Lesson 3

Listening

1. Look at the slides from a lecture given on a Media Course. You are going to hear part of a talk about media bias. Number the slides in the order the speaker talks about them.

A. Bias by placement
• Position of the article on the page – the stories at the top of the page are the ones which the editor wants to show as most important

B Bias by omission
• Leaving out certain stories
• Leaving out facts or certain information which does not agree with the writer’s point of view

C Bias by ‘spin’
• Choosing examples or data which support one side
• Presenting an opinion as a fact.
• Using emotional language to persuade the reader

2. Listen again and write two examples each of omission, placement and spin from the lecture in your notebook.

1. Bias by placement: position of story on the page or website, editor putting it where it will be read irst.

2. Bias by omission: leaving out certain information, leaving out facts that do not agree with the author’s point of view.

3. Bias by spin: focusing on information which only supports one side of an argument, presenting something which is an opinion as a fact.

Speaking

3. Read the social media post.

1. Who wrote it?

Someone who was stuck in their car.

2. Who took the photo?

The same person (Alex).

3. What’s happened?

There’s a trafic jam caused by snow, and lots of people are trapped in their cars.