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-your-media/

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.