Launched in 2013, Retro Report is a documentary news organization that revisits high-profile news stories of the past in an effort to “encourage the public to think more critically about current events and the media.” The site aims to be a “counterweight to today’s 24/7 news cycle” that quickly moves on to the next hot topic without going more in-depth into the questions that frame media stories, including: What really happened? How did these events change us? And what are the lingering consequences that may affect our society to this day? As stated on their website, “Retro Report is there to pick up the story after everyone has moved on, connecting the dots from yesterday to today, correcting the record and providing a permanent living library where viewers can gain new insight into the events that shaped their lives.”
Type of Material:
Collection.
Recommended Uses:
Retro Reports could be integrated into a variety of learning contexts, including in-class lecture or small group work, out-of-class group work, or individual homework assignments.
Technical Requirements:
Works well on all browsers.
Identify Major Learning Goals:
Students (and instructors) can learn about stories that dominated the news cycle in past decades, how they influenced public opinion, and the relevance of these stories to today's world. The collection does a superb job in also showing how journalism at the time of events may have fallen short in capturing the "real story." Retro Report is a "one of a kind" resource that can be employed to promote varied learning goals, such as creating awareness of events that were made historically significant by television programming, and providing follow-up analysis in light of temporal distance from events and additional historical developments. Perhaps greatest utility of collection for instructors is to use content to promote critical thinking.
Target Student Population:
Content is relevant to students (and instructors) from middle school to college.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:
None.
Content Quality
Rating:
Strengths:
Quality of content is superb! The videos concisely and clearly overview and follow-up on important news stories from the past. All videos use archival footage from original stories. The investigative reporting staff at Retro Report was drawn from first-rate news magazine programs, such as 60 Minutes.
Concerns:
Instructors will need to place content within meaningful contexts of own discipline. For example, sociology instructors will need to explicitly identify how content relates to particular concepts, theories, principles of sociology.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
Rating:
Strengths:
The collection has incredible potential as a learning tool. Along with each video is a text summary which concisely states content of video. Also included are additional media commentary about the Retro Report story (e.g., NPR discussions with producers of video), as well as linked resources about the original story. There is also the opportunity for users to engage others in discussion of the story.
Concerns:
The collection does not include lesson plans as such in the sense of detailed directions about how the content can be employed in the classroom. Therefore, instructors will need to establish these on their own.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
Rating:
Strengths:
Very easy to use, high quality, visually appealing, and engaging.
Concerns:
None.
Other Issues and Comments:
None.
Creative Commons:
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