OPED write up
one page write up of OPED using rubric example and rubric attached
Op-Ed Rubric
Prof. Hankinson
Spring 2020
Components of a Successful Op-Ed
● Contains an “catchy” headline
○ I should have an idea of your position from the headline
○ Good example
■ “On Social Security, Tap the Wealthy to Support a Program for All” – ”On
Social Security, Tap the Wealthy to Support a Program for All”
○ Bad example
■ “How to Fix Housing Policy”
● Doesn’t tell me anything about the argument
● Establishes argument in the opening paragraph
○ Good example
■ “Social Security is in peril these days, not because of its finances, but
because politicians refuse to consider the most obvious, highly popular
reform — uncapping the payroll tax, which would essentially shore up its
finances in perpetuity.” – ”On Social Security, Tap the Wealthy to Support
a Program for All”
● Describe the status quo
○ What is society like today, without the proposed policy? Why is the status quo
inadequate?
○ Good example
■ “After remaining essentially flat in the 1950s and 1960s, the prevalence of
obesity doubled in adults and tripled in children between the 1970s and
2000. According to new data from the Centers for Disease Control, the
epidemic shows no signs of abating. Nearly four out of 10 adults are
obese; for children, it’s nearly two out of 10. Most 2-year-olds today will
develop obesity by age 35, according to a recent projection from our
colleagues at Harvard. The obesity epidemic affects every region of the
country and every demographic group. But rates have increased the
fastest among low-income Americans and racial minorities, exacerbating
pre-existing health disparities.“ – ”The Toll of America’s Obesity”
■ Directly addresses need for policy in this space using empirical evidence
to highlight problem
● Uses one piece of social science evidence for the existence of the status quo
○ What are the politics that created this problem in the first place?
○ What are the politics that are preventing your solution from being implemented?
○ Examples of theories
■ E.g., Does the concentration/diffusion of costs and benefits limit policy
action (J. Q. Wilson)?
https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/04/17/should-social-security-taxes-affect-all-wages/on-social-security-tap-the-wealthy-to-support-a-program-for-all
https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/04/17/should-social-security-taxes-affect-all-wages/on-social-security-tap-the-wealthy-to-support-a-program-for-all
https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/04/17/should-social-security-taxes-affect-all-wages/on-social-security-tap-the-wealthy-to-support-a-program-for-all
https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/04/17/should-social-security-taxes-affect-all-wages/on-social-security-tap-the-wealthy-to-support-a-program-for-all
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1703860
■ E.g., Does your policy require collective action and face the problem of
free-riding (Olson)?
■ E.g., Are people simply unaware of the status quo, or systematically
misperceiving it?
○ Good examples
■ Misperceptions of elected officials
● “Congress doesn’t know what policies Americans support. We
know that because we asked the most senior staff members in
Congress — the people who help their bosses decide what bills to
pursue and support — what they believed public opinion was in
their district or state on a range of issues….As a similar study
showed, state politicians also do a poor job guessing public
opinion of their constituents. We found two key factors that explain
why members of Congress are so ignorant of public preferences:
their staffs’ own beliefs and congressional offices’ relationships
with interest groups.” ”Congress Has No Clue What Americans
Want”
● Cites a study showing that politicians are bad at guessing public
opinion, such as systematically underestimating what share of
their constituents support climate change legislation.
■ Loss aversion
● “Obviously, programs like these don’t eliminate the costs of
moving away from dirty energy. But they can change the political
calculus. When a policy calls attention to the costs of the
transition, as a carbon tax does, people are wary. When a policy
calls attention to the benefits, people often have a more favorable
attitude and are willing to accept slightly higher costs.” ”Winning
the climate fight”
● ^Uses social science psychology, but needs a citation.
○ Bad Example
■ “Republicans and Democrats are gridlocked and can’t agree to a fix…”
● Unsightful. Why are they at a gridlock? What are there
arguments/values that lead to disagreement?
■ “The X political party is in the pockets of Big Y…”
● Show me evidence of why? Is there evidence of how extensive
campaign donations to key decision makers?
● Propose a specific policy change
○ What is the policy or regulation?
