1) The main topic of the article must involve air pollution, air pollution regulation; public health issues related to air pollution.;
2) The article must be at least 450 words in length (An easy way to figure out the word count is to copy the text into word and use “word count” under “tools”).
3) The article must contain either pollutant concentrations in ppb, ppm or μg/m3 or AQIs.
4) The article must be a ʺfeatureʺ article, meaning it has a headline, byline (author name(s)), and a single topic.
5) Articles must be photocopies of articles in print publications available at the newsstand, or printouts of these articles from a web site. No clippings are accepted, because they are always falling apart and getting lost.
Abstract/summaries:
a) 140 to 190 words long
b) Compare the pollutant concentrations to the standards in the US. Determine and state where they would fall in the US AQI index. Comment on how this compares to how the concentrations/AQIs are presented in the article.
c) Not spin additional information that is not in the article or part of the AQI discussion.
d) Include in your summary a clear statement of:
• Title of article • Author(s) of the article • Name of publication • Date of publication • Page number of the first page of the article, unless from a news agency web site Additional notes and guidelines: ‐‐A mere mention of air pollution as a side note in your article is not sufficient. This means that articles about fires are usually not air pollution articles, even though ʺsmokeʺ is involved. Most articles about ʺenergyʺ are not air pollution articles, so check content carefully. Articles about odors will be taken on a case‐by‐case basis; they definitely need to have human health front and center to be acceptable. ‐‐AQI scales for different countries and the WHO can be found on Wikipedia or elsewhere on the web. ‐‐Article summaries do not quote parts of the article; they paraphrase important points. ‐‐ Not acceptable: compilation or ʺspotlightsʺ of different news events into one section; a “blog”, ʺbriefʺ or ʺin briefʺ article or articles that serve as one‐ to two‐paragraph fillers, unsigned editorials and letters to the editor; figure or photo captions not associated with a feature article; advertisements; ʺwireʺ stories without an author attribution, and stories from a web site that is not associated with a print periodical. Also not acceptable: research reports published in academic journals (research papers are not ʺnewsʺ; they are contributions to knowledge). No monthly magazines, journals, ecological or environmental newsletters, scientific/academic journals, etc. The publication must be primarily for the purpose of reporting current news and news analysis. Weekly magazines including Time and Newsweek are acceptable.
