Today you start Part 1 of your KA3 research: history, ownership, structure and audience. Impact and ethics come later. Save the notes you write today in your Communication Portfolio and build on them through to Lesson 58.
If your platform or inquiry question is not locked yet, choose one now and write it at the top of today's notes before you search. You will hunt for solid sources, sift what is worth keeping, and write your first set of 3-2-1 notes. Those notes feed the presentation later.
Before you hunt, set the six website checks at the top of today's notes (or keep this list open beside you): authenticity, authorship, bias, objectivity, accuracy, purpose. A confident page with no named author and no date is a starting point, not a finished source.
Don't paste whole paragraphs into the Portfolio. 3-2-1 makes you rewrite the ideas first so the notes stay usable later: three facts in your own words, two short quotes worth keeping, one question still open. You will use that pattern on history and ownership, structure, and audience when you write up.
Quick anchors for the three note headings: ownership = who runs and funds it (About / Investors pages); structure = features, account types, how content is organised (Help / product pages); audience = who it is built for and who actually uses it (e.g. LinkedIn for workplace professionals versus TikTok or Instagram Reels for short-video daily use).
Build your source log for history, ownership, structure and audience. Two solid sources is enough to start writing; add a third when you can. Quality beats a long list.
Open the keyword phrases in the KA3 Inquiry Brief you saved last lesson. If you don't have it, write three search phrases now at the top of the log before you open the browser, built from your platform name + history/owner, + features/how it works, + who uses it. Example pattern if your platform were Instagram: Instagram parent company; Meta Investors About; Instagram audience demographics site:rte.ie OR site:theguardian.com.
As you open each page, run the six checks: authenticity, authorship, bias, objectivity, accuracy, purpose.
Before you write notes, practise the sift on these sample claims. For each source type, weigh the tells and commit to a verdict. The reasoning is what you take into your own pack.
When you finish the four samples, complete the required bridge field: name one source from your own Step 3 log, the tell you are checking, and your verdict. That puts the practice to work on your own sources before you write.
This is the Portfolio piece for today and Part 1 evidence toward KA3. Using only sources you would defend, write 3-2-1 notes on history and ownership, structure, and audience. Aim for all three sections. If time runs out, finish at least one full 3-2-1 section plus your sources list: that still counts as Part 1 evidence, and you finish the rest before next lesson. Keep quotes short and mark them as quotes.
Write the 3-2-1 notes here, tag anything weak or pasted, then redraft underneath using your tags. Copy the finished notes into your Communication Portfolio folder. Filename: m2_l55_research_notes_p1_<your-initials>.txt.
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