■ “And this legislative session, a bipartisan coalition of California legislators
is supporting the More Homes Act, which is sponsored by one of us
(Senator Wiener). The bill would override local restrictive zoning by
legalizing small to midsize apartment buildings (up to five stories) near job
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/bias-in-perceptions-of-public-opinion-among-political-elites/2EF080E04D3AAE6AC1C894F52642E706
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/12/7/18125644/scott-wiener-sb-50-california-housing
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200SB50
centers and public transportation and set minimum affordability standards
for some of those units.” – ”Why Housing Policy Is Climate Policy”
○ Who would it affect, in terms of beneficiaries?
■ “The legislation would also help existing renters keep their homes in
areas that qualify for new housing. The measures are intended to stem
the growth of super-commuters — workers who are priced out of areas
near their jobs and forced to drive long distances to get to work.” – ”Why
Housing Policy Is Climate Policy”
○ How much would it cost?/Who would it harm?
● Describe at least 2 pieces of policy evidence supporting your policy effects
○ What studies support the expected effects of your policy?
○ Who wrote the studies?
○ What are the specific findings of the studies?
○ Good example
■ “Moreover, liberal economists Emmanuel Saez and Jeffrey Liebman
concluded that, because of income shifting and behavioral responses, net
collections from eliminating the cap would be less than 60 percent of what
static projections claim.” – ”Don’t Raise or Eliminate the Contribution Cap”
■ “In 2018, researchers at the Education Trust found that in many states
free college policies actually end up providing more resources to
upper-middle-class students than more needy ones. A similar studythat
zeroed in on Tennessee’s community college program showed that about
half of qualifying students received no aid at all. Meanwhile, a student
from a family earning over $160,000 annually could receive more than
$1,400 in state subsidies.” – “The Cruel Irony of ‘Free’ College Promises”
● Include a qualifying paragraph (2-3 sentences)
○ What are the tradeoffs of your proposed policy?
■ Are there reasons the policy may fail or not fix everything wrong with the
status quo?
■ Are there people who will “lose” from it?
■ Why should we tolerate that lost/cost?
○ Good example
■ “One objection does have merit: Though carbon pricing would spur huge
change in infrastructure and power generation, that alone would not be
enough. It would not stimulate all the innovation the nation needs in the
climate fight, nor would it change behaviors in circumstances where the
desired price signal is muted or nonexistent. Carbon pricing can do a lot
— but not everything…In those circumstances, the government would
have to do more.” – ”Want a Green New Deal? Here’s a better one”
● Closing Statement/Call to Action
○ What can X group do to help achieve this policy goal?
○ E.g., “In June, the Women in Public Service Project will convene at Wellesley
some 50 emerging women leaders from around the world, focusing on countries
https://elsa.berkeley.edu/~saez/liebman-saezSSA06
https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/04/17/should-social-security-taxes-affect-all-wages/dont-raise-or-eliminate-the-contribution-cap-7
https://edtrust.org/resource/a-promise-fulfilled/
http://www.ihep.org/sites/default/files/uploads/docs/pubs/ihep_state_free_college_tennessee_promise
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/want-a-green-new-deal-heres-a-better-one/2019/02/24/2d7e491c-36d2-11e9-af5b-b51b7ff322e9_story.html?utm_term=.38508ad07ef0
in transition, to offer intensive training and a cross-cultural exchange of ideas and
resources….I hope other institutions will join the movement towards leadership
parity, because if you have female students, and if you believe that they will be
integral in leading the world in the 21st century, then you too are a women’s
college. And if we get this right, the world will be a better place—not just for
women but for everyone.” “Why all colleges should think of themselves as
women’s colleges”
Sources
For public policy evidence, several trusted, nonpartisan think tanks include:
● Urban Institute – poverty and inequality related policy
● Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget – federal budget and fiscal issues
● Kaiser Family Foundation – health care and health policy
● Brookings Institution – general public policy
You are welcome to cite research outside of these groups, but strive to explain their
background. For example, “The Center for American Progress, a liberal-leaning think tank,
finds…” Or, “The Cato Institute, a Libertarian think tank,…” Ultimately, these categories can be
fluid, but some organizations are extremely oriented towards specific policy agendas,
threatening the objectivity of their policy briefs.
