Comparative Analysis Essay Sample: Christiane Amanpour and Olga Yurkova

The exposure of people to large-scale misinformation, including deceptive or absolute false information is a great challenge in the world. Fake news entails empirically inaccurate information that is generated, presented and dispersed for economic benefit or to deliberately deceive the community hence causing public harm. The issue is causing a significant impact than before as it is easy for anyone to post or share information on online platforms. As such, social media plays a major role in enhancing the circulation of such news enabling a worldwide reach without much effort from the source or writer. In that capacity, a comprehensive approach must reflect the definite roles of different stakeholders such as the press, social media and users among others and define their responsibilities according to specified guidelines. These guidelines include freedom to express oneself, media pluralism that is a diversity of ownership, and citizens' right to reliable information. This text highlights two presentations about two journalists Christiane Amanpour and Olga Yurkova discussing fake news and its impact on the society. They shed light on the effects of fake news and how to identify and curb misleading information.

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Thesis statement: Although Christiane Amanpour and Olga Yurkova are among the most renowned journalists; their presentations styles are quite different. Amanpour is a force to reckon with when it comes to exposing the rot in the society and her fearless and uncompromising nature has made her popular with audiences. She discusses objectivity in journalism and encourages the public to get information only from trusted sources. Yurkova o the other hand expresses her ideas through speech. She trains her audiences on ways to curb propaganda and disinformation in the media.

Summary

In a discussion with the Ted moderator Chris Anderson, Christiane Amanpour talks about false news, objectivity in the press, the leadership void in international legislations including sharing her wisdom along the way. She says we should all be mindful of where we get information. She also reiterates that unless we become people who appreciate the truth and understand experiential evidence and facts, then we are a headed towards destruction. She says everyone should really take responsibility for what they read, listen to and watch. She encourages her audience to go to trusted brands if they want to get information and no matter whether one has a wide-ranging intake, they should always stick to brand names familiar to them.

When information is fake, wrong decisions are made. This is according to editor and Ted correspondent Olga Yurkova. To curb the spread of fake news, she and a team of reporters launched a movement known as StopFake.org which exposes bias or false broadcasting in order to restore the trust lost in the media, leaders, and organizations. In the TED, Yurkova explains to different audiences how propaganda works and how to recognize hoax news, consulting a wide range of public organizations and institutions and working in partnership with mainstream media as a writer. She examines the methods of propaganda and comes up with new ways to address these challenges. She and her colleagues launched a project dubbed Forbidden Acts which looks into how fake news spreads through clickbait captions on social media platforms such as Facebook that reach out to cynical audiences.

Comparison of Presentations

Similarities

Both Amanpour and Yurkova's presentations focus on fake news. As such, fake news is a term rooted in today's culture with a lot of report surfacing online. Both speakers in their presentations talk about trusting news sources and finding legitimate fact before sharing it to the public domain. The journalists share insights on how to deal with the chaotic streaming of news and how to identify the legitimacy of the information. They both agree that fake news is a threat to democracy and society at large. Overall, they both expose propaganda in order the media, in politics and public organizations.

Differences

The key differences between the two journalists in the answers they provide on how to curb fake news. According to Olga Yurkova, many people become prey to populists in elections due to fake news. In her speech, she says that fake news is not only for journalists, but is also a threat to democracy. She highlights that fake news has the following characteristics: Are too emotional, too dramatic, and too clickbait. She adds that the truth is boring and manipulations are always designed to captivate an individual (TED).To address the challenges faced because of fake news, she advises that people should look out for sources with license plates, check out alternative sites and ask for viable proof such as photos. On the other hand, Christiane gives out useful insights on how to curb fake news and they include research, objectivity, and morality.

The first tip Amanpour recommends is to understand the research. She states that if you can understand the facts behind the research, then you will have a better understanding of the context (TED, How to see the truth in the era of fake news). She reiterates that it is crucial to understand the truth in order to solve any misconception. She says that if ninety-nine percent of the science on climate is experiential, but has people denying it, chances are that is fake news. Everyone is entitled to an opinion but if there is a large group of people supporting their research then that information is factual, she says. Objectivity according to Amanpour means giving all sides an equal chance of hearing and talking. However, she says that this does not mean treating all sides equally as objectivity always hangs in the balance. She believes this is an impactful method to seek the truth. Amanpour's last insight is on morality. She asks social media developers to filter out the crap and concentrate on the truth. While people may have good intentions, there is always the potential to prevent misleading information from spreading in the future.

Overall, the two presentations shed light on the negative impact fake news can have in the society. Amanpour focuses on objectivity in journalism and provides insightful tips to the public on how to get information only from legitimate sources. Olga Yurkova, on the other hand, delivers a speech to her audience training them on effective ways to address disinformation not only in the media but the entire society. Consequently, if anyone is struggling to find the truth particularly in today's fake news crisis, it is recommended to seek the advice of a skilled journalist. Moreover, these presentations provide a practical evidence and promote a healthy way to identify and understand news thereby avoiding any propaganda in the future.

Works Cited

TED. How to see truth in the era of fake news. 6 October 2017. <https://www.ted.com/talks/christiane_amanpour_how_to_seek_truth_in_the_era_of_fake_news/transcript>.

TED. Inside the fight against Russia'sfake news empire. 7 June 2018. <https://www.ted.com/talks/olga_yurkova_inside_the_fight_against_russia_s_fake_news_empire/up-next>.