Difficulty: Easy

Average Score: 100%

By packaging intellectual positions for consumers, modern media are designed to make thinking seem unnecessary. The television viewer, the radio listener, and the Web surfer are presented with a whole complex of elements- from ingenious rhetoric to carefully selected data and statistics- to make it easy for them to 'make up their minds' about an issue. But the packaging is often done so effectively that the viewers, listeners, or Web surfers do not make up their own minds at all. Instead, these media consumers insert a packaged opinion into their minds, like a cassette into a cassette player and 'play back' this opinion whenever it seems appropriate to do so. They have performed acceptably without having had to think.

In line 4, the author mentions 'ingenious rhetoric' as an example of which of the following?

Rationale

An element media producers try to minimize in their presentations of packaged opinions.

The phrase "ingenious rhetoric" refers to a strategy used by the media to effectively package opinions for consumption. This technique is designed to engage and persuade audiences without requiring them to think critically, aligning with the overall argument about how media influences consumer thought.

A (A means media consumers use to judge the quality of the information they receive) YOUR ANSWER

This choice implies that consumers actively evaluate information quality based on rhetoric. However, the passage suggests that consumers often do not engage in this evaluation process; instead, they accept packaged opinions without critical analysis. Thus, rhetoric is not a means of judgment but rather a tool for persuasion.

B (A tool to help media consumers interpret data and statistics) YOUR ANSWER

While rhetoric can aid in understanding data, the passage emphasizes its role in packaging opinions rather than aiding interpretation. The focus is on how rhetoric is utilized by media producers to influence consumer perception rather than assisting consumers in understanding complex information.

C (A reason for choosing one medium of communication rather than another) YOUR ANSWER

This choice suggests that the rhetorical strategies employed influence the choice of medium. However, the text does not discuss medium selection based on rhetoric; rather, it emphasizes how rhetoric is used within existing media to shape audience opinions, not to determine which media are selected.

D (An element media producers try to minimize in their presentations of packaged opinions) YOUR ANSWER

This choice contradicts the passage’s assertion that media producers actively employ ingenious rhetoric to package opinions effectively. Instead of minimizing it, they use rhetoric as a prominent tool in their presentations to persuade consumers.

Conclusion

The author highlights how media producers utilize "ingenious rhetoric" as a strategic element in the packaging of opinions, aiming to simplify the decision-making process for consumers. This strategy is not about minimizing rhetoric but rather about leveraging it to influence how audiences perceive and accept information, thereby reducing the necessity for independent critical thinking.

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