Civic Literacy · Harnett Progress Check 5

Media & Public Records

Connect the concepts, organize the information, and support an explanation with details from the task.

CL.C&G.3.6

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CLSM · Civic Literacy · Progress Check 5

Media & Public Records

Read the situation. Connect the ideas. Show how you know.

Name ___________________________Class __________ Date __________

01 Recall, then make a connection.

corroboration

public record

interpretation

Distinguish a public record from an interpretation of it. How does corroboration help a reporter decide whether a claim about government performance is supported?

Read the situation.

The relationship between media and government includes informing the public, scrutinizing official claims, providing a forum for debate, and explaining decisions. The First Amendment protects freedom of speech and press against governmental restriction within constitutional law. Protection of the press does not make every published claim accurate. Likewise, an official statement is evidence of what an agency says, but not automatic proof that every promised result occurred.

02 Organize the information.

Build a responsible reporting sequence

The fictional editor records these steps before publication.

Arrange the sequence.

Obtain the relevant public records and ask the agency to explain the figures.
Check the calculation and compare the claim with independent relevant evidence.
Publish a qualified account naming sources, limits, and any correction to the original claim.
Identify the exact claim and the period being compared.

Write the letters in order:

Explain why one step or event belongs where you put it.

CLSM · Civic Literacy · Progress Check 5

What does the evidence show?

Media & Public Records

03 Follow the evidence.

What would test the service claim?

The agency says the increased budget made evening service more usable. You need evidence about service, not merely the existence of the appropriation.

Select every record directly relevant to that claim.

Before-and-after route schedules and actual trip-completion records.
A privacy-protecting summary of rider access problems and documented changes in those problems.
The agency’s slogan announcing commitment to excellence.
The appropriation vote alone, without implementation records.

Name the useful records and explain how they answer the claim.

04 Apply the idea.

What does FOIA actually promise?

A reporter seeks federal agency records using the federal Freedom of Information Act. The briefing notes that legal exemptions can protect interests such as personal privacy.

Which explanation is accurate?

FOIA provides a process for requesting federal agency records, with exemptions; it does not make every government record automatically available.
FOIA requires publication of every private person’s identifying information.
The federal FOIA process automatically replaces every state and local records law.

Choose a conclusion and explain why it fits the situation.

05 Carry the idea forward.

Write a four-to-six-sentence news update about the transit budget. Include the verified change, a claim that remains unproven, the records needed next, and a sentence explaining why media scrutiny matters.