Link to online course material (from week 6 on)

As usual, I'll take questions via email over the weekend. But get them asked before Monday evening. The test will be the usual--some multiple choice, matching, short answer, short and long essay. We have the classroom from 7 am - 10 am on Tuesday. We'll do a group and individual version--the group version will start just after 9:00. If you need a quiet space and have accommodations with the Learning Center, let me know so I can send them an electronic file of the exam.

Techniques of persuasion and deception

• We've discussed many, some here, here, and here (these deal with illusions of consensus, independence)
• Some video supplement here
• The mains ones we've focused on are the Mighty Wurlitzer, ad hominem attacks, astroturf, spin, talking points/sound bites, opposition research, intentional leaks (think about the movie Wag the Dog and the techniques used there).
• Remember the fear/relief technique and how it works.
• We also talked about some of the techniques of BS that are commonly used. The footage from Thank You for Smoking was a good example of how to make an argument that can cloud an issue and discredit critics at the same time. 'Liberty' and 'freedom' keep showing up in sound bites and talking points, don't they?
• Doubt and uncertainty--we spent some time on this, looking at the Dover (evolution) trial in Pennsylvania, from Pierce's book. Be familiar with how that illustrates Pierce's three rules, and why they're important.

Television and showbiz

• What is the difference between a technology and a medium of communication?
• Is TV just an extension of print media? How has politics changed in the TV age? What is the relationship between the medium and entertainment, and what effects has it had on our society? What does Postman have to say about show business and TV?
• Does democracy look any different in a print-based versus TV- or image-based society?
• Does television change presidential politics? You should think in specific terms about this--we spent some time covering different aspects of debating, for instance. Does it elect a different kind of candidate? What happened over the course of 50 years, in terms of how Presidential debates have evolved, and why (in other words, what mistakes were made, and what lessons learned by campaigns and consultants)?
• How does the TV effect change or pressure news? What kinds of pressures (Postman and Powers reading ...) do TV stations face, and how do they bring people 'into the electronic tent?'
• Have some familiarity with local TV news, how it operates, and why it appears to be so consistent across markets.

Friday discussion materials

• We did the 'distraction' assignment, and attacks
• The 'distraction' assignment was partly based on the film Wag the Dog, but also the real life examples we discussed;
• The attack stuff we got at through the questions. What is/are the point(s) of such attacks, and what are the consequences for individuals, for public knowledge and understanding of issues, etc.? Who benefits from them, and what strategies are most often employed?

Counterpropaganda

• What to do, what's being done . . . we've studied problems with the media all year. The above link provides some ideas.
• I would expect over the course of this term you have discovered a handful of websites you have found of value, and that you could describe what they are and what their value is (to you, anyway). In other words, spend time looking at a couple of them and knowing what they do, what their value is (and being able to describe it in more than a sentence).

Tea Party and WikiLeaks (I'll post the powerpoints and papers in Blackboard as I receive them)

First, the Tea Party:

• Some individuals, and demographics--Rick Santelli, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Tim Phillips, the Koch Brothers, Keli Carender, and . . . . what are the demographics of the movement?
• What are their principal goals?
• Relationship between the popular movement and its corporate-funded backers
• Talking points, sound bites?
• What are some of the effects? Who stands to benefit from the movement's positions?
• News coverage

WikiLeaks:

• Individuals--well, there's the founder .... who are some of the 'stakeholders,' those groups, organizations (including media) or institutions affected by WikiLeaks?
• What is it? How does it operate?
• How has WikiLeaks been covered in the news?
• Effects/consequences? On governments, news media, etc.

Glossary

Don't forget this page ....