MS 8 - History Media Lit: Home

Evaluating information that comes from databases or websites - you need to understand where the information is coming from. Is it a website, a magazine, a newspaper, a book? What is it?

Currency/timeliness

• Does currency matter for your topic?
• Have things changed? 

Authorship

• Is the author information provided?
• Is the author an expert on this topic?
• Is a recognized organization involved in the publication? 

Purpose

• What is the purpose of presenting the information on this site? To sell, inform, persuade?

Accuracy and readability

• Is the information based on facts or is it opinion?
• Does this site or article provide enough information or detail? Do they provide links to sources?
• Can you read and understand the information? Are there lots of errors?
• Can you find the same data or information on another site? 

Bias

• Is the information balanced?
• Can you see obvious bias?

What is Loaded Language and why is it used?

Certain words are used to persuade you and your opinions, create a reaction, and to evoke an emotion which can influence your thoughts and feelings - they are purposefully there to frame how you are thinking.

They can:

• Shape public opinion
• Strengthen arguments
• Trigger loyalty, fear, outrage, or trust

Watch for:

• Strong adjectives or adverbs 
• Us vs. Them word choice 
• Moral judgments disguised as facts

Ask yourself:

• Would this sentence or headline mean the same thing if it used more neutral language?

Examples:

• Public Servant vs. Bureaucrat 
• Protestors vs. Rioters 
• Illegal Immigrants vs. Asylum Seekers
• Demonization vs. Criticism 
• Tax Relief vs. Government Funding Cut

What does bias mean?

Bias is a positive or negative attitude towards something, often based on preconceived prejudices or viewpoints rather than evidence.

What is the relationship between bias and prejudice?

A bias may be a result of prejudice, but encountering biased information may lead someone to become prejudiced. 

What is polarization?

The division of people into opposite groups that are firmly entrenched in their thinking. It shows up in political party ideology.

What is the relationship between liberal and conservative thinking?

Every news story is influenced by the attitudes, assumptions, and background of its interviewers, writers, photographers, and editors. Not all bias is deliberate. You need to be a careful consumer of news and watch for some ways that bias shows up.

1. Bias through selection and omission of information, statistics, photos
2. Bias through placement, story choice, headlines
3. Bias by source and quote, opinions presented as facts
4. Bias through presenting a false balance, slant & spin of information
5. Bias through word choice, using loaded language, subjective adjectives

Aggregator

• a site that organizes and presents content not writes their own for example: Google News, Apple News, RealClear Politics

Original Journalism

• people or organizations that uncover and report news via investigation, they can write for large organizations or be solo reporters

Echo Chamber

• existing beliefs get constantly reinforced because a person seeks out information that conforms to their ideas, this is tied to confirmation bias which confirms what you already believe

Algorithm

• models that use users interactions like views, likes, searches, etc. to give back information that the user will likely engage with which helps keeps people on platforms for longer periods of time, driving advertising and use data

Filter Bubble

• through the personalization of your algorithm you are shown only things that fit into your own belief system, you no longer decide what you are actually being shown, your online experience becomes "filtered" to only your interests

How do these terms fit in with your understanding of bias in the news?