Transcript Propaganda and Persuasion

English IV B
 Purpose of studying
 Types of Bias
 Persuasion Techniques
 Propaganda Techniques
 Examples/Discussion
It’s not crap.
 As an adult, you will need to evaluate the validity of
every news source, commercial, and conversation you
encounter.
 Understanding bias, persuasion and propaganda will
help you weed through the lies and deceit to find the
truth.
 This will help you make informed personal choices since
you will know how to weed out the junk to see what
truths exist or are ignored.
From the writer’s background
 Only one interpretation of the
scenario or event is told
 Tone influences the spin of a
biased news story
 If a news story reflects both
sides of a situation equally, the
story does not have a spin
bias.
 One social/economic class is ignored, while only the
thoughts, opinions, or situations of another
social/economic class is acknowledged.
 When many or all social/economic classes are taken
into account in a new story, there is not a social class
bias in the story
 The information is obviously
for or against a specific
political party or candidate.
 If an article or piece shows the
point of view of both/all
political parties or candidates,
it is not politically biased.
 Information does not take into consideration more
than one religion or it negatively targets one religion.
 The point of view of the writer may only be that of a
person from one religion.
 Also, the piece may convey a negative attitude toward a
religion or religious sect.
 If a piece does not address religious beliefs or takes
into consideration various religious beliefs, it does not
contain religious bias.
 Bias in favor of the exceptional over the ordinary
 Example: exceptional news is overemphasized,
distorted, or fabricated to boost commercial ratings
 May also use sexuality to boost the importance or
desire for mundane or ordinary things
 Auto-makers are notorious for this.
 Selecting sources which
enhance writer’s opinions
without considering
sources which represent
a counter-argument
 May choose or omit
sources which support
reasoning for or against
something
 If author uses sources
that support both sides
of the argument, this
bias is not being used
 Either ignores or only considers a peer or ethnic group.
 This bias targets the typical actions or characteristics of a
peer or ethnic group.
 Examples of peer/ethnic groups:
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Teenagers
Retirees
Hispanics
Evangelicals
Conservatives or liberals
Yankees or southerners
Immigrants
Effectively convincing others
• Numbers, charts, and graphs look convincing but some
(not all) may be misleading.
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North
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This famous person does this/ wears
that/ eats here, so why don’t you?
If people hear it/see it enough, maybe
they’ll believe it’s true!
Chevy trucks:
Like a rock, like a rock...
Questions for effect, not for answering:
“Who do you think you are, young
lady/young man?”
Example:
Got Milk?
You’ll be happier/ have more friends/
feel better if you will…
Uses emotion, pity, or
sympathy to sell
a product.
Refers to scientific “findings” and
“beliefs” that may or may not be true.
Example:
Products advertised to help
prepare families for Y2K.
References to authority figures and
belief systems: “so and so says you
should…”
Depends on a spokesperson,
television star, athlete, or
public figure to endorse
the item.
If you don’t do/ believe this, you are a
bad/ lazy/ whatever person.
People just like you do this/ believe that/
whatever, so you should do/ believe/
whatever too.
“Good ol’ boys like us believe
in plain, good-quality items.
None of this fancy stuff.”
If you don’t do/ believe this, something
bad will happen to you.
If you do/ believe this, other aspects of
your life will improve.
“If you buy this product, you’ll
be good-looking or successful,
too!”
Taking persuasion to the extreme
Words sound good but mean nothing:
virtually, nearly, most...
Example: “ A vote for our
candidate is a vote for
progress, achievement,
and decency.”
Everybody else is doing this, so why don’t
you join them?
Attempts to influence others
with “everyday” people.
Where do we see propaganda and persuasion?
 President World Climate trip
 CBS News
 Fox News
 Oil of Olay (1986)
 Quaker Oats
 Jim Beam
 Obesity is Suicide
 Don’t Drink and Drive