In Part 1 you logged history, structure and audience for your platform. Today you push into the harder half of the research: impact, ethics, and the current debate around it.
Your job is not to pick a side yet. It is to gather both the positive and the critical findings, and keep them in balance until the notes are done.
Three terms for this half of the research:
| Term | What it means for you | Real example |
|---|---|---|
| Impact: the real-world effect a platform has on people, culture or work. | Ask what changed for users, creators, schools or workplaces because this platform exists. | GAA clubs recruiting match-day volunteers through WhatsApp or Instagram |
| Content moderation: the rules and systems that decide what stays up and what comes down. | Look for who sets the rules, who enforces them, and what happens when they fail. | A platform removing a post after user reports that it broke the rules |
| Current debate: a live public argument that has not settled yet. | Record both sides with sources, even if one side feels louder. | Whether every account should be identity-verified |
Balance rule for today: if a source only praises or only attacks, keep it, name its lean, and find the other side before you write up.
The six checks from earlier still apply to every new site: authenticity, authorship, bias, objectivity, accuracy and purpose.
Extend your sources log with at least three further sites that speak to impact, ethics or the current debate. Aim for a mix: one that leans positive, one that leans critical, and one that tries to hold both.
In step 5 you will write today's Portfolio piece, Research Notes, Part 2, from this log.
Before you write the notes, practise the sift on four claims you are likely to meet when researching any big platform.
Carry the same habit into the sources you just logged: keep what you can check, park what you cannot. This step is practice only: your verdicts go in Enter Your Work.
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