Exam 14: Thinking Critically About the Media

When an individual follows only those online groups that reflect and validate his or her opinions, beliefs, and theories, he or she can become _____.

"Savings up to 70% storewide!" This ad employs _____.

The tendency to seek and uncritically trust any new information that confirms one's existing beliefs and opinions and to disregard any information that challenges them is termed as _____.

Young people, including college students, usually claim that _____.

Social media pose many critical thinking challenges.

Advertisements simply mirror, rather than shape, consumer preferences and values.

Feel-good ads are used to appeal to certain images people have of themselves, for example, as competent, cool, caring, responsible, or sophisticated.

In advertising, "puffery" refers to _____.

An advertisement promoting membership plans of a certain gym appears in newspapers after the Christmas holidays. It talks about quickly losing the extra pounds gained during the festive season. In the context of the standard gimmicks that advertisers use, this best exemplifies _____.

The echo chamber phenomenon takes advantage of a common human inclination called confirmation bias and gives rise to social media pitfalls, such as either/or thinking.

The news media tend to extract information from the wider context, leaving us with some facts but little knowledge.

Ads that play on our fears and insecurities are known as anxiety ads.

The following ad employs emotive language: "We're proud to make so many of the Frito-Lay snacks you love with all-natural ingredients. We believe that real flavor comes straight from nature. From farm-fresh tomatoes to fragrant basil to slow-roasted chipotle peppers, we make sure to use the best nature has to offer. Why? Because our snacks go from our home to yours. And for us, there's no better reason." (Ad for Frito-Lay snack chips)

"Helps," "fights," and "up to" are common weasel words.

According to the text, much of the content from the mainstream media _____.

Buying decisions that consumers typically put little thought into are known as _____.