Understanding Bias

When reading a source and determining if bias will have an impact on the strength of the argument, consider the following:

(a) If the support for one side of the argument is mainly at the top of the article, and the reasons to support the opposite side of the issue are mainly at the bottom end of the article; that might be subtle bias – especially if it was written by a journalist. Journalists are taught that many readers only read the first few paragraphs of an article before moving on to reading another article, so whatever is in the first few paragraphs will be what sticks in the reader’s mind.

(b) Quotes from real people are stronger emotionally than just statements by the writer. This is especially true if the person being quoted is an ‘authority’ on the subject, or a ‘celebrity’. So if one side of the issue is being supported by lots of quotes, and the other side isn’t, that is a subtle form of bias.

(c) If when one person is quoted as saying X, but the very next sentence makes that quote sound silly or irrational, that is a subtle form of bias too.

The following video explores strategies for identifying bias while reading through a newspaper article:

“How to Recognize Bias in a Newspaper Article .” By How to DIY. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EA2-moNojkk Licensed under: CC-BY

“Understanding Bias.” By Lumen Learning. Retrieved from: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/englishcomp2kscopexmaster/chapter/understanding-bias/  Licensed under: CC-BY-SA