Question

read the excerpt from \the role of social media in the arab uprisings\ by heather brown, emily guskin, and amy mitchell.

passing along information is an important part of the news process. earlier project for excellence in journalism research finds the role of twitter in disseminating breaking news is not limited to the arab uprisings—the death of whitney houston, for example, was announced on twitter 55 minutes prior to the associated press confirming the story.

twitter, facebook and other new media offer ways for the arab - american news media to reach audiences, but also pose a threat to smaller outlets. in addition to keeping up with the online presence of larger news organizations, arab - american media are forced to compete with user - generated content that is rapidly available to audiences. the utility of social media in accessing information became clear during the arab

what reasons do the authors give to support the claim that social media both helps and threatens smaller media outlets? select two options.

• small news outlets experience challenges when trying to compete with larger news outlets.
• information is sometimes shared on social media before it is released by traditional media.
• both small and large news organizations also depend on user - generated content.
• both social media and traditional news organizations cover egypt’s presidential elections
• news organizations must compete with one another and with social media to reach audiences.

Explanation:

1. For the "helps" part: The excerpt states social media lets small Arab-American news outlets reach audiences, and option E notes news orgs (including small ones) must use social media to reach audiences, which frames it as a necessary, beneficial tool for access.
2. For the "threatens" part: The excerpt says small outlets face competition from larger orgs' online presence and user-generated content. Option E directly references competition with social media and other news orgs, which aligns with the threat.
3. Option C is incorrect because it does not address a unique help or threat to small outlets specifically. Option A only covers the threat of competing with larger outlets but not the benefit of social media. Option B and D are irrelevant to the claim about small outlets' dual experience of help and threat from social media.

Answer:

E. News organizations must compete with one another and with social media to reach audiences.
A. Small news outlets experience challenges when trying to compete with larger news outlets.