Goals, overview. When bias is obvious, we can snicker and turn away. But what happens when it isn’t, and we keep reading or watching something because it seems reasonable in its presentation? We need special radar and special skills to deal with this situation. The goal of this activity is to consider the bias of web materials by becoming better able to understand who owns them and what bias they might bring to their presentation. In particular, you will look at the Martin Luther King site martinlutherking.org.Activities. In the age of "infowhelm and mythinformation" (Jukes, 2009) we are all vulnerable to information scams. To better understand how to navigate in such a world, revisit Alan Shermer's Baloney Detection kit, which we looked at earlier in this course. It is posted on Infosavvy's blog.
Next we look at Alan November's work. Alan has developed a presentation and Youtube video that explain how to use website sleuthing to understand some of the hidden biases of web material, focusing on the martinlutherking.org site as an example. Go to Alan’s materials. Read through them and follow the directions. Then watch Alan’s explanation on Youtube.
Next, go to these two sites site, and spend an hour or so reading through them:
Felix discussion. Go to our Felix forum to discuss the following question: Based on your activities this week, what kinds of things will you be looking for when you read or scan web materials? Respond to this question, as well as at least three other posts from colleagues. Discussion concludes by Saturday night.
Blog posting. Post on your blog, using the heading “Web bias.” Post a minimum of 2-3 paragraphs about what you discovered about understanding the nature of bias and authenticity on the web. What are your “take-away” realizations as a result of this activity? As always, feel free to note any biases you suspect in the materials you used. Also, be vigilant about using visually differentiated text in your presentation. Blogs needs to be updated by sunday night.
* image from clipart.com, a paid subscription service
