Task 2
- 1. Task 2 Abygail Jones Should factual writing contain bias? Bias is, ‘inclination or prejudice for or against one person or group, especially in a way considered to be unfair.’ whereas factual is, ‘concerned with what is actually the case.’ Quoted from the Oxford English Dictionary. The main problem with using bias within factual writing is that it is written and intended to be more fact than opinion, this is to educate the reader in the subject at hand rather than mixing their opinions within and twisting words which would result in an opinionated piece of writing rather than a factual one, for example: there is a factual guide called, Survival 101 which is a zombie survival leaflet created as a factual piece to inform the viewer on how to prepare in the case of a zombie apocalypse; this example does not require any form of bias as it is meant to instruct and inform rather than voice an opinion, for example: ‘In the event of a zombie attack make sure you are in a place you know inside out.’ Using bias within factual writing could also potentially confuse the readers, for example: ‘find a safe place, easy to defend or just the closest small, dark space within the immediate vicinity so you can hide from the zombies but also potentially still be in quite a bit of trouble. Also don’t follow all of my instructions, although they are actually vital for your survival in this kind of situation and could potentially save your life.’ http://sweeneydesign.blogspot.co.uk/2010_12_01_archive.html Another reason to not use bias is that, again, it’s factual writing – if someone were to include their opinion within a factual writing piece there would only be one persons perspective as opposed to the actual facts, there would also be no alternative argument, for example, looking at the article: ‘The Beano’s Gnasher gets microchip’ on the Guardian website, if after stating the fact, ‘The Dogs Trust has teamed up with the creators of the Beano to encourage all dog owners to microchip their pets…’ included their own opinion, something like: ‘but I probably wouldn’t because I find it cruel to put an animal through something like that…’ it would create mixed feelings within the reader and as there is no alternative argument, they might choose not to follow the facts even though they are more reliable than the opinion of the author. http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/nov/06/beano-gnasher-microchip- dennis-dogs-trust This also brings me to why it would be a good idea to add bias in to factual writing; I don’t think it would be a bad idea to include some opinions and combine the two so long as the facts overrule the opinions. I feel that, by doing this it would appeal to more readers and bring in a larger audience. Because of the opinion being there, it could also lead to discussion and debates, which would in turn, bring more interest to the subject at hand. Bias would also make factual writing within things such as leaflets, a lot easier. When it comes to certain subjects, for example: the C.A.R.I.A.D. campaign which supports dogs rights and is against puppy farms and the mistreating of dogs and puppies, it’s quite easy to talk about how bad this
- 2. Task 2 Abygail Jones particular topic is and why it’s wrong and not justifiable which therefore makes bias okay, in this case, owners of puppy farms have hard evidence against them, both in photographs and in writing which makes me personally believe there would be no point for an alternative argument. http://cariadcampaign.wordpress.com/leafletsandposters/ Not only would bias be an opportunity for the author to have their say and voice their opinion, but it also means that they can support their opinions with other facts to justify the argument so, for an example, using the article, ‘Million Mask March draws thousands in London on global day of protest’ from the Guardian after saying, ‘The Metropolitan police had earlier imposed Section 60AA of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 for a number of hours, which provides powers to remove masks when police fear a crime will be committed’ the author could reply with a comment such as: ‘which has been frowned upon by many, including the Guardian, as it has been further proven by interviews with members of the protest, including ‘Steve Foster, a 36-year-old store man from Liverpool, who said…’ the writer has been able to express their own opinion by being bias, using supported facts to backup the opinion. http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/nov/05/million-mask-march-london- russell-brand-anonymous Bringing up my earlier argument, factual writing is concerned with what is actually the case; it’s meant to be more fact than opinion because that’s what it’s been written and intended for whereas bias means being for or against one person or group, ‘especially in a way considered to be unfair’ – this doesn’t link in with any sort of factual writing and it would make factual pieces less trustworthy and a little more controversial, which shouldn’t be the case. Although weighing both the good and the bad points, there could also be a potential compromise, this would be by writing factual pieces and only using opinions when it is really required because there are certain cases such as, the C.A.R.I.A.D. campaign, which has a little bias to support their overall campaign as the people they are campaigning against, puppy farm owners and animal abusers don’t really deserve a say as what they’ve done is wrong and unjustifiable. I still feel as though using bias within factual texts would be confusing for readers/viewers and it would also be highly unfair for most cases as there would literally be no room for an alternative argument, therefore, in my own personal opinion I don’t think that factual writing should contain bias.