The following is a memorandum from the business manager of a television station.
"Over the past year, our late-night news program has devoted increased time to national news and less time to weather and local news. During this period, most of the complaints received from viewers were concerned with our station's coverage of weather and local news. In addition, local businesses that used to advertise during our late-night news program have canceled their advertising contracts with us. Therefore, in order to attract more viewers to our news programs and to avoid losing any further advertising revenues, we should expand our coverage of weather and local news on all our news programs."
Write a response in which you examine the stated and/or unstated assumptions of the argument. Be sure to explain how the argument depends on these assumptions and what the implications are for the argument if the assumptions prove unwarranted.
The author's argument that in order to attract more viewers to his television channel's news programs and to avoid losing any further advertising revenues the TV station should expand the coverage of weather and local news on all its news programs, may seem to be logical at the first glance. The author's conclusion may be correct if its premises were to be true. However, the author has made use of assumptions for which there is no supporting evidence and terms that lack definition.
Firstly, the author has stated that his TV station's late-night news program has devoted increased time to national news and less time to weather and local news over the past year. In that period most of the complaints received from viewers were concerned with his station's coverageof weather and local news. Based on the percentage of complaints the author has assumed that a majority of listners are dissatisfied with the TV station giving more time to national news than local news and weather forecast, as a result there is a posibility of decrease in the number of viewers.
However, he has not provided enough statistical data to support his viewpoint. For example, the overallnumber of complaints may have decreased by a large amount since the TV station's move to expand time for national news in the late night news program. If this is the case, then even if a majority of complaints are viewers who were dissatisfied with the TV station's local news and weather forecast coverage, it does not prove that the majoority of viewers are dissatisfied. Thus, a large majority of viewer base may be satisfied with increased national news than local news and the complaints received may just be a natural reaction to change.
Secondly, the author has assumed that the decreased coverage of local news and weather forecast in late night news program has caused a decrease in local viewership, which in-turn has discouraged local buisnessmen who have cancelled their advertising contracts with the TV station. Here the author has falied to examine other possible reasons which could have caused the advertisement cancellation. For example, there may be other television stations who may be offering cheaper avenues for advertisements and may have attracted the local buisnessmen. The local buisnessmen may have switched to other means of advertising like the internet. If the author were to provide some specific evidence to link the cancellation of local advertisements with decrease of local news, it would have lent considerable strength to his argument.
Summing up, the author may be correct in his argument that with increased coverage of weather and local news on all the news programs, the TV station may increase its viewership and avoid losing any further advertising revenues. However, his hypothesis is based on assumptions for which there is no corroborating evidence given. If the author's recommendation is to have desired effect he needs to provide statistical and anlytic data to back up his assumptions.
- A recently issued twenty-year study on headaches suffered by the residents of Mentia investigated the possible therapeutic effect of consuming salicylates. Salicylates are members of the same chemical family as aspirin, a medicine used to treat headaches. 80
- n an attempt to improve highway safety Prunty County last year lowered its speed limit from 55 to 45 miles per hour on all county highways But this effort has failed the number of accidents has not decreased and based on reports by the highway patrol many 73
- Universities should require every student to take a variety of courses outside the student's field of study.Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim. In developing and supporting your position, be sure 60
- Formal education tends to restrain our minds and spirits rather than set them free Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the statement and explain your reasoning for the position you take In developing and su 70
- The following appeared in a memo from the director of student housing at Buckingham College."To serve the housing needs of our students, Buckingham College should build a number of new dormitories. Buckingham's enrollment is growing and, based on current 57
Sentence: Based on the percentage of complaints the author has assumed that a majority of listners are dissatisfied with the TV station giving more time to national news than local news and weather forecast, as a result there is a posibility of decrease in the number of viewers.
Error: listners Suggestion: ?
Error: posibility Suggestion: possibility
Sentence: If this is the case, then even if a majority of complaints are viewers who were dissatisfied with the TV station's local news and weather forecast coverage, it does not prove that the majoority of viewers are dissatisfied.
Error: majoority Suggestion: majority
Sentence: Here the author has falied to examine other possible reasons which could have caused the advertisement cancellation.
Error: falied Suggestion: failed
Sentence: If the author's recommendation is to have desired effect he needs to provide statistical and anlytic data to back up his assumptions.
Error: anlytic Suggestion: analytic
Attribute Value Ideal
Score: 4.5 out of 6
Category: Good Excellent
No. of Grammatical Errors: 0 2
No. of Spelling Errors: 5 2
No. of Sentences: 18 15
No. of Words: 492 350
No. of Characters: 2481 1500
No. of Different Words: 188 200
Fourth Root of Number of Words: 4.71 4.7
Average Word Length: 5.043 4.6
Word Length SD: 2.803 2.4
No. of Words greater than 5 chars: 177 100
No. of Words greater than 6 chars: 151 80
No. of Words greater than 7 chars: 105 40
No. of Words greater than 8 chars: 59 20
Use of Passive Voice (%): 0 0
Avg. Sentence Length: 27.333 21.0
Sentence Length SD: 11.633 7.5
Use of Discourse Markers (%): 0.889 0.12
Sentence-Text Coherence: 0.407 0.35
Sentence-Para Coherence: 0.599 0.50
Sentence-Sentence Coherence: 0.16 0.07
Number of Paragraphs: 5 5