephone the related agency to locate the necessary information. In the past, one or two students have chosen some First Amendment cases so current that citations for primary sources were not available for them. Today it is possible to get very current cases on the World Wide Web, however if you cannot locate a source do not hesitate to ask for help.

Since these topics are very current, you might not know anything about them. Thus, you may not know which topics you'll want to chose to write about and research. If this is the case, I suggest that you use The Washington Post, The New York Times, Newsweek and or other similar sources as a basis for finding out about the general topic headings before you start in doing significant primary and secondary research on a topic. After some generalized preparation, you should be able to locate specific information in a related industry journal.

Try to choose topics which are interesting to you and see if you can understand in your own mind the importance of your chosen topic. Remember to follow the topic title In your syllabus. If the topic asks you to discuss the pros and cons, then covering one side of the issue will not be sufficient. You will receive a poor mark for that abstract. Further , if your research is reflective of only one perspective (e.g. industry, trade publication, consumer group, etc.) then your research will be judged insufficient.

Avoid taking more than the first paragraph or two introducing the historical perspective of the issues involved. Rather, use your time talking about the current problems with regard to the following areas:

(1) where possible, the effect of the problem on the industry, the public, etc.
(2) the possible effect the proposed legislation, court decision, etc. will have on users, consumers, society,  
(3) the interrelated effects of change (e.g. economic, technological, judicial in the course of regulation, judicial review or within the framework of current practices.  
(4) the economic, public interest, judicial or regulatory rational for decisions.

Try to answer the actual topical heading. For example, the topic Should Equal Time Provisions of the Communications Act be eliminated? The Pros and Cons. asks you to determine what the pros and cons are to the elimination of section 315 of the Communications Act. Discussion either the industry point of view or the politicians viewpoints would be insufficient. Your analysis MUST include a balanced discussion of the issues involved.

Rubin, Rubin and Piele remind us that legal research is both historical and critical in nature. Its purpose is to clarify and analyze how law operates in our society (1973). Your job is to synthesize all of the different data you collect into a cohesive abstract and formulate an opinion or deduce what logical conclusions might come from interrelated issues. DO NOT SPEND YOUR TIME QUOTING DIRECTLY FROM SOURCES AT LENGTH. DO NOT Paraphrase LENGTHY DISCUSSIONS.

Abstracts will be graded on content, style and care of preparation. I will correct for grammar, punctuation and spelling. Papers which are not carefully proofread will NOT RECEIVE A PASSING GRADE. I assume that you are capable of writing at a level indicative of your maturation in your third year of college, and your standing at one of the more competitive universities in the country.

I shall expect clarity, succinct disposition and synthesis of ideas. I deplore slang, unclear phraseology and inappropriate expletives. I will not tolerate abuse of the English language. Therefore, whenever you are unsure about grammar and punctuation please consult a handbook of English usage. I will use the HARPER HANDBOOK, Third Edition by Wykoff and Shaw as my guide for grammatical correctness. I can also suggest Elements of Editing by Arthur Plotnik, Elements of Grammar by Shertzer, and The Brief English Handbook by Dornan and Dawe.

Before you type your first abstract, I URGE you to visit THE WRITING CENTER in Swetman Hall and ask for a preliminary reading by one of the tutors. The Writing Center staff will not help you with the research or content, but they can assist you in writing clearly and succinctly. If your first abstract receives a grade lower than a "C", I require that you seek help and you will be obligated to rewrite your abstract. Make absolutely certain that you understand that you will be judged on FORM as well as content. Typographical mistakes will also be counted. I will not pass papers which are sloppy or unintelligible. All papers must be typed neatly and should follow the form of the sample abstract example Included in with the Rules and Regs Manual.

Though hiring a typist involves additional expense, I would strongly urge those of you with limited typing skills to consider the benefits of using a professional typist. For those of you who plan on preparing these assignments on a word processor or a personal computer, please be sure that your word processing program can be programmed to meet the requirements listed above. DO NOT right justify your margins unless your word processor can support half space proportional spacing. Please do not use extremely large or very small pitch type for your papers (e.g. greater than 12 points no less than 8 pts). Please try to use an inkjet or laser printer for your paper.

If you have any questions I urge you to discuss your software capabilities with me before you hand in your paper. Legal citations should be listed in proper form. Other footnotes must be listed in either APA or MLA style. If you wish, you may use The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (manual is available in the Penfield Reference Room), but I recommend APA because of its ease and simplicity. If you are unsure how to use any of these forms please consult the Publication Manual of the APA. If you do not own a style booklet you.should seriously consider purchasing one for reference (click here for the APA crib sheet).. Penfield library has a summary sheet available of these style forms.

Please note that footnotes must be listed for all ideas and information that are not your own. This includes direct quotes, paraphrases, facts and figures. All abstracts must be properly documented. During the course of the semester, I will choose abstracts at random and check documentation on those abstracts. I will also check abstracts.for authenticity and compliance. Let me remind you that plagiarism either intentional or unintentional is unacceptable and will be dealt with in accordance with the Policies enumerated by the Board of Trustees of The State University of New York. The policy is included in the current college catalog and I advise you to review it. I will hand back only the first and second abstracts with individual grades and corrections for you to gage the quality and appropriateness of your work. Thereafter, I will cumulate all of the abstracts and rewrites together. At the end of the semester I will grade the abstracts as ONE research project and attach one final grade for the semester.

Note that I will hand back your abstracts for you to review when you have completed the entire set. But, I will collect your completed project at the end of the semester and hold your abstracts for a one-year period. You may come to my office during office hours and review them or you may make a copy of them for your personal use.

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