==== If your group is a Staffer ====

Two weeks before the Case Study week:

Start reading the case materials two weeks before the Thursday of the week of your case study. Read enough so that you understand what the "pro" and "con" positions mean.

Thursday one week before the Case Study week:

You are working for a member of the United States Senate; your state is indicated in the case study group assignments. Your job is to recommend how your Senator should vote.

Write a 1-2 page report explaining what the "pro" position means and what the "con" position means. You must explain both regardless of which position you are signed up to argue. Identify a few stakeholders that are on each side of the issue. You should not yet present arguments for either position. Focus only on what the pro side wants and what the con side wants.

Turn in the report by Thursday 7pm. Only one member of your group should do the following:

1. If your report is in a format other than Word or PDF, then convert it to PDF. There are several free conversion tools on the Internet, e.g. Zamzar. Rename the report file to include your group number, e.g. Group3InitialReport.
2. Post the report in the AssignmentSubmission folder.
   • AssignmentSubmission folder for the privacy case study
   • AssignmentSubmission folder for the copyright case study
   • AssignmentSubmission folder for the net neutrality case study

The week before the Case Study week:

You will analyze the arguments made by the pro and con groups. Before you start your analysis, you must first understand who the various stakeholders are and what positions they support. Then analyze the arguments often made by pro and con sides. Decide what you believe and don't believe about these arguments Bring in course concepts from both economics and networking in your analysis; this is critical and example concepts will be listed on each case study page. Make sure you get your facts correct. More detailed suggestions for how to do this are on these lecture slides.

Then, think about whether your group likes the "pro" and/or "con" positions. Think about what is good for the constituents of your member of Congress; this includes both the people and the companies in your district. See if you can find a different position than either "pro" or "con" that you like better. Sketch out what your position will be.

Start to prepare your presentation.

After Tuesday 7pm of the case study week, read the lobbyist slides and reports, which you can download from the SharedStudentFiles folder.

• SharedStudentFiles folder for the privacy case study
• SharedStudentFiles folder for the copyright case study
• SharedStudentFiles folder for the net neutrality case study

Finalize your presentation: Add to your draft presentation an analysis of the arguments that the Lobbyists make. State what you believe to be true and false from both sides. State what you believe will be best for your constituents. The presentation should be in either Powerpoint or PDF format. You will have 12 minutes to present, so a rough guideline is that you should have 9-15 slides. Although 12 minutes might seem like a long time, you will not have nearly enough time to present everything you have learned. Therefore, you should decide what you think is the most important information for your classmates.

 

Thursday of the Case Study week:

1. Before the Thursday class, upload your presentation. Only one member of your group should do the following:
   1. If your presentation is in a format other than Powerpoint or PDF, then convert it to PDF. There are several free conversion tools on the Internet, e.g. Zamzar. Rename the presentation file to include your group number, e.g. Group3LobbyistSlides.
   2. Post the presentation in the SharedStudentFiles folder for this case study, so that other students can view your slides.
      • SharedStudentFiles folder for the privacy case study
      • SharedStudentFiles folder for the copyright case study
      • SharedStudentFiles folder for the net neutrality case study
   3. Also post the slides in the AssignmentSubmission folder, so that we can grade it.
      • AssignmentSubmission folder for the privacy case study
      • AssignmentSubmission folder for the copyright case study
      • AssignmentSubmission folder for the net neutrality case study
2. During the first 45 minutes of class, your group will present your analysis to the class. You can share the 12 minutes among your team however you desire. You should practice the presentation beforehand to get the timing right. You will use the computer in the classroom, and download your slides from the SharedStudentFiles folder (so make sure you've competed step 1 above before class).
3. During the last 30 minutes of class, your group will answer questions posed by Reporters.

Grading:

• Presentation:
  • Networking arguments: 20 points
  • Economics arguments: 20 points
  • Public policy arguments: 20 points
  • Presentation skills (slide order, slide content, verbal comments): 25 points
  • Creativity of proposed position: 10 points
  • Timing (how close to the time limit was your presentation?): 5 points