The effects of bias

Whāinga ako: Lesson Goals

To understand bias and its affect on a reader and writer

Kupu matua - Keywords

What is bias?

Bias: When someone likes or dislikes something/someone more than another thing/person, in an unfair way.

Conscious Bias

When a person purposely lets their personal beliefs, opinions and preferences affect how they look at the world.

Unconscious Bias

When a person is not aware that their personal beliefs etc are affecting the way they view the world.

Mahi - Work

Effects of Bias on Online Information

In an author

There are two ways that bias can affect the information we consume online. Firstly the way it is written. If it is the author who is biased then it will affect what is written, recorded etc.

For example An author may deliberately leave out facts so that their own beliefs or opinion is supported by the information they are sharing.

In a reader

The second way is how the reader interprets it. People might only read things that fit their beliefs or opinions. They may not be willing to understand other people's opinions or perspectives.

For example a reader might only read news from a site that publishes things they believe.