Bell 1
Elanda Bell
Mrs. Jeaneen Kish
ENG 101 SC02
06 June 2017
Paper #2 Critique
Rumors of a Belief System
In the article, “Truth is in the Ear of the Beholder,” by Gregory Rodriguez. The article was
published September 28, 2009 in The Los Angeles Times. Rodriguez was a writer for the L.A. Times.
He looked at several theorists who studied rumors. The results are in his article but the common theme
comes from the beliefs we hold through anxieties and belief systems. As the author’s main point
states most rumors come from prior beliefs and predispositions causing rumors to
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It shows that some people will hear the truth and still dismiss it as false, and others will hear a
rumor and will not even bother to research for the validity of its accuracy.
The author writing from Cass R. Sunstein's paper says that sometimes confronting a rumor can be
worse than ignoring the false accusation. Rodriguez mentioned the famed psychologist Robert H.
Knapp, but he did not go into explaining the framework of Knapp’s classification system. For example,
he does not discuss Knapp’s Pipe-dream, Bogie, or Wedge-driving Aggression Rumors. Even though
Knapp’s paper was published about seventy years ago, his classification system is still relevant today.
The article does not explain the mind set of those who start and spread rumors. Rodriguez failed to
state why anxieties and belief systems galvanize the spread of rumors. Rodriguez also did not give
examples of other types of rumors. For example, he did not give any personal examples. Rodriguez
goes on to state how he would prefer to do away with the insecurities and uncertainties that fuel rumors
and conspiracy theories, but he do not explain how he would go about doing it. He does not
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Everyday people gather around their viewing or listening
devices to hear what they believe to be the truth. However, a lot of today’s news has been passed
down to us in the form of gossip and rumors. It has also been observed that even in education it does
not stop people from sharing information that is not known to be true. Spreading rumors, can have an Bell 3 adverse effect for those who are impacted, rumors can be outright painful and almost impossible to
ignore – especially if social media is envolved with spreading it. It is a on going practice in today’s
world to speak without thinking, and believing in rumors that are not confirmed.
Overall the article by Gregory Rodriguez gives good advice on the dangers of believing rumors
without knowing the facts. Although the author does not go into detail explaining various concepts in
this article. He does clearly assert that we tend to accept facts that do not challenge the way we
interpret the World. Rumors help us to understand and cope with many uncertain situations in life.