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Detecting Bias in the News Who wrote it?Who did the reporter interview? Who are their sources? where did they get their statistics? Use of pictures and captions (cutline) and camera angles Placement of information Use of headline Word choice (positive or negative), loaded language Repetition and emphasis on certain topics or ideas Names and titles By omission (cutting some information out) Lack of diversity Generalizing, not being specific Lack of context (not being specific to the situation that is reported, lack of background information) Do the headlines or decks and the article itself match? When was the source or article published? Making assumptions about what happened Forms of BiasBias is an unfair preference for or dislike of something. It is usually negative, though one can have a positive bias as well. Below are a few different styles of bias that are often used.1) Bias by word choice: In this style of bias people only use positive or negative words to describe a subject. This causes others to have only positive or negative thoughts about the issue they discuss.E.g. Imagine someone’s body being described as slim, skinny, or boney. They all describe someone with little body fat, but which sounds better and which sounds worse? 2) Bias by omission: In this style of bias people may leave out important details about the subject discussed that may change others opinions of that person or issue. Unfortunately, this style of bias can be difficult to find since you would have to compare stories from different sources to make your own opinions about which facts are true. E.g. Imagine if someone told others they never saw you working; we’d assume you were lazy. However, it is unclear when and how often they actually observed you at work. 3) Bias by naming: Similar to bias through word choice, the titles or names we give to people can also influence the way others view that person. E.g. Imagine how we’d see you differently if you were called Tim or Timmy; imagine how we’d see you differently if you were called Dr. Smith or Mrs. Smith;) 463867524130004) Bias by photos, captions, and camera angles: Pictures can make a person look good, bad, sick, silly, etc. Which photos a newspaper chooses to run can heavily influence the public's perception of a person or event. On TV, images, captions, and narration of a TV anchor or reporter can be sources of bias.E.g. Examine the image to the right, how are Barack Obama and Michelle Obama depicted in the images and headlines? If you saw only this cover what would a casual reader think of their marriage? ................
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