2.1.09 Chapter 5

Chapter 5 is full of advice on how to steer clear of bad information. Throughout the chapters, I have noticed the popular act of questioning in unspinning oneself. Chapter 5 is no different by first suggesting, "Getting the facts right is important," and then goes on to share an analogy of a worse-case scenario, pertaining to bad information. Overall, the instance could have been prevented if the individual did a little active questioning of the poor information he received. I agree, many can prevent falling for bad info if they research and explore solidity of the subject matter. We need to search for facts.

The "Grey Goose Effect" was interesting. I enjoyed how the section broke down marketing tactics, which cause Grey Goose Vodka to be considered a sophisticated, high-quality, smooth brand of Vodka. By raising the price, having an attractive appearance, and advertising its sophistication, the brand is able to maintain a high-class popularity and association. However, things are not always as they appear. That is why we need to question things more often; to ultimately seek out the truth in the matter. In the instance pertaining to Grey Goose Vodka, the alcohol is a mixture of distilled vodka mixed with water. The consumer can be easily fooled, unless they take the time to identify facts. In doing so, one is on a successful path to becoming unspun in a world full of propaganda.

1.25.09 CH 4

I thought the section about the psychology of deception was interesting. Ultimately, the human mind wants to depend on the beliefs and information it already knows; even if evidence opposing the ideas are overwhelming. One aspect of the article touches again on the notion that language does our thinking for us. This idea is something that we cannot avoid. Overall, I agree with the concept. It isn't a matter of intelligence, but rather a matter of whether or not we take the intiative to stop and look at the larger picture. In doing so we can identify fact from fiction or override the beliefs that we hold onto. However, many individuals hold what they hear as truth, especially if it matches what they already think. As a result we end up holding onto bad information.

Overall, I really enjoyed the psychological route of the chapter. The study of the mind is something that I have always been interested in and it was neat to see it applied to propaganda. There are many traps that the mind can fall into, which prevent us from being informed accurately. By taking a closer look at these traps and concepts I feel that I will look twice as close at a particular ad, campaign, etc. in hopes to find the honest truth of the matter. Ultimately this is the objective of the text, which is to get us to take a better look at propaganda and find the truth within it.

"unSpun" Response 1.20.09

I found Chapter Three to be pretty interesting. It gave me a better look at how to read between the lines and overall, be able to analyze propaganda-type trickery. The idea that "language does our thinking for us" (pg 45) caught my attention. I believe this is true. Each individual has a conceived connection and/or idea about the meaning of a word. For example, my best friend, Steph, asks me to describe a female classmate. I offer that the individual has long hair and it short. Now consider this, I am 5 foot 10 inches and Steph is 5 foot 2 inches. Therefore, I perceive the female to be short, however Steph could consider her tall, if there is a height difference. Also, Steph's hair used to be considerably longer than mine, so the same idea applies. She may think differently of the word. In the end, we probably have a completely different idea of what the female looks like, because the language I chose did the "thinking" for us. The language used created the image.

I used to be a sales representative for Cutco knives. Trick #3, Weasel Words, really reminded me of this job. One scenario I can think of is our choice of the word "free". Sales reps were trained to go through a spiel, while showing off the merchandise, and then it was time to convince the perspective buyer to purchase. Of course we were trained to shoot high by selling large sets of knives and downsize from there, according to perceived interested. However, in order to aim high and be successful we were allowed to whip out that magic word "free". With the largest knife set you could offer other "free" items to go along with it. The trickery is that the other items aren't technically free. The knife sets are priced higher in the event that you would need to offer a "free" item. Therefore, the buyer is really paying for all the items, but think they are getting a deal. Tricky, tricky.