Here is a list compiled by The New York Times that categorizes the most prominent think tanks:
Rough Draft
A draft of your op-ed to be circulated blindly to a peer for review
● Due Wednesday, March 18th, 11:59 pm
● Not graded, but will be penalized if judged incomplete/incoherent
Peer Review
A write-up in response to your peer’s op-ed.
● 400-500 words,
● Due Monday, April 6th, 11:59 pm
● Verify that each component of the op-ed is present
● Grade the op-ed as if you were a professor
● Your review will be graded on whether it addresses each of the defined components
○ State where the component is in the text
○ State whether the component meets your standard
Final Submission
To achieve an A, your op-ed must meet each criteria
● Include all of the above components
● Length between 600 and 700 words
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/why-all-colleges-should-think-of-themselves-as-womens-colleges/2012/03/09/gIQALFBf1R_story.html?utm_term=.a18424dc59c4
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/why-all-colleges-should-think-of-themselves-as-womens-colleges/2012/03/09/gIQALFBf1R_story.html?utm_term=.a18424dc59c4
● 1” margins, double-spaced, submitted as a pdf
● Include a ‘Works Cited’ section formatted in the APA style
○ All facts must be supported in the text by their source
○ Formal in-text citations are not required, nor appropriate for an op-ed
● Include a pdf/screenshot of the email sent to the media outlet for publication
● Contain zero spelling or grammar errors
● Be submitted by Monday, April 27th, 11:59 pm
Kamala Harris, the California senator and former Democratic presidential candidate,
proposed a policy to address the gender wage gap by shifting responsibility from individuals to
prove the existence of the gap to corporations. The gender wage gap experienced by full-time
women employees in the United States results in an averaged total loss of more than $916 billion
every year (National Partnership for Women & Families). Similar policies have been proposed
by Democrats such as Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.
The gender pay gap has remained relatively stable since it narrowed in the 1980s, as
women earning rose from 60 percent of what their men made to about 75 percent (The Library of
Economics and Liberty). However, complacency questioning the significance of the wage gap is
misplaced. Women in the United States are paid 82 cents for every dollar paid to men, which
results in an annual gender wage gap of $10,194. The disparity is more prevalent in different
races, as Black women are paid 62 cents, Native American 57 cents and Latinas 54 cents for
every dollar of a white, non-Hispanic man. In the United States, women head 15 million family
households and of that, 26 percent have family incomes that fall below the poverty level.
Therefore, in these millions of cases eliminating the wage gap would provide substantive
economic relief to households reliant on the women’s wage (National Partnership for Women &
Families).
Economist Francine Blu and Lawerence Kahn have found that observable factors such as
education, job experience, and hours of work can explain around 33 percent of the wage gap,
previously determined to be 55 percent. Rather the residual, the remainder of the gap, can not be
explained by observable factors. This can be the result of women’s choice of work and gender
discrimination (The Library of Economics and Liberty). The pervasiveness of these factors is
difficult to be held legally accountable for. Workplace culture enables gender stereotypes and the
devaluation of women’s skill and time (The Washington Post). “The Impact of Equal Pay on
Poverty and the Economy” found that gender wage discrimination has led to the misallocation of
human capital leading to women working in less productive roles.
Senator Kamala Harris proposes to hold corporations accountable for permitting wage
inequality. The policy requires companies with 100 employees or more must obtain “Equal Pay
Certification” from the Equal Employment and Opportunity Commission (EEOC) within two
years of her presidency. Companies can be fined 1% of their average daily profits during the last
fiscal year for every 1% wage gap, in consideration to differences in position, experience and
performance. Eliminating the wage gap in corporations is vital as the American Association of
University Women found that women make 64 percent of primary, sole, or co-breadwinners of
their families. Long-term economic security for such families can be achieved through equal pay.
A 2010 report by the joint economic committee in the House found that addressing the gender
wage gap is necessary as the latter results in lower contributions to employer-sponsored
retirement plans and Social Security benefits. These benefits become a substantial source of
income, providing nearly $12,000 for older women. Majority of Social Security beneficiaries are
women, 55.5 percent represent age 62 and older and 65 percent age 85 and older (Social Security
Administration Factsheet).
The argument emerges whether companies are willing and able to disclose the necessary
information to receive certification. Critics find these data-sharing processes as too burdensome
for companies. A fact sheet from the National Women’s Law Center reports that in recent years
businesses have taken similar analyses in regards to equal pay audits or performance evaluations.
