Journal 1-6: 5 minutes
• Retell the story of the 3 Little Pigs.
• Swap and share with a partner.
• Swap and share with someone else.
Reflect on the Stories
• How were they the same as yours?
• How were they different from yours?
• Why might they be different?
• What’s the “real” story? How do you
know?
Detecting Author’s
Bias
What is author’s bias?
When an author’s opinion on a topic
“comes through” his/her writing…
can either be intentional or
unintentional
Headlines from the
Government Shutdown
• “Ted Cruz left with few friends after Obamacare fight fails,
government shutdown ends, debt limit rises”
• The Dallas Morning News
•
“As Polls Plummet, Rightbloggers Get to Work on Their New
Shutdown Excuses”
•
The Village Voice
• “Democrats to America: We own the government!”
• Human Events
• “The Government Shutdown Was a War Against the Poor”
• The Nation
• “In shutdown blame game, Democrats and Republicans united: It’s the
other side’s fault”
• The Washington Post
Headlines Continued
• “Robert Redford Claims Racism Influenced Republicans In
Government Shutdown”
• Headline & Global News (HNGN)
• “It’s the President’s Fault”
• The American Spectator
• “Gov’t Reopens After GOP Backs Down on Defunding
Obamacare”
• Democracy Now
• “Obama’s Shutdown Campaign”
• The American Spectator
Headlines Continued
• “Sen. McConnell responds to deal to end government
shutdown”
• WYMT Kentucky
• “Progressive Veterans Group Slams Republicans Over
Shutdown”
• Buzz Feed
• “U.S. Faces Government Shutdown in Obamacare Standoff”
• Democracy Now
• “Republican can’t figure out why government shutdown shut
down government parks”
• The Democratic Underground
Headlines Continued
• “Can't fix stupid: Republican Party fails again with government
shutdown”
• Headline Surfer
• “After government shutdown, tea partiers dust themselves off”
• CBS News
• “Republicans Shut Down the Government for Nothing”
• Atlantic Monthly
• “The Obama-Reid Shutdown Strategy”
• The American Conservative
• “Congress Passes Debt, Budget Deal”
• Wall Street Journal
Headlines Continued
• “Wisconsin professor tells students Tea Party, Republicans at fault
for Slimdown”
• Fox News
• “Republicans Get Horrible, Horrible Press Coverage Over
Shutdown”
• Huffington Post
• “Dems Reject GOP Effort for Selective Gov’t Funding During
Shutdown”
• Democracy Now
• “The GOP’s Alamo: Republicans are wasting no time in rewriting
the history of their own defeat”
• Slate
Headlines Continued
• “CNN Shutdown Poll: Plenty of Blame to go Around”
• CNN News
• “In New Poll, Americans Blame Everyone for Government Shutdown”
• Time Magazine
• “CNN Poll: GOP Would Bear the Brunt of Shutdown Blame”
• CNN News
• “Poll: Republicans' Handling Of Shutdown Gets Low Marks From 3 Out
Of 4 Americans”
• Huffington Post
• “Voters Hold Republicans Accountable For Government Shutdown”
• Bold Progressives
Headlines Continued
• “Debt limit deal: Obama may have won, but victory is hardly
lasting”
• Christian Science Monitor
• “Republicans Lost the Shutdown Battle, but They're Winning
the Fiscal War”
• National Journal
• “GOP to Obama: Keep Holding America Hostage”
• FrontPage Magazine
Headlines Continued
• “Tea party activists call bipartisan deal a capitulation, say they are
unbowed”
• The Washington Post
• “Here’s Why the Public Blames Republicans for an Imminent Government
Shutdown”
• Mother Jones
• “Obama Beat the Hostage-Takers. Now He Has to Fight the Fiscal Scolds”
• The New Republic
• “Republicans Back Down, Ending Crisis Over Shutdown and Debt Limit”
• New York Times
• “In Place of Peace, a Washington Truce”
• Financial Times
Headlines Continued
• “Shutdown took $24 billion bite out of economy”
• Business Record
• “Government shutdown has cost US economy $1.5bn a day,
S&P says”
• The Guardian
• “Billions Lost in Government Shutdown”
• The Economist
Funny…
• “Not our beer: Shutdown may mean delay in new craft breweries, seasonal
ales”
• Dallas Morning News
• “Government Shutdown Cancels KKK Rally At Gettysburg National Military
Park”
• HNGN
• “The Un-Default: Congress Has Become A 'Seinfeld' Episode”
• Chicago Tribune
• “48 Ways a Government Shutdown Will Screw You Over”
• Mother Jones
• “Government Shutdown Delays Start of Crab Season”
• NPR
• “Should Obama Reveal His Inner Pissed-Off President?”
