W.H.I.S.P.E.R.S. Analytical Reading

“Harmless Things You Should Really Wash Your Hands after Touching”

by William Harris

Type of Bias / Examples/Details / Explanation/Analysis
Word Choice
Headline/title
Included Details
Statistics
Pictures
Excluