Texts

This blog is based on readings found in the textbook _Inventing Arguments_ by John Mauk and John Metz.

Location: Tampa, Florida, United States

These blogposts were written by students who took courses I taught at USF. All copyrights that do not belong to Google belong either to USF or to the writers of the posts themselves. I do not claim the right to others' work.

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Sunday, January 29, 2006

Rock and Roll

Read Jay Harrington's essay "The Origin of Grunge" on pages 72-75. What is Harrington's pointing out about the music industry? Do you like commercial music or underground music? Have any of your favorite bands "sold out"? If so, are they still your favorite bands?

Sunday, January 22, 2006

Slants in the News

Read Ben Stapleton's essay, "A Pipe Dream: Real Reporting from Newsweek," on pages 438-440. What is Stapleton's criticism of mainstream news reporting? How is the example from Newsweek relevant to his argument? How is the Newsweek article he discusses biased or based on false premises?

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Propaganda and Control

Read pp. 447-448, which contain an excerpt from the website Propaganda which is run by Aaron Delwiche (www.propagandacritic.com). What is the nature of propaganda? How does propaganda affect our daily lives? Do you feel that your thinking is affected by propaganda? How can you tell if your thinking is affected by propaganda? Would you rather be told what to think and what choices to make, or would you rather make your own decisions?