• Mother Jones
A Nice, Summative Headline
• “PARTIAL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN Fool’s errand or heroic
stand? Views differ on GOP’s Cruz, Lee”
• Youngstown News
Bias Ratings… Of course, can be
biased!
• http://freakonomics.com/2012/02/16/how-biased-is-yourmedia/
Indicators of Author’s Bias
 the author uses inflammatory language: in the most extreme
cases, racial epithets, slurs, etc.;
 the author consistently makes claims whose larger purpose is
to elevate (or demean) one social, ethnic, national, religious,
or gender group as compared to another, or all others;
 the author consciously presents evidence that serves to tell
only one side of an event or issue, purposefully withholding
or ignoring information that may shed the opposing view in a
more positive light;
 the author invents, falsifies and/or dishonestly cites evidence
in order to present his or her case in a more positive light.
Bias Defined…
• This is how the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines
bias:
• BENT , TENDENCY b : an inclination of temperament or outlook;
especially: a personal and sometimes unreasoned judgment:
PREJUDICE c :an instance of such prejudice d (1): deviation of the
expected value of a statistical estimate from the quantity it
estimates (2): systematic error introduced into sampling or
testing by selecting or encouraging one outcome or answer over
others.
• When it comes to modern media such as news, advertising
and the Internet, bias on demand has become the profession
of spin-doctors who specialize in spinning anything negative
into something positive.
Intentional vs. Unintentional
 Sometimes people use bias on purpose. For example, if you
want to persuade someone, you present facts that support
your position while leaving out points that don’t.
 If you want your parents to order pizza for dinner, you might
remind them that they wouldn’t have to cook. However, you
probably wouldn’t mention that healthier, less expensive dinner
options might be available.
Intentional vs. Unintentional
 Unintentional bias occurs when a person tries to be accurate
but does not have complete information.
 For example:
 Scientists used to think atoms looked like little solar systems. As
more information about atoms was discovered, scientists
realized their description of atomic structure was wrong.
 They changed their theories and models based on new
information.
Points of View Review
• First person– “I”
• Second person- “you”
• Third person limited- “he” “she” “it” (but we can only see
into one character’s mind)
• Third person omniscient- “he” “she” “it” (we see into all
character’s minds)
• So, as we read, ask yourself who’s telling the story and what is the
author’s purpose? How might that affect the story? How might
that point of view be used to create bias and/or propaganda?
Grendel by John Gardner
• Grendel is a 1971 parallel novel by American author John
Gardner. It is a retelling of the Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf
from the perspective of the antagonist, Grendel. The novel
deals with finding meaning in the world, the power of
literature and myth, and the nature of good and evil.
• Grendel has become one of Gardner's best known and
reviewed works. Several editions of the novel contain abstract
woodcut images of Grendel's head, by Emil Antonucci. Ten
years after publication, the novel was adapted into the 1981
animated movie Grendel Grendel Grendel.
Homework
• Finish reading Chapter 1.
• Journal 1-7: 20 questions activity
• What happens if you don’t understand a first
chapter? Well, the rest of what follows is
CONFUSING! As you read chapter 1, make a list of
20 questions- some you know the answers to/
others you do not. These questions will become
points of discussion on Monday.