Another example project: Map use in media and debate about Madison schools

Here's one more example that I think I might have the expertise to help a student through:

For this school construction/closing/redistricting issue, maps have emerged as a key planning and rhetorical tool, both from the school district site itself, and through local print media. Significantly, some of these maps have been made available online as well by the school district itself. Broadcast TV and radio outlets are necessarily limited in the level of detail in mapping that they may use in their own reports, but increasingly print outlets are including maps in coverage -- even in color.

1. Any neighborhood will do, although some attention will have to be paid to the overall map of Madison (by definition).

2.-3. Talk to school officials who have responsibility for producing and approving maps, technicians who actually gather data and layers for map production, journalists and editors who choose to use and/or create maps for coverage of this issue. If talking to interest group representatives, ask if they produce their own maps or if they rely on official or media maps. If talking to individual citizens, ask if they have seen any of these maps; perhaps even ask them to map their own local school boundaries or as many local schools as they can place (a mental mapping investigation).

4. What has been the origin of the various official and media maps of the school debate, and how are they read and understood by public officials, journalists, interest groups, and citizens? How does online access affect map use and interpretation?