GeneralRhinocerosMaster801
In Chapter 4 of Animal Farm, the two neighboring farmers, Mr….
In Chapter 4 of Animal Farm, the two neighboring farmers, Mr. Frederick and Mr. Pilkington attempt to spread terrible rumors about the conditions on Animal Farm. Specifically, Orwell writes…
“Frederick and Pilkington changed their tune and began to talk of the terrible wickedness that now flourished on Animal Farm. It was given out that the animals there practiced cannibalism, tortured one another with red-hot horseshoes, and had their females in common. This was what came of rebelling against the laws of Nature, Frederick and Pilkington said.”
As far as we know, cannibalism is not being practiced, nor are the animals torturing one another. So, why do these farmers want to spread these lies? Because they are frightened that the rebellion on Animal Farm might inspire their animals to rebel. In other words, the two farmers attempt to use disinformation in order to deceive the other animals; ultimately, this is a strategy the farmers utilize because they want to maintain their power. Of course, the other animals don’t buy into it.
Broadly speaking, you can think of disinformation as false or misleading information that is spread specifically to manipulate or deceive.
ASSIGNMENT
We’re going to create our own piece of disinformation by writing a fake news article. This article can touch upon a relevant social issue today, a big one being, obviously, the coronavirus. It’s interesting just how much disinformation orbits around COVID-19. Sometimes it is nearly impossible to decipher between what is true and what isn’t in regards to this virus.
So, the first thing is to pick a topic. You can focus on the coronavirus, or a current political issue such as immigration or voting rights, a specific political figure or celebrity, or really, any social issue.
Next thing is to pick a stance and argue for it. What sort of disinformation are you intending to spread and why? If it’s about the coronavirus, maybe you want to say that the best prevention for coronavirus is through a strict diet of tacos and pizza, while playing video games and binge-watching Netflix. Ok, so then what are you trying to convince the public of with that stance? Obviously, that eating pizza and tacos, playing video games, and watching tv are all good for you.
Now, you need to use some rhetoric to back that up. You can say vaguely that ‘studies have shown’ and then go into some fake research about the potential curing agents in tacos. A lot of times, fake news will have vague references to ‘research’ or ‘studies’, but they generally do not get too specific in regards to the sources they’ve used.
Have fun with it! Just make sure that whatever you write, it could potentially be taken as the truth by some people.
Assignment Breakdown:
You are going to write a fake news article that pushes a specific agenda or stance, and is attempting to spread disinformation (in order to deceive). Choose a current social or political issue, or you can get zany and write a more tabloid-based article about aliens or creatures spotted off the coast of New Zealand. Whatever it is, I’m looking to see how effective you write in order to spread false information.
Please include the following:
Create a headline/title for your article
Create a visual representation that is appropriate for your article
Write a three paragraph article that could be considered ‘fake news’.
