Write 1 commentary, of 750–850 words, based on a published “macroeconomic” article from the news media.
It is very important that your commentary shows your own line of (economic) reasoning and NOT simply a summary of the article or Sloman !!!! the Sloman book will be provided.
Explain the linkages between the article, and a macro-economic theory was taken from (part of) a chapter of Sloman (which has to be part of the literature of Macro-economics Ch15.5.
Demonstrate economic insights into the implications of the article (that is, it should provide evidence of your ability to evaluate current events from the point of view of an economist).
The article may be of any length, but you should highlight or underline the specific areas of the article that you have selected for discussion!! Do not use editorials, blogs, or columns.
You can select your own article from recent (publication date later than September 1st, 2021) issues of for instance the following magazines/ newspapers: The Economist, Newsweek, Business Week, Time, the International Herald Tribune, Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic Monthly.
Guidance on the content of your commentary
It is important that you show how relevant concepts/theories relate to each article. In order to do this, you will need to explain these concepts /theories by giving your Definitions, Explanations, Examples, and Diagrams (DEED). Make sure to link these to your article and all in your own words! Finally, you will need to evaluate the theories and concepts used. In order to do this you may want to consider choosing one or two of the following options:
Conclusions
What can we conclude from the theory (that you’ve explained in your analysis)?
Short-term versus Long-term
Is the change good in the short-term, but in a few years it will have undesirable consequences?
Will the policy be really hard on people in the short-run, but does it fix the long-term problem?
Will this policy fix one problem, but create another?
Assumptions
Are there some assumptions being made, that the theory depends on that may not hold true? Explain what might change and how that would affect your analysis.
Tell us the weaknesses in the theory?
What is unrealistic about the theory?
Stakeholders
What effects would this policy (i.e. an indirect tax) have on the government, consumers, producers and the rest of society?
Policies (i.e. price ceilings) are often made with particular stakeholders in mind, so are there undesirable effects on other parties (i.e. price increases for consumers)?
Is the policy great for some groups, but bad for others?
Priorities
Discussing the priorities of a society, or the government is also a good way to keep things in perspective. A policy like subsidizing schools is good for families, good for the long-term macro economy, but bad for tax payers who don’t have children, what are the priorities as a society?
Is there an important normative (i.e. values aspect) that the theory doesn’t consider?
Pros and Cons
What are the advantages and disadvantages of this policy?
What are the costs and the benefits of this policy?
What are the arguments for and the arguments against this policy?
This one is to double-check that you haven’t left anything out in the preceding ones.
Checklist for Students
The following checklist can be used to complete the commentary before handing it in.
Have you added and completed a commentary coversheet?
Have you included both articles?
Have you highlighted the relevant parts of each article?
Do the articles come from an approved source?
Were the articles published after September 1st, 2021?
Do both articles focus on a macro- economical topic that is part of this course?
If you have used sources or references other than the articles, have you cited them correctly?
Is each commentary within the word limit (750–850 words)?
Have you used graphs from the theory in your commentaries?
Have you labeled your graphs accurately?
Have you provided correct definitions of three to four relevant economic terms within each commentary?
Have you identified and applied relevant economic concepts/theories?
Have you analyzed how these concepts/theories relate to the chosen articles?
Have you evaluated these concepts/theories in the context of real-world examples?
Have you kept a second copy of your commentaries as a backup?
Have you added a signed copy of the Academic Integrity Disclaimer?
Last Completed Projects
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