Transcript notes
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: 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. 90 80 70 60 East West North 50 40 30 20 10 0 1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr 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 Read each article, paying close attention to similarities and differences. Create a Venn-diagram or a chart that shows the similarities and differences between the two articles. Consider how the article portrays Obama and other countries Find the facts in the articles; are they the same? Sources/interviews cited How did the writers differ in their news writing; how were they the same? Oil of Olay (1986) Quaker Oats Jim Beam Obesity is Suicide Don’t Drink and Drive Name a time when you were persuaded by an advertisement. (Did you buy something? Wear something? Do something?) What made the advertisement effective? What persuasion/propaganda techniques were used? Give examples for each, and explain!