Biased Editorial

In the editorial “Same-sex marriage would generate millions in wedding spending for Louisiana, study shows”, the author helps prove the benefits of gay marriage by attacking the argument to benefit a skeptics point of view. By using his biased opinion on the subject and also creating a useful scenario for people who don’t believe in the subject at hand, the author is attempting to shed new light on the subject. In the hopes to sway people’s opinions, he employs many types of bias.

By using Availability Cascade, the author repeats his point of view many times and in many different ways with the ultimate goal being that everyone agrees with what he is saying. Many times, and in many different ways, he explained how “Louisiana could add an additional $28 million to the economy if the state would legalize same-sex marriage”. By saying something over and over again, one hopes that eventually it will become what it true. In this case, the author hopes that people will begin to understand the possible benefits of legalizing same-sex marriage.

Through Focusing Effect, the author continuously reinforces his main point about the positive consequences of legalizing gay marriage, specifically through the study done about the amount of revenue the state would produce just from the weddings alone: “The study used very conservative spending figures to reach its conclusions. The average wedding in Louisiana costs more than $21,500. The study estimated same-sex couples would spend about a fourth of that (or about $5,300) on their weddings because they often do not receive the same financial support from their families that heterosexual couples receive”. By focusing on this one piece of information, the author is hoping that it is enough to persuade the person into believing his opinion.

By using these types of bias, the author’s main goal is to make sure that his point is being understood by everyone that reads the article. His plan was to make the idea of legalizing gay marriage seem like it would be beneficial to everyone, not just gay people. This is a smart way to get people to listen to what you are saying if you are dealing with conservative people who don’t like to hear about liberal activities, like legalizing gay marriage.