The significance of the gender pay gap is not exclusive. Necessary action is needed to
make sure everyone’s mother, daughter, sister, and grandmother efforts are accounted for.
Citations
● https://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/GenderGap.html#lfHendersonCEE2-070_figure_02
6
● https://www.nationalpartnership.org/our-work/resources/economic-justice/fair-pay/ameri
cas-women-and-the-wage-gap
● https://iwpr.org/publications/impact-equal-pay-poverty-economy/
● https://www.jec.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/9118a9ef-0771-4777-9c1f-8232fe70a45c/
compendium—sans-appendix
● https://www.ssa.gov/news/press/factsheets/women-alt
● https://kamalaharris.org/policies/equal-pay/full-policy/
https://www.nationalpartnership.org/our-work/resources/economic-justice/fair-pay/americas-women-and-the-wage-gap
https://www.nationalpartnership.org/our-work/resources/economic-justice/fair-pay/americas-women-and-the-wage-gap
https://iwpr.org/publications/impact-equal-pay-poverty-economy/
https://www.jec.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/9118a9ef-0771-4777-9c1f-8232fe70a45c/compendium—sans-appendix
https://www.jec.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/9118a9ef-0771-4777-9c1f-8232fe70a45c/compendium—sans-appendix
https://www.ssa.gov/news/press/factsheets/women-alt
https://kamalaharris.org/policies/equal-pay/full-policy/
According to the author, Social Security is an essential program, but its future is looking unpromising unless we start by eliminating the payroll tax cap.
In the author’s proposal to keep the funding open, the author proposes the acceptance of Bernie Sanders’ “Keeping Our Social Security Promises Act,” which the author suggests would removes the payroll tax cap. To elaborate further, the author stated that the reason for the cap on the social security is because of the uneven amount of participation during elections which makes the rich influential in governance. The author stated that, research have found that the rich who made over $125,000 contributed 35% in campaigns. According to the author, this act causes a major problem regarding the shaping of the social security because people with lower income would not be able to contribute that amount of money towards campaigns. The author also states that it causes greater income equality, since those who contribute are rich and as a matter of fact get more benefits from political power in the form of payroll tax cap. This in the authors words, compromises the state of social welfare in the United States because those active in politics don’t have the same views as the poor who are focused on housing, poverty, and health. Congressional Research Service was used to predicts that, if tax cap is not removed, there will be a permanent increase of tax rate from 12.4% to 15.1% which would hurt people making less than the current tax cap currently at $132,900 or, cutting benefits by 20% in 2035 and continuously rising every year.
In as much as the author makes a good point on the percentage of rich people that donated to campaign, the author failed to state how much the rich get in payroll tax cap since that is a major part of the authors argument. The authors failed to indicate how an increase in tax rate would affect people making less than the current tax cap which is $132,900. To sum it up, the author failed to expand and give more numeric evidence to support the argument.
In addition, to provide a guideline in eliminating payroll tax cap, the author suggested a bill introduced by Bernie Sanders called, Keeping Our Social Security Promises Act. The bill according to the author seeks to remove the cap placed on payroll taxes. The author further stated the bill will help Solvency to expand for 75 years without increasing taxes for those who earn less than $250,000, the only people who will see a change are those earn more than $250,000. According to the Congressional Research Service as stated by the author, removing the cap would eliminate 84% of the projected shortfall. The author stated that, the top 200 CEOs would have to contributed $341,291,106 towards Social Security when the tax cap is removed. In addition, the author stated that, removing the cap would eliminate 84% of the projected shortfall. The author proposes an increase in the taxable payroll from 12.40% to 12.83% to keep it solvent for 75 years. This as stated by the author is the best solution, compared to increasing the taxable income by 2% each year to cover 90 % earnings which would only cover 25% of the projected shortfall and increase the taxable payroll by 2.02%.
In conclusion, the author made a good point in stating the policy proposal but failed to give numerical evidence as to what the top 200 CEO’s currently contribute in comparison to what they would contribute. Also, the author failed to show how increasing taxable payroll from 12.40% to 12.83% would keep the social security solvent for 75 years. In the concluding paragraph, the author called for people to vote which in my opinion diverted the argument from eliminating payroll tax cap.