cartoons for the classroom - nieonlinenieonline.com/cftc/pdfs/simpsons.pdfof the simpsons family. 2....

Additional resourcesAssociation of American Editorial Cartoonists (AAEC)http://editorialcartoonists.com/

More by Joel Petthttp://www.kentucky.com/mld/kentucky/news/editorial/cartoons/

Get out your newspaperGather a collection of political cartoons from your newspaper.Using the Cartoon Evaluation Worksheet (available online atthe NIE Website) analyze each cartoon and explain theissues addressed and determine the artist’s point of view.

Talking points1. Let’s start with the easy question: Name the five membersof the Simpsons family.2. According to the study, you probably can’t list all fivefreedoms covered by the First Amendment. But the punchline in the last panel of Joel Pett’s cartoon gives you clues tofour of those five freedoms. And a clue to the fifth free-dom is kinda covered elsewhere in the toon. Does that help?3. After this exercise at least you and your classmates willknow the answers next time. But why do you think peopleknow more about a cartoon family than the U.S. Constitution?

Cartoons for the Classroom is available through Newspaper in Education programs. Copyright Online Publications Inc. and NIEonline.com

Cartoons for the ClassroomPresented by NIEonline.com and the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists (AAEC)

The First Amendment? D’oh!Courtesy Joel Pett / Lexington Herald-Leader

Between the lines A recent nationwide poll commissioned by the

Chicago-based McCormick Tribune FreedomMuseum found that more than one in five peoplecould name all five members of the Simpsonscartoon family. But only one in 1,000 could listall five First Amendment freedoms. William B.Ketter, editor-in-chief of the Eagle-Tribunenewspapers, suggests a novel solution: Producean episode on how those freedoms impact theSimpsons in their everyday lives. If one couldjust get Bart and Homer arguing about it, maybemore of us would listen . . . and learn!

For more First Amendment resources go to http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org