Write the connection between the media and the cultural diversity of U.S. society. Discuss how a current program or article in current news media approaches diversity-related issues and explain how we can use the sociological perspective to better understand both the portrayal of diversity-related issues and the media's broader role in U.S. society. Effectively evaluating the accuracy of the information provided in your chosen media piece will require some additional research and fact checking, something that sociologists do as well when they are weighing the validity of opposing arguments. Deliverable Choose a news media piece from a reputable source that is focused on an issue related to race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, physical or mental disability, or social class. Write an essay in which you complete the following: summarize the main events or issues presented in the article and describe how they relate to cultural diversity studies. Compare and contrast how minority and dominant groups are portrayed in your chosen media article or program. Consider how your source material demonstrates this dominant/minority group differentiation. Discuss sociological theories that are most appropriate to understanding the diversity issues in your chosen media piece. Discuss how one or more of Merton's four categories of prejudice and discrimination apply to the media piece you chose. Explain whether assimilation or pluralism best describes how race and ethnic relations are presented in your media piece. Find and analyze two credible sources of data that are appropriate for supporting or refuting the central tenets of your chosen media article or program. Discuss how the content of the media piece may affect or might have been influenced by power.