1. PROPAGANDA

2. Propaganda clouds reality and gets in the way of clear and honest thinking.

3. Glittering Generalities

4. Glittering Generalities
Often used for political purposes
Emotionally appealing words that are linked to highly valued concepts
Because people have positive associations with these words, they often support the propaganda without questioning what is meant
Examples: honor, glory, freedom, etc.
Other examples: new! Fresh! Improved! (words that glitter and sparkle)
PS3

5. Bandwagon “Buy Coolmint gum and join the cool crowd!”
“The number one movie for three weeks in a row!!!”
“Over four million people have switched to our insurance company-shouldn’t you?”

6. Bandwagon “Everyone is doing it, so you should too” “Join the crowd”
Peer pressure
Tries to make viewers feel as though they’ll be left out if they don’t join or jump on the “bandwagon”
Example: Erica says she is going to go home and study for her math test. Her friends laugh at her and tell her that no one is studying for the test. They tell her she should go see a movie with them instead. Erica doesn’t study and goes to the movie to avoid rejection and so her friends stop teasing her.

7. Name Calling “This presidential candidate is a tax and spend liberal”
“This presidential candidate is an elitist who’s in the pocket of big oil companies”

8. Name Calling
Using negative language or words to describe a competitor (the enemy)
Labels the enemy as something the public dislikes (to try to get the audience/viewers to turn against this enemy)

9. Plain Folks
Bush ad
Walmart ads often include pictures of real Walmart employees

10. Plain Folks
Attempting to convince the audience that they are working to benefit the common person
May use imperfect pronunciation, stuttering, and limited vocabulary (during speeches)
Trying to appeal to the average person
Brown ad

11. Card Stacking
Hardee's Chicken “Residents of big apartment projects should not be allowed to have dogs. Dogs that are unfriendly or vicious may attack and hurt other people who live in the project and use the open spaces around it. Dogs are also a health-hazard because they dirty the grass, playgrounds, and sidewalks.”

12. Card Stacking
Only presenting positive information about a product/idea
Failing to tell any contrary information
Dangerous, because the viewer doesn’t have all information—best to do extra research when this technique has been used.
Unfair comparisons
Mac

13. Testimonials
Lenox Homes

14. Testimonials
Using the words of a famous or seemingly respectable person to persuade you
Connecting a person to a view or item
Example: Michael Jordan promoting Gatorade
Ex. Jessica Simpson promoting Proactiv

15. Transfer

16. Transfer Using pictures, symbols and slogans to persuade
Tries to connect (or transfer) the emotions associated with the symbol/slogan to the product being sold or person running for office
Can be used for or against ideas/products

17. Generalizations
Jana has been to San Diego several times, and the sky was always blue and the temperature ideal. The weather must be perfect in San Diego all the time.
The profit margin on HP’s printer line has been a steady 25% for two years. We can assume, then, that the profits company-wide have also been 25%.

18. Generalizations
Hasty Generalization-not enough evidence to make an argument
Example: Tina bought a used camera while she was up in Portland and got a great deal. Portland must be a good place to buy used cameras.
Sweeping Generalization-enough evidence to draw a conclusion, but the conclusion goes way beyond what the evidence shows
Example: The poll from Orange County shows the governor winning in a landslide. I guess he will also win across the state just as easily.

19. Red Herring
Son: “Can I go to see the movie Bug Eyed Warthogs from the Deep?”
Dad: “No, definitely not. You would get scared out of your socks and wouldn’t be able to sleep for a week.”
Son: “But, Dad, it’s in 3-D!”
“Social scientists now believe northern European countries are among the best places to live. This conclusion was reached after a 2001 study of sub-Saharan countries. The study found that the average life expectancy for sub-Saharan Africa is 55 years.”

20. Red Herring
Gives data or issues that are irrelevant to the argument, and then claims that the data validates the argument
Example:
Son: “My friends are going caving tomorrow. Can I go with them?”
Dad: “No, it’s too dangerous. You always get panicky in tight places.”
Son: “But, Dad, we would have so much fun. It really is a neat cave.”

