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10.1: Fact and Opinion in Reading

  • Page ID
    150556
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    When you are reading or listening to information, evaluate the author’s style as well as use of fact and opinion to determine how you should value this information.

    Objectivity vs. Bias

    Ideally, authors publish objective texts, leaving their emotions out of them. Keeping the writing too clinical, though, can alienate audiences, so with the exception of research articles, you rarely see work published that is entirely objective. Even dry research articles can have hidden biases because humans are imperfect beings, and authors are human. There are going to be flaws in logic, or sometimes facts may be inadvertently omitted. That is to be expected. When we identify information as being reported objectively, we mean that the author did a reasonable job of reporting the information unemotionally.

    On the other end of the spectrum, is something that has a negative connotation – bias. We use the term bias to refer to an author who presents information in a way that is prejudiced and does not present differing opinions fairly, or at all.

    In academic reading, and in daily life, it is important to have the ability to identify and evaluate information that is presented objectively or with bias.

    Analyzing a Text to Uncover Bias

    Having trouble determining whether or not a text is biased?  Try the following.

    First, make sure you understand the text.  Annotate as you read, looking up words and building background knowledge if necessary.  Once you think you comprehend the text at a surface level, read again, annotating for the use of fact and opinion.

    • Identify the author’s use of fact and opinion, using color coding and/or “F” and “O” to identify facts and opinions in the piece.
    • Look back at your marking/color coding.  Did you mark mostly facts?  Mostly opinions?  A balance of both?
    • Even if the text is heavy on facts, is it possible that there is other factual information that might have been purposefully excluded?  Consider why or why not, and do some more reading of different texts if necessary.  Ask yourself (and other sources, if necessary) if the author and/or publisher are known to embrace certain views and dismiss others.
    • After you've done the above, you can probably reach an informed conclusion as to whether or not the text is objective, slightly to moderately biased, or extremely unfair.
     

    10.1: Fact and Opinion in Reading is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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