This week you will:

• Create a blog post on the art of crap detection.
• Write an editorial blog post on fake news.
• Practice providing feedback on other learners blogs using the intellectual standards.

This week you will create 2 blog posts. First, you will read with a purpose and blog about crap detection. Second, you will write an editorial blog post on fake news.

Please remember, before you begin your activities, read and watch this week's topic summary content.

Whenever you learn, let go and have some fun, don't take yourself too seriously.

Read/watch the following...

We are all biased

That airline is biased in favor of pilots with many hours of experience.

Is it possible that a newbie pilot might be safer flying this jet than someone with twenty years of daily flying? Perhaps. But it's not worth the time, the money and the risk to find out. That's why you won't see a new pilot flying the 747 you're boarding. Young pilots have to put in a ton of hours because the airlines are biased.

Everyone has a bias, because that's the only way to survive in a world where we have insufficient information.

Bank security guards are biased against people who walk into the bank wearing a ski mask. It might be because it's cold outside, but it helps them do their job to begin each interaction with this belief.

Engineers are biased for certain suppliers or technologies. Talent bookers are biased for certain skills and demeanors.

The problem kicks in when our bias works against our goals. When our bias keeps us from exploring options that will move us forward, it needs to be replaced. When our bias cripples a society we care about, when it gets in the way of fairness, it must be re-examined.

But it's worth understanding the nuance between the bias that enables us to be successful and the one that keeps us from that very same outcome.

The best professionals are biased. And smart enough to embrace only the biases that keep them successful. By Seth Godin

Before posting to social media do you ask yourself is this true, timely, and necessary?

What exactly is bullshit anyway?

Surprising as it may seem, there has been considerable scholarly discussion about this exact question. Unsurprisingly given that scholars like to discuss it, opinions differ.

As a first approximation, we subscribe to the following definition:

Bullshit is language, statistical figures, data graphics, and other forms of presentation intended to persuade by impressing and overwhelming a reader or listener, with a blatant disregard for truth and logical coherence.

It's an open question whether the term bullshit also refers to false claims that arise from innocent mistakes. Whether or not that usage is appropriate, we feel that the verb phrase calling bullshit definitely applies to falsehoods irrespective of the intentions of the author or speaker. Some of the examples treated in our case studies fall into this domain. Even if not bullshit sensu stricto, we can nonetheless call bullshit on them.

Editing: How Do You Write an Editorial?

Andrew Rosenthal, the editorial page editor at The Times, explains in this brief video that a good editorial consists of “a clear position that is strongly and persuasively argued.” He then goes on to recommend seven pointers for students.

1. Know your bottom line. “You have to know what you want to say. You have to have a clear opinion — what we call a bottom line.”

2. Be concise. “You need to get to the point of your editorial quickly. You have to state it clearly and you have to be concise.”

3. Give an opinion or solution. “There are basically two kinds of editorials. One expresses an opinion about a situation, like if you want to write about human rights abuses in some part of the world or the country that you’re concerned about. The other kind of editorial proposes a solution to a specific problem. For example, if you want to write about traffic congestion in northern New Jersey, where I live and there’s a lot of traffic, you should have an answer to how to fix the traffic problem.”

4. Do your research. “Everyone is entitled to their opinion, you’re not entitled to your own facts. Go online, make calls if you can, check your information, double-check it. There’s nothing that will undermine your argument faster than a fact you got wrong, that you did not have to get wrong.”

5. Write clearly. “Good writing is important. Make your writing clear and easy to understand. Write as if you’re sending a letter to a well-informed friend who cares about what you think. But don’t use any slang. OMG — no. Use examples whenever you can. It’s better to use an example than just to use a word or an adjective that describes something. If you want to say that the mayor’s pre-K policy is wrong, explain how — don’t say it’s just stupid. In fact, never use the word stupid.”

6. Every writer needs an editor. “After you’ve written your editorial, give it to someone you trust to read and listen to what they say. If they don’t understand it, that means it’s probably not clear.”

7. Be prepared for a reaction. “When you write something and you publish it, be prepared for a reaction. If you write a good editorial, people are going to respond to it. And if you criticize people, they definitely are going to respond. So if someone writes you a letter, write them back. Be prepared to defend your position. Don’t get defensive, just explain why you said what you had to say. And if they question your facts, be ready to show that you were right.”

The Online Writing Lab at Purdue University has a guide to writing argumentative essays that may also be helpful for students as they think about organizing their editorial and developing a logical argument.

From: For the Sake of Argument: Writing Persuasively to Craft Short, Evidence-Based Editorials

Calling Bullshit

The 11 Worst Internet Scams We’re Still Falling For

How to solve Facebook's fake news problem

REFLECTIVE LISTENING AND PERCEPTION CHECKING

Equally as important as active listening skills of communication are the reflective listening skills and perception checking in communication. The purpose of reflective listening skills and perception checking are to:

• Acknowledge the person’s experience and/or feelings about what they are communicating
• To demonstrate understanding of the person’s feelings about what they are communicating
• And to “reflect back” to the speaker your deeper level of understanding of their message
• When appropriate, create a “verbal contract of agreements” or summary of action steps

Here is the reflective listening process:

1. Restate what you have heard the speaker say and check any feeling level that you perceive

• “It seems to me that you are feeling……….Is that accurate?”
• “I’m seeing a lot of enthusiasm in your description of your new project. Is this something you’re excited about?”

2. Listen to how the person says what they say as well as what they say.

Here is the perception checking process:

1. Paraphrase or summarize your understanding of the speaker’s message.

• “I heard you say this and that, Is that accurate?”
• “If I’m understanding you correctly, you mean this? Does that fit?”
• “Do you mean….?”
• “So you’d like me to ____ by ____, and set up a time to meet after that?”

Note: Do not try to be a mind-reader:

• “I heard you say this and that and that means such and such.”
• “It seems to me what’s going on for you is…..”