ASSIGNMENT: This project will involve using AI to help explain an episode from the relatively recent history of the United States in which the United States performed actions that may not have been in the best interest of its citizens. 

THE GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS:  The following list shows the project topic assignments for all students. Students will be asked to research, analyze and report on their topic for the rest of the class. :

PLEASE NOTE: Alternate project information is at the bottom of this page!

• TOPIC	5th PERIOD STUDENT	7th PERIOD STUDENT
  Operation Mockingbird	Kayla L. Avendano	Aaralyn Abell-
  Gulf of Tonkin Incident	Johnathon T. Bingley	-
  Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment	D’Andre N. DeHoyos	Letissia Loma Benavente
  NSA Warrantless Wiretapping	Neridan J. Garcia Diaz	-
  COINTELPRO	Gage N. Guajardo	Pop Kelsey
  Project MK-ULTRA	Colten T. Jackson	Dylan S. Kelly
  Iran-Contra Affair	Alyvia L. Jacquez	Natalie DiProspero-
  Operation Northwoods	Bryce L. Kothe	Wyatt M. Meyer
  Human Radiation Experiments	Jack P. Larkin (MJ)	Eduardo S. Madera-Gomez
  Big Tobacco Cover-Up	Kailey A. Lesquier	Wyatt N. Robinson
  The Pentagon Papers	Layla C. Marks-Malberg	Sam Gregory-
  Project SHAD	Ella R. Mora	Hanna G. Rodriguez Martinez
  Church Committee Reports	Leonel Ornelas Moreno	Naela N. Rodriguez Ramirez
  Weapons of Mass Destruction (Iraq)	Jose L. Orquiz (Jr.)	Kevin N. Perez (KP)
  Operation Paperclip	Ryley D. Peterson	Joseph M. Stanley
  Family Jewels (CIA Crimes)	Merik L. Plake	-
  Poisoned Alcohol During Prohibition	Amber A. Sanchez	Janaya Garcia
  Project SHAMROCK	Kaytlin A. Smith	Karime Vasquez Rangel
  Watergate	Shane S. Sverak	Chad Watson
  Cambridge Analytica/Facebook Scandal	Bella G. Taylor	-
  1953 Iran Coup (Operation Ajax)	Kaiya E. Walkup (Kai)	Gilberto Q. Columbos
  Plumbbob Nuclear Tests	Kiani J. Ward	-

• Experimentation on Citizens:  U.S. government experimentation on citizens-
  • The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment:  Did the government infect poor black men with venereal disease for over 40 years?
  • Project Sunshine: Did the government actually steal dead bodies to do radiation experiments?
  • Project MKULTRA:  Did the government conduct a 20 year experiment where soldiers and students were given various drugs, hallucinogens and other mind-altering substances?
  • Project SHAD: Did the government really use chemical warfare on our own soldiers?
  • Human Radiation Experiments: Did the government expose thousands and thousands of citizens to radiation over a 30 year period, just to see what might happen?
  • Big Tobacco: Did tobacco companies know the dangers of cancer for cigarette smokers for decades and did they cover it up, with the help of the US Government?
  • Operation Big Buzz/Drop Kick/Big Itch: Did the governement really conduct multiple experiments in the U.S. to test biological warfare using bugs?
  • Poisoning Alcohol: Did the Federal government really poison the alcohol that was sold by the public during Prohibition in the 1920s and '30s?
• Foreign Policy Issues: Control or manipulation of foreign agents and government to further United States interests.
  • Operation Paperclip: Did we really recruit a large number of Nazi war criminals to help us design the Atomic Bomb during World War II?
  • The Gulf of Tonkin Incident: Did the United States government invent a military skirmish that eventually led to the Vietnam War?
  • "Family Jewels": Did the CIA really conspire to assassinate country leaders around the world?
  • Operation AJAX: Did we really overtrhough a government just for oil?
  • Project SHAMROCK: Did the government use telecommunications data to spy on American citizens?
  • Operation Northwoods: Did the CIA commit acts of terror within the U.S. and blame it on Cuba, so as to justify military action against Cuba?
  • OPERATION PLUMBBOB: Did the government explode nuclear bombs just to test their effects on soldiers and civilians?
  • The Church Report: Was the CIA responsible for poisoning and assassinating a number of South American leaders in an effort to destabilize governments?
  • Weapons of Mass Destruction: Did the government invent "Weapons" in Iraq to justify a war?
• Control of the Press and Information
  • Cointelpro: The FBI, through the program called "Cointelpro," targets 2000+ prominent citizens for smear campaigns.
  • OPERATION MOCKINGBIRD: Did the CIA plant news reporters in newspapers and other media to write up fake stories for the public?
  • CIA Kennedy Assassination: Was the CIA responsible for the assassination of JFK and then the coverup afterwards?
  • Watergate:  Did the President cover up office break-ins that he conducted to further his own campaign?
  • The Iran-Contra Affair: Did we sell arms to Iran in exchange for hostages? Did the CIA get the money for these arms by selling illegal drugs in our country? What did the president know?
  • Weapons of Mass Destruction: Did we invent nuclear weapons in an attempt to start a war?
  • Facebook-Cambridge Analytica Data Scandal: Did a private firm illegal harvest 87 million Facebook Profiles to manipulate voters in the 2016 election?

Government Conspiracies: Fact or Fiction?

A Documentary-Style Video Project

HERE IS MR. B.'S INSTRUCTIONAL SLIDE SHOW ON THIS PROJECT, PLEASE REVIEW IT AS YOU GO!

Objective:

Students will research a U.S. government conspiracy (proven or alleged), then produce a 2-3 minute documentary-style video using voiceover narration, primary source images, and evidence to answer:

• What happened?

• How was the public deceived?

• Was it proven true and how?

Project Requirements

1. Research & Script (AI-Assisted)

• Use AI tools (ChatGPT) to:

  • Generate a 2-3 page script (structured like a news report). Your news report story should be 90 seconds to 2 minutes more in length.

  • Summarize key dates, victims, government role, and cover-up.
  • SAVE YOUR COMPLETED SCRIPT TO A GOOGLE DOC, YOU WILL NEED IT LATER!

• Include:

• AT LEAST 3+ primary sources (declassified docs, news clips, interviews, photographs, video clips, audio clips, newspaper headlines).

• AT LEAST 2+ data points (e.g., "60% of test subjects died" in Tuskegee).

2. Video Production (Ken Burns Style)

• Tools: Canva. You will need to create a NEW BLANK VIDEO TIMELINE. I DO NOT WANT TO SEE ANY TEMPLATE OR CANNED IMAGERY IN YOUR PRESENTATION. IF I DO, YOU WILL RECEIVE AN AUTOMATIC ZERO ON THIS PROJECT.

• Elements:

  • Voiceover: Use LuvVoice.com for your voiceover narrations. You will need to input your script, convert to voiceover, download the voiceover file and upload it to Canva for use in your video. Not sure how to use CANVA TO CREATE VIDEO? REVIEW THIS QUICK VIDEO TUTORIAL.

    

  • Images: 20+ high-res photos, headlines, artifacts, video clips, audio recordings, political cartoons, text overlays, graphs, maps, etc. (zoom/pan effects). Your VIDEO should change IMAGES every 5-6 seconds throughout your presentation! That means that you will need to collect at least 20 images overall for your presentation.

  • Text Overlays: Key quotes or facts (e.g., "1972: CIA Director admits MK-ULTRA").

  • Background Music: Subtle, ominous (please use AI generated music fromsuno.com).