Summary

In the NewsHour's news summary Thursday, the U.S. economy rebounded strongly in 2021, with the best growth since 1984. Russia said there's little room for optimism after the U.S. rejected its security demands, but said dialogue on Ukraine is still possible. The Pentagon put out new guidance on limiting civilian casualties from air strikes. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona called for COVID relief money for school districts to be spent on after-school tutoring programs.

Five Facts

Discussion questions using the Journalist’s Five Ws plus an H:

• Who are some of the individuals or groups of people mentioned in the news summary?


• What stories are covered?


• Where do some of the stories take place?


• When did those stories occur?


• Why did the event(s) take place?


• How do you think the NewsHour’s producers decided which stories made it into the news summary?

Media literacy : Who else do you think should have been interviewed in the story you watched?

Focus Questions

See, Think, Wonder : What did you notice in the video? What did the story make you think? What did the video make you wonder about?

For More

Media literacy activity : Differing perspectives For another take on the economy, read this Time article, If the Economy Is Doing So Well, Why Does It Feel Like a Disaster? and watch this segment from Kyle Kulinski, a progressive commentator who has his own show on Youtube. Kulinski recaps recent analysis from influential investor Jeremy Grantham who gives a dire warning about the economy. See below for a list of key terms and discussion questions. Why is it important to hear different perspectives on a particular topic? Start at 6 min mark if short on time: Here are a few key economic terms Kulinski mentions in his piece. What other terms does Kulinski use that you might want to look up? Key terms : Federal Reserve a.k.a. the Fed - the central bank of the U.S., created by Congress to provide the country with a safer, more stable monetary and financial system, including managing inflation inflation - a rise in the cost of goods and services accompanied by a decrease in purchasing power interest rates - the amount a lender charges a borrower; a percentage of the principal, which is the the amount loaned austerity or austerity measures - economic policies involving spending cuts to government services and operations Discussion questions:

1. How could you find out more about investor Jeremy Grantham? How about Kyle Kulinski? Why is it important to know about the individuals and organizations you get your news from?


2. How do you find your news (other than PBS, of course ;-)? Online websites, social media, network news, cable shows? How do news commentators differ from journalists? How are they similar? Which do you prefer and why?


3. Do you think it's important to seek out news from multiple sources? Explain.

New Deal activity: What U.S. president does Kulinski mention at the end of the segment? If you could create a New Deal to help address major problems facing the American people, what would it consist of? Remember, the New Deal was created in the 1930s to help the country recover from the Great Depression. Programs like the Works Progress Administration, the Farm Security Administration (FSA), the National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933 (NIRA) and the Social Security Administration (SSA) were all part of the New Deal. Share your plan with your peers, and see if you can come up with a class-wide New Deal you can all agree on. You may want to create a New Deal for your school or local community. Consider presenting it to your principal or city council.

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