21. Circular Reasoning
“Dear Friend, a man who has studied law to its highest degree is a brilliant lawyer, for a brilliant lawyer has studied law to its highest degree.”
-Oscar Wilde
Ralph Nader was the best candidate for president, because he was totally better than any of the others.

22. Circular Reasoning Basis of the argument is the same as the conclusion
Also referred to as Begging the Question
Example: Someone argues that schools should continue to have textbooks read from cover to cover because, otherwise, students would not be well-educated. When asked to define what "well-educated" means, the person says, "knowing what is in the textbooks."

23. Repetition

24. Repetition Repeating key phrases, the product name, or images
Used often in radio commercials
Sham Wow

25. Assertion
An enthusiastic or energetic statement presented as a fact (but it might not be true)
When an advertiser labels a product “the best” without giving any proof, assertion is being used
Dangerous form of propaganda because it includes falsehoods/lies

26. Other Techniques Can you guess what these mean?
Simplification (Stereotyping)
Pinpointing the Enemy
Lesser of Two Evils
Fear
Snob Appeal
Patriotism
Humor
Statistics/Facts & Figures

27. Question #1 What type of propaganda is presented in these examples?
“My opponent is a flip-flop man who cannot make up his mind. He changes his mind with the breeze. How could anyone follow such a weak-willed flip-flopper?”
“The old music at Jackson High’s radio station is garbage! Listen to WJHC instead”

28. Question #2 What type of propaganda is presented in these examples?
A military commercial presenting soldiers as “decent, everyday folks”
“Write-on pens for hardworking students just like you”
A cereal commercial featuring an ordinary family sitting down for breakfast

29. Question #3 What type of propaganda is presented in these examples?
“This book has been on the New York Times’ bestseller list for 64 straight weeks! You’ve gotta read it!”
Bill: “I like classical music and I think it is of higher quality than most modern music.”
Jim: “That stuff is for old people.”
Andy: “Yeah-that music is stupid. Everyone listens to rock now.”
Bill: “Well, I don’t really like classical music much. Rock is much better.”

30. Question #4 What type of propaganda is presented in these examples?
Vote for this candidate in “defense of democracy”
“Pure, Fresh, Mountain Spring Water”
“New!” “Improved!” “Powerful!”

31. Question #5 What type of propaganda is presented in these examples?
Toyota customers speaking about good experiences with Toyota cars
Michael Jordan promoting shoes

32. Question #6 What type of propaganda is presented in this example?
“I like vanilla ice cream because it is my favorite kind”

33. Question #7 What type of propaganda is presented in this example?
A presidential candidate having a campaign ad picture taken in front of the Washington Monument

34. What is Bias?
Preference towards a specific idea, product, candidate, etc.
One-sided perspective

35. Question # 1
Last fall, Mrs. Jamison hired Jason, a local boy who happens to be very tall, to do some work around her property. Jason did an excellent job, but he’s gone off to college. So this fall Mrs. Jamison’s decided to hire another tall local boy, whom she’s sure will do just as good a job. A couple of shorter boys and one neighbor girl (who’s also short) wanted to work for her, but she didn’t think they would do.
What can be said about Mrs. Jamison’s bias when it comes to
hiring someone to do yard work for her?
She’s biased in favor of college kids
She is biased against tall boys
She is biased in favor of tall boys
She’s biased against her neighbor

36. Question # 2 Which of these passages contains biased reporting?
#1 “Forget the 76 bats that came up clean, focus on the one that did not, and understand that Sammy Sosa can press two fingers against his lips and kiss goodbye a legacy that shattered in his hands. He was forever called the good guy, the home-run hero who flexes his comic-book muscles with a Little Leaguer’s joy, and the living, breathing symbol of everything pure and noble about the game. Today, you can take all that talk and put a cork in it.”
#2 “No cork or other foreign material was found in any of the 76 bats confiscated from Sammy Sosa’s locker. The bats were taken from the Chicago Cub’s locker room during the game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Tuesday night. Cork was found in Sosa’s bat when it shattered after he grounded out in the first inning of the Cubs’ 3-2 victory.