Interest Groups
An interest group for our purpose is any organization, association, or group that is organized with a political purpose or object in mind. They are also known as lobbyists, political advocacy groups, pressure groups, associations, organizations, etc. Here are a couple of websites that list them–http://usgovinfo.about.com/blorgs.htm; http://votesmart.org/interest-groups – .VXLuR6Zw0t8
Pick an interest group in which you are interested. That is to say, pick a group that does work in a political area that you want to know more about. Answer all of the following. Answers must be typed and should indicate the number of the question being answered. Make sure you include proper citation from the Internet for each answer. Do NOT cut and paste any part of any answers. You are to put each answer into your own words. The answers to every question may not be on their website—you may have to be industrious in finding the information. You may want to call the IG as a last option or just to chat.
Name of the interest group (IG).
Website address of the IG.
Phone number of the IG.
National address of the IG.
Year the IG was founded.
Write a one-paragraph description in your own words of the nature and purpose of the organization. This can be summarized from their “About” section. What is it the organization sets out to do?
Name of current head of the IG. One-paragraph description of the professional background of the individual.
Write one paragraph detailing how one becomes a member of the IG and what the benefits of membership are.
List dates and descriptions of any upcoming events for the IG (maximum five events).
Write a one-paragraph summary from a video about the IG or an issue the IG deals with. This can be from the IG itself or can be from a news show about IG. This could include if someone from the organization was interviewed on a news show. These videos are often on the organization’s website. The video should be at least three minutes long. Include a website link to the video so that I may watch it as well.
Think about all you have learned about the IG and answer the following questions in an essay addressing all of the following points. You should have at least 2-3 paragraphs for each section: a, b, and c.
Name some specific goals the interest group wants to achieve. What is your assessment of the goals of this interest group? Are their goals in the best interests of the United States? Why? Are there other goals they should have or goals they should abandon?
Specifically, how does this interest group try to achieve its goals? Do they tend to hold conferences, run ads, lobby legislators, publish articles or books, raise and spend money for and specific things? Different interest groups employ different methods…show me you understand how this interest group tries to achieve its goals.
Finally, has this interest group been effective in achieving its goals. This will require some research. Don’t just say yes or no. Provide data that show specific failures or successes of this interest group. Think about how one would go about evaluating the effectiveness of an interest group.
Be sure to cite your sources for where you get the information you use for your essay.
