Purpose:
In this assignment, you will practice critical thinking by identifying logical fallacies in a recent news article and explaining how they shape readers’ beliefs. You will also consider the source’s political bias and reliability using the Media Bias Chart.
For an overview of fallacies, please see:
- Jared Henderson – Logical Fallacies, Explained
- Logical Fallacies: Seven ways to spot a bad argument
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – Fallacies
- Chapter 12 – Logic in The structure of argument
Overview:
Step 1: Chose a news article
- The article must be less than 6 months old
- The article must come from a reputable news source (major national or international outlet, established regional paper, or respected magazine; not blogs or personal sites)
- Choose an article that makes clear arguments or claims, not just a short event summary
- Include the full citation and the working link to the article in your submission
- Use the interactive Media Bias Website to find the publication’s bias and reliability rating
- Share how the media outlet is rated. For example, does it skew right or left? Is it high fact reporting?
- Find three examples of logical fallacies in the article
- The fallacies may appear in the journalist’s own wording or in the direct quotes from people cited in the article
For each of the three fallacies, please include the following:
- Name the specific fallacy
- Define the fallacy in your own words (1 – 2 sentences)
- Quote the exact sentences from the article where the fallacy appears
- Explain how it fits this fallacy and why the reasoning is flawed
- Suggest how to revise the fallacy: how could it be said or written so that it was more logically sound?
Professor Karen Sichler 