Deck 9: The Internet, News Media, and Advertising

Question 1

Complete freedom of speech effectively exists on the Internet.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The more attractive and expensive-looking a website, the more likely it is to be trustworthy.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The first question to ask, when evaluating a website, is, What religion does the designer belong to?

Answer 3

False

Question 4

The primary purpose of advertising is above all to give you solid proof that the product is worth its price.

Question 5

One of the most important questions to ask, when viewing an ad, is, Does the ad give me a good reason to buy the product?

Question 6

Some ads use the bandwagon fallacy to sell products.

Question 7

Many ads appeal to the emotions rather than to reason.

Question 8

According to the text, we would all be better off if advertising were to be completely banned.

Question 9

The text argues that advertising serves some socially beneficial purposes.

Question 10

One question to ask, when evaluating a website is, What are the author's credentials?

Question 11

One way to evaluate a news story is to watch the story on several competing channels to see if one network left something out.

Question 12

The text argues that a reporter's personal bias can never influence a story as long as the news editor is in control.

Question 13

News stories can be biased when they cover some aspects of a story and leave out other aspects deemed not newsworthy.

Question 14

In some cases, a news organization might not cover a story if it is thought that the story might offend corporate ownership.

Question 15

In some cases, a news organization might not cover a story if it is thought that the story might offend viewers.

Question 16

In some cases, a news organization might not cover a story if it is thought that the story might offend advertisers.

Question 17

Some Internet sites exist solely to make money-providing true content is not a preeminent concern in these cases.

Question 18

Internet sites can be evaluated on the basis of some of the same criteria used to evaluate expert authorities.

Question 19

The law does not allow advertisers to commit logical fallacies in their ads.

Question 20

One informal restraint on advertisers is that most businesses depend on repeat customers.

Question 21

It is against the law for an advertiser to try to manipulate your emotions.

Question 22

In some cases, a news organization might not cover certain aspects of a story if it is thought that doing so would offend some of its owners.

Question 23

News organizations try to report all the facts that exist on a given story.

Question 24

Some of the questions to ask, when evaluating a website, are the same questions we ask when evaluating experts on an issue.

Question 25

One way to test a news organization for accuracy on a story is to observe how other news organizations cover the same story.

Question 26

What should you look for when evaluating a website?

Question 27

State two ways in which a news story can be biased.

Question 28

State two ways in which a website can be biased.

Question 29

State two ways in which an ad can be misleading.

Question 30

Should the Internet be regulated by government? Argue your case.

Question 31

Should the news media be state-owned and state-run? Argue your case.

Question 32

State two questions to ask when watching an ad.

Question 33

Should advertising be more closely regulated by government? Argue your case.

Question 34

What is the difference between an innuendo and a logical implication? (In logic, P is said to imply Q when it is not possible that P is true and Q is false.)

Question 35

Select an ad and rigorously evaluate it on the basis of the principles taught in this chapter.

Question 36

Select a website and rigorously evaluate it on the basis of the principles taught in this chapter.

Question 37

Select a news story from a specific news organization and rigorously evaluate it on the basis of the principles taught in this chapter.

Question 38

Is advertising overall socially beneficial? Or is it overall socially detrimental? Critically discuss.

Question 39

What role does advertising play in our lives? How should a critical thinker process the information received through advertising? Write a __ page paper on this subject.

Question 40

What role does the news media play in our lives? How should a critical thinker process the information received through the media? Write a __ page paper on this subject.

Question 41

What role does the Internet play in our lives? How should a critical thinker process the information received through the Internet? Write a __ page paper on this subject.