Ways+of+Knowing+-+Language

__**Using language to describe our thoughts and experiences**__
Can language ever describe colour? Could you describe colours to a blind person so that they experience it the same as you? media type="youtube" key="NDNXp7W0v4Y&hl=en" height="344" width="425"

**How do the media distort the truth?**
"Outfoxed", a documentary about Rupert Murdoch's News Corp and their distortion of truth through the media using the Fox News Channel

"Outfoxed" examines how media empires, led by Rupert Murdoch's Fox News, have been running a "race to the bottom" in television news. This film provides an in-depth look at Fox News and the dangers of ever-enlarging corporations taking control of the public's right to know. The film explores Murdoch's burgeoning kingdom and the impact on society when a broad swath of media is controlled by one person. Media experts, including Jeff Cohen (FAIR) Bob McChesney (Free Press), Chellie Pingree (Common Cause), Jeff Chester (Center for Digital Democracy) and David Brock (Media Matters) provide context and guidance for the story of Fox News and its effect on society. This documentary also reveals the secrets of Former Fox news producers, reporters, bookers and writers who expose what it's like to work for Fox News. These former Fox employees talk about how they were forced to push a "right-wing" point of view or risk their jobs. Some have even chosen to remain anonymous in order to protect their current livelihoods. As one employee said "There's no sense of integrity as far as having a line that can't be crossed."

media type="youtube" key="w39FnpuMRfo&hl=en" height="344" width="425"
 * Outfoxed Movie Trailer**

One of the key offenders targeted in the movie is Bill O'Reilly, Any reason why? media type="youtube" key="HIVnwYGU9Qo" width="425" height="350"

Perhaps the question to ask is what is accurate journalism? How do we know?

__**Propaganda and Language**__
"When most people think about propaganda, they think of the enormous campaigns that were waged by Hitler and Stalin in the 1930s. Since nothing comparable is being disseminated in our society today, many believe that propaganda is no longer an issue.

But propaganda can be as blatant as a swastika or as subtle as a joke. Its persuasive techniques are regularly applied by politicians, advertisers, journalists, radio personalities, and others who are interested in influencing human behavior. Propagandistic messages can be used to accomplish positive social ends, as in campaigns to reduce drunk driving, but they are also used to win elections and to sell malt liquor.

As Anthony Pratkanis and Elliot Aronson point out, "every day we are bombarded with one persuasive communication after another. These appeals persuade not through the give-and-take of argument and debate, but through the manipulation of symbols and of our most basic human emotions. For better or worse, ours is an age of propaganda." (Pratkanis and Aronson, 1991)

With the growth of communication tools like the Internet, the flow of persuasive messages has been dramatically accelerated. For the first time ever, citizens around the world are participating in uncensored conversations about their collective future. This is a wonderful development, but there is a cost.

The information revolution has led to information overload, and people are confronted with hundreds of messages each day. Although few studies have looked at this topic, it seems fair to suggest that many people respond to this pressure by processing messages more quickly and, when possible, by taking mental short-cuts.

Propagandists love short-cuts -- particularly those which short-circuit rational thought. They encourage this by agitating emotions, by exploiting insecurities, by capitalizing on the ambiguity of language, and by bending the rules of logic. As history shows, they can be quite successful.

Propaganda analysis exposes the tricks that propagandists use and suggests ways of resisting the short-cuts that they promote. This web-site discusses various propaganda techniques, provides contemporary examples of their use, and proposes strategies of mental self-defense.

Propaganda analysis is an antidote to the excesses of the Information Age."

Taken from [|Propaganda Critic Website]

The following movie "Destination Earth" was produced by the American Petroleum Institute in 1956, this cartoon celebrates petroleum and economic competition. In what way would this have influenced what people believed about pertroleum at the time? media type="custom" key="860079"

__**Task**__
Propaganda uses language carefully to get its message across and to influence what we know, or what we think we know. Go to the "Propaganda Critic" website and describe in your notes: -

1. How the techniques of name calling, glittering generalities and euphemisms can all be used to distort the truth and sway our beliefs. 2. Provide two real-life examples of your own that you have either seen / heard of, or directly experienced for each of the three propaganda language techniques. 3. How can you tell persuasion from propaganda? 4. Why might it be important to distinguish between persuasion and propaganda? 5. Why might the distinction between the two sometimes be difficult to draw?


 * __The Language of Advertising Claims__ **

Complete the PPT task below using the notesheet on 'The Language of Advertising Claims'