1.  Who’s word counts? ◦  Experts as the “soul” of modern media ◦  We choose “our personal versions of truth by subscribing to the clutch of specialists we find agreeable and trustworthy” (107) 

2.  More data leads to more confusion…  vs. Swimmers in the sea of facts ◦  Style or substance? ◦ The best teachers? 

3.  Style or substance? ◦ Could a cripple win the presidency today? ◦ Are and valued for their knowledge? ◦ The role of seduction 

4.  Central Route  Peripheral Route  Recognition Heuristic  So, how do we make decisions? ◦

5.  Caution! Data do not speak for themselves! ◦ Why did official numbers differ from the exit polls?  ◦ Experts can make large numbers look important

6.  Two “experts” have two opposing opinions. Which one do you believe? ◦   The social world of the expert

7.  How news outlets must change to satisfy differing niches  The system “created” personalities like Lou Dobbs, Ed Schultz, Glenn Beck, etc. ◦ The importance of viewership in the age of a gazillion channels 

8.  The objective  The subjective  Naïve realism  The News Corporation Hacking Scandal ◦ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9gOSsvLIO4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9gOSsvLIO4  “Slanted reporting works only in certain conditions.”

9.  Perceptual effect problem  Naïve realism problem ◦ !  What happens when the “rubes” get it right? ◦  “high-feedback” vs. “low-feedback” ◦

10.  In practice ◦ The more there is out there on a certain topic, the the news organization will slant the information  ◦ Selective focus on what to cover and how to cover it 