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Interest Group Assessment and Opinion Article
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by Susan Ikenberry
Georgetown Day School
Washington, District of Columbia
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and David Lublin
Georgetown Day School
Washington, District of Columbia
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Note to Teachers
Teachers who are interested in the current-events approach to teaching an introductory or AP Government class often ask about what sorts of assignments can be used when there is no election to follow. The assignment below is a good example. Interest groups are hard to teach collectively, but studied on a case-by-case basis they make an engaging topic. We have experimented with a number of different formats for this, but this profile, with its op-ed format, works particularly well and is manageable.
A tempting variation is to have students contrast two opposing interest groups that can be profiled together. In a very limited way this will work well: a pro-choice group compared to a pro-life group, for example, or a gun control advocacy group contrasted with the NRA. But for many other interest groups well worth studying (the Center for Responsible Lending, for example) the opposition may be a large lobbying firm with many clients, a law firm, or an ad hoc group formed to oppose certain legislation. Such groups are usually not accessible, and not eager to engage with students. The argument format works better elsewhere.
Student Assignment: Interest Groups
For this assignment, you are writing the type of piece (for a newspaper) that might appear in the Outlook section of the Washington Post or the Week in Review section of the New York Times. Articles that appear in Outlook or Week in Review combine deeper analysis than usually appears in a news story with the informed opinion of the author. The author has the opportunity to develop an argument in a manner that is not possible on the op-ed (opinion-editorial) page of the daily newspaper. As a result, these articles are also particularly insightful.
Choose an interest group to study. For each group, find out and outline the basics:
Mission
- What is the group's mission?
- What causes do its members support?
- What is the group's brief history, including: why was the group formed, and how old is the group?
- What are the main ways they promote their agenda?
Membership
- What is the size of their membership?
- Are there dues, or do they ask for donations?
- What sorts of people belong?
- Are there tangible or material incentives to belong?
Budget
- What is their total annual budget?
- How is the money allocated and where does it come from?
Staff
- What is the size of their staff? What does the staff do?
Lobbying
- How much of their time is spent directly lobbying Congress or the agencies?
- Do they use a public relations or law firm?
- Do they work with particular members of Congress or particular people in a government agency?
- Do they lobby on the state and local level?
- Do they use the courts?
- Do they use grassroots lobbying techniques?
- Which form of lobbying do they use most often?
Partisanship
- Is it a partisan group? If so, with which party would each group associate?
Analysis and Assessment
Now that you've got the basics on both groups, you need to assess their effectiveness. Will a group be effective in promoting its agenda over the next few years? Why or why not? What will help promote or hinder the group's success? The piece should develop and defend this conclusion over the course of the article. However, the final section of the article should probably articulate this opinion in a more forthright and judgmental manner. You may also provide suggestions as to how either group might improve its effectiveness in promoting the policies that it favors.
Sources of Information
- Almost every group has an office in Washington, and generally such groups are very helpful if you phone them and politely ask for information. You might even arrange to visit your group. Make a real effort to talk to people at both groups.
- Newspapers and magazines, particularly Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report.
- The Internet. Use search engines. However, make sure you use the Internet intelligently. Assess the validity and bias of sources as you examine them. A group's Web site will likely present that group in a favorable light. Not all commentators are neutral or equally savvy in their analysis.
- Public Interest Profiles, a reference book published by Congressional Quarterly.
All profiles must show evidence of research in several different areas. You should also include citations, including footnotes or parenthetical citations as well as a bibliography. Be careful to use multiple sources and to correctly cite any Web sources.
These essays should be no more than five double-spaced pages long and are due the same day as our class on interest groups. Make sure your papers are complete and address all of the key questions asked by the assignment. Substantive accuracy and the quality of writing (including argumentation, organization, grammar, syntax, clarity, and format) are both important. This paper requires thorough research, so do not try to leave it to the last minute. You will find it difficult to find all of the sources you need all at once or on the weekend.
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