Critical Analysis of Unspun, Book Review Example

A knowledgeable community has constantly been a dominant, however not limited, requirement for public civilization. From urban gatherings and public announcement boards to the introduction of broadcasting, TV, and the World Wide Web, reconciled data have continuously been an influential resource for informing the public. In the original book, UnSpun: Finding Facts in a World of Disinformation, Brooks Jackson and Kathleen Hall Jamieson (2007) alert the citizens to “be skeptical, but not cynical” (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007, p. 175). The claimed that:

Cynicism is a form of gullibility—the cynic rejects facts without evidence, just as the naïve person accepts facts without evidence. And deception born of cynicism can be just as costly or potentially as dangerous to health and well-being as any other form of deception” (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007, p. 175).

Spin is everywhere; politicians declare that their rivals supported the increase of taxes, tradesmen state that after utilization of their cosmetic device, one will feel and look fresher. UnSpun by Jackson and Jamieson (2007) demonstrates in what way people can determine spin, even if it is most reliable resource from news bulletin. The work does not focus only on spin techniques; it also demonstrates by what means to struggle with dullness that can assist in making enhanced choices. The objective of this manuscript is to assist people in making sophisticated choices and distinguish the evidence from falsehood.

Moreover, this book is easy for comprehension. Every fragment of the work is separated into sections that are consecutively separated into subsections. Every section commonly tells about a definite kind of spin, for instance advertising merchandise with deceitful profits, and the subsections are separated into detailed illustrations of how every kind of spin is utilized (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007). There are subsections grounded on everything from the internal works of UFO venerations to a psychosomatic occurrence called “spreading of alternatives” (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007, p. 54). Nowadays, it may appear that these data are too overwhelming; nevertheless, Jackson and Jamieson (2007) manage to create the evidence easy to understand and apprehend owing to the help of their implementation of gray boxes. These boxes comprise easy-to-comprehend outlines, for example “If It’s Scary, Be Wary” (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007, p. 48). Moreover, this work is almost totally unprejudiced, having illustrations where both Democrats and Republicans have obviously made mistakes.

The book deals with three principal questions: recognizing spin, the ways in which people’s minds can function against them, and the means to comprehend what data represent reliable evidence. Jackson and Jamison (2007) attempted to instruct the community how to recognize spin. The writers utilize numerous illustrations of spin, for instance the breath freshener, Listerine. Since 1923, Listerine has been claiming that their goods destroy the microbes causing not fresh breath. The writers mentioned, “That’s true but misleading. The germs come right back, as they always have. Lately, research has finally turned up a legitimate use for Listerine: it does slow the formation of dental plaque” (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007, p. 76).

In an advertisement for Bush’s presidential promotion in 2004, Bush declared that “Kerry supported higher taxes over 350 times” (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007, p. 81). Although this may look like emotionless, unbreakable statistical information, Jamieson and Jackson (2007) demonstrated in what way statistics can also be deceptive. In this example, Bush totaled every time when his opponent “voted against a bill to lower taxes or for less of a tax cut than Republicans proposed” (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007, p. 81). Moreover, there are several other illustrations of spin presented in this work, and all of them are fascinating and entertaining.

The authors described in what way people’s intelligence could function against them in socializing to truth. In Unspun, one can also find out how to recognize promoters’ and political representatives’ use of psychosomatic tricks to their benefit. For example, Marian Keech, a supporter of UFOs, mentioned that she obtained a letter from extraterrestrials telling that the globe would be wasted by an excessive inundation (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007, p. 93). She created a cult, and in the middle of the night, she and her followers were waiting to be protected by the extraterrestrials. The inundation never occurred, certainly, and numerous supporters still continue to sustain this cult. The writers stated, “it is psychologically painful to be confronted with information that contradicts what we believe” (Jackson & Jamieson, 2007, p. 94). The authors explain that individuals are not able to reason empirically, and they often function autonomously. One can comprehend these influences by obliging oneself to agree with the other’s opinion.

Consequently, it may seem that the work of Jackson and Jamieson 92007) is filled with methods of spinning, so it may at first seem to be tough for comprehension, but it is not. Hence, Jackson and Jamieson (2007) deliver all evidence in an exciting, and even entertaining, way. The authors stated that knowledgeable people should think critically in order to distinguish truth and false in mass media market. Thus, the society should be more critical and cynical which means a thorough analysis of evidence should be implemented. Being an informative book to study, UnSpun: Finding Facts in a World of Disinformation by Brooks Jackson and Kathleen Hall Jamieson (2007) can also help to make decisions rather than allowing commercials and political representatives’ promotions make the choice for society, and forcing people into adopting a certain opinion.

References

Jackson, B. & Jamieson, H. K. (2007). UnSpun: Finding facts in a world of disinformation. New York, NY: Random House.