Bias Is All Around You: A Handbook for Inspecting Social Media & News Stories

by Erik Bean, Gail Gorske (Illustrator), Sherry Wexler (Editor)

Overview

Before you share information, can you separate fact from fiction? "Bias Is All Around You: A Handbook for Inspecting Social Media & News Stories, is a beautifully illustrated 7 x 10 archive quality hardcover. "A life worth living is a life well led" as the famous saying goes. We need to take the lead because inspecting information properly for mental health is one of the biggest challenges of our time. Why? We are inundated with a barrage of seemingly unending and conflicting information from 7 primary sources of all potential bias. Bias Is All Around You includes tools to assess the authenticity and objectiveness of stories and posts new and old. You can examine articles, news pieces, videos, podcasts, and social media content through a KLEMP test and assess any fallacies tied to it! So before you share that next post, you can have more confidence to determine if it's fact or fiction! Foreword by Tim Vos, Ph.D., Director, MSU School of Journalism.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781734474466
Publisher:	Ethan Bean Mental Wellness Foundation
Publication date:	07/04/2021
Edition description:	B&N_Bias_HC
Pages:	58
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.31(d)

About the Author

ERIK BEAN

Erik holds a master’s degree in journalism from Michigan State University and a doctorate in education with sanctioned research interests in cultural competence, leadership, and mental health. He is a section editor of The Journal of Leadership Studies, John Wiley & Sons and founder of the Ethan Bean Mental Wellness Foundation, a Michigan 501(c)3 public charity. Other recent book projects include the award-winning Ethan’s Healthy Mind Express: A Children’s First Mental Health Primer and co-author of the self-help series 20/20 Prudent Leadership.

GAIL GORSKE

Illustrator Gail Gorske is a master paper art professional whose award-winning illustrations include nature photography and those found in Ethan's Healthy Mind Express and the 20/20 Prudent Leadership book series. Her images have inspired generations to critically think and cross all boundaries of race, religion, gender, and nationalities.

SHERRY WEXLER

Editor Sherry Wexler holds an L.M.S.W. She is a graduate of Wayne State University. Her editing work includes the award-winning book Ethan’s Healthy Mind Express.

TIM VOS

With over 4,000 citations referencing his work on Gatekeeping Theory, journalism's role in democracy, and media criticism, foreword contributor, Dr. Vos is director of the School of Journalism, Michigan State University.

Editorial Reviews

"Timely and Thought Provoking" Fellow, American Psychological Association

BiasHandbook.com - Neil Grunberg, Ph.D.

"A Long Overdue Discussion About Bias in Published Materials!"

BiasHandbook.com - Cheryl Burleigh, Ed.D.

"...Let's all take more time to vet information so we can all be more confident in how we use it. That is what Bean and his team have demonstrated in this short easy to read handbook. This is a handbook that deserves all our admiration. Three cheers to the Bean team!!!"

BiasHandbook.com - Senator (R) Dr. Michael MacDonald

"BRAVO! BRAVO! Clearly Erik Bean and his team, Illustrator Gail Gorske and Editor Sherry Wexler, have carefully thought about this book's audience -- everyone who wants to contribute more meaningful to responsible civil discourse where damaging language has been spiritually and emotionally draining, contributing to an alarming loss of critical thinking. Bias Is All Around You works real hard to present complex information in an easily digested format..."

BiasHandbook.com - Angela May, Ph.D.

"Digital and social media are so pervasive that it's very hard to escape their influence. Every source of information today has hidden bias that can create divisive communities across the world. By following a pragmatic framework outlined in this thought-provoking book, Erik Bean shows you how to quickly alleviate the hidden agenda behind any piece of information and provide you with the ability to think critically. An essential read for anybody interested in shaping a positive future..."

BiasHandbook.com - Rahul Jerome

2021-10-04
A guide focuses on detecting bias in social media posts and news stories.

Dedicating this book to “a more productive, civil discourse,” Bean provides readers with essential tools to assess the validity and bias of social media offerings and news reports. With a doctorate in education, the author is well equipped to teach readers the critical thinking skills required to navigate the labyrinth of social media and fake news and does so in an approachable, easy-to-read format. In under 60 pages, this concise manual teaches readers how to identify bias, differentiate between types of publications, and “test journalistic sources.” As Tim Vos, director of Michigan State University’s School of Journalism, notes in the guide’s foreword, “Biases…are baked into the information we encounter nearly every moment of every day.” The book also contextualizes dangerous trends that discerning readers should be familiar with, such as the role of social media algorithms in promoting disinformation and the disturbing fact that six corporations control 90% of all media outlets in America. The manual’s final chapters introduce readers to common logical fallacies, such as false dichotomies and straw-man arguments, and deliver best practices for maintaining a personal social media account. The author advises readers to avoid sharing information online without utilizing the book’s “reliability tests.” Designed to be a reference tool that readers peruse periodically, the manual eschews long narrative discursions for succinct lists and easy-to-remember acronyms. Also found in the guide is a nine-question “Bias Assessment Form” that readers can use to rate the objectivity of virtually any source they encounter. Accompanied by the colorful, engaging paper artwork of Gorske, this is an important book, ideal for dissemination in libraries, high schools, and other venues with vested interests in promoting information literacy. While targeting the victims of disinformation campaigns in its mission to empower readers who are vulnerable to fake news, the manual unfortunately supplies limited answers on how to deal with those who know better yet still promote falsehoods for their own ideological or financial benefit.

A timely and valuable primer on how to assess sources.

Kirkus Reviews