"Obama Lifts Bush’s Strict Limits on Stem Cell Research." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. Web. 18 May 2010.
Purpose: The purpose of this article is to inform the public about the new easement of the rules and restrictions regarding stem cell research. This article is shows the views of both the president and the view of the politicians surrounding him. This article explains the potential of stem cell research and the drawbacks that will arise if "the research" is continued.
Key Information:
- President Obama made the decision to continue stem cell research
- Stem cells are harvested from embryos aborted from a female's womb.
- Harvesting stem cells ultimately "kills" the embryo
- In the act of continuing stem cell research, President Obama made it clear that there will not be human cloning
- President Obama feels that "guidelines and strict oversight the perils can be avoided.”
- Stem cells will be able to cure many disease that cannot be cured today: Parkinson's, diabetes, heart disease etc.
- Limitations on research in America can spur other countries to work on stem cell research (in this case, Britain.)
The controversy surrounding stem cell research is very heated. A person will either firmly believe that this research will help people, or a person will believe that this is murder. The fact that deciding whether abortion is murder is the gray area in this case. The fact that stem cells will be able to cure cataclysmal disease is something that needs to be taken into account. This will be able to save and improve many patients lives. There is a misconception that stem cells only come from aborted fetuses, however, there are other parts from a baby that doctors would be able to harvest stem cells without harming the child. I feel that this misconception makes the controversy much more extreme. On the contrary, abortion and the process of harvesting stem cells are looked down upon by very many people, including the Catholic Church. They view abortion as murder. There is more controversy about the specific time and period when a fetus becomes a child, but that is a different discussion. The fact that many people are opposed to stem cell research because of the method restricts the continuing research, but now the door as been opened...at least cracked with the Obama Administration's take on stem cell research. Now, all we can do is wait for either a discovery, a change of heart, a extreme situation to tip the controversy to one side, and I feel that with this news, the outcome will come soon.
Course Preparation:
Obviously the stem cell unit of this course is what really prepared me for understanding this article. This unit really helped me understand even though the unit was a bit shorter than the others. Also the current reproduction unit has helped me understand this article because of the knowledge of how pregnancy works and the functions that take place during pregnancy. Without the knowledge of blastocysts and also the clarification of misconceptions from television and movies, I would not have understood the article as well as I did.
People Involved (Referenced):
- Barack Obama
- Obama Administration
- Bush Administration
- Congress
- Representative Christopher Smith of New Jersey
- Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts
- Senator John Kerry
This article was a report on a topic currently under review by the courts, legislature, and President. As you can see from the list of people involved, many are from the House of Representatives, Senators, or Presidents. This article can also be classified as research development because the opportunities that can arise from the easement of the strict laws on stem cell research.
Part II: Background Research
"Stem Cell Basics: Introduction [Stem Cell Information]." NIH Stem Cell Information Home Page. Web. 18 May 2010.
About this article:
When looking for sources, I found the one that would give me the most information and the least opinion I could find. The Natural Institute of Health was the best site I could find. After reading, I really felt like I reviewed most of the information we have covered in class. The fact that stem cells are unspecified cells that can change to become many types of cells, muscle cells, brain cells, and blood cells. I found that not only can stem cells be found in embryonic stem cells but also in somatic stem cells, corresponding with my previous misconception: stem cells only come from aborted fetuses. I also found information about the two different types of cell therapies used with stem cells: Replacement therapy and reparative therapy. I also found more information about inner blastocyst
Blastocyst:
About this article:
Unlike the last article, I chose to research the public opinion about stem cell research. After reading I found out some very interesting things. First, many people, even today, are unaware of stem cell research and what it is. Secondly, I found that the increasing publicity of stem cell research is not only making people more aware, but also creating people come to extreme conclusions about the research. Finding this out, I fell that many of the opinion pieces can be wrong because of the bias written by people who do not fully understand the issue.
"Human Stem Cell Research." ReligiousTolerance.org by the Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. Web. 18 May 2010.
About this Article:
I chose this article specifically because it was from a religious tolerance site. I wanted to find an article that would express the opinion of those opposed to stem cell research. I found useful information through this website. I found that 72% of Christians agree that stem cells should be banned. I found that Britain has already approved stem cell research. I also found that, like my last article, not many people are informed about the subject, and many republicans oppose stem cell research. This site gave me some information about the Christian side of the controversy of stem cells.
Part III: Analysis of Potential Bias
- Bias through selection or omission: I thought this article did show a balance between those opposed to stem cell research and those supporting it, but overall I felt as if this article was meant to show this as an opportunity for scientific growth.
- Bias through placement: This article was placed on the first page of Google when searching for "Obama stem cells" This, however, I do not think is bias, the New York Times is a very popular newspaper, and I feel that this was an appropriate spot for an article from the NY times
- Bias by Headline: There was some bias in the headline: "Obama Lifts Bush's Strict Limit on Stem Cell Research." The word that stood out was "strict." In this case, Obama was made to sound like a liberator, lifting the strict limit, not the limits, the strict limit.
- Bias through photos, captions, and camera angles: There were no pictures or captions associated with this article
- Bias through names and titles: I don't feel like there was bias through names because each side was equally represented in the article
- Bias through statistics and crowd counts: There were no statistics given in this article
- Bias by source control: There was no bias in sources, each were a political representative that believed in one side or the other
- Bias through word choice and tone: I felt that the tone and word choice of the article was very strong, but for both sides. Each had a extreme side to it, and I felt that the author was able to balance the story in a way the reader would be able to judge for his/her self.
"Obama Lifts Bush’s Strict Limits on Stem Cell Research." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. Web. 18 May 2010. .
"Public Opinion About Stem Cell Research and Human Cloning -- Nisbet 68 (1): 131 -- Public Opinion Quarterly." Oxford Journals | Social Sciences | Public Opinion Quarterly. Web. 18 May 2010. .
"Stem Cell Basics: Introduction [Stem Cell Information]." NIH Stem Cell Information Home Page. Web. 18 May 2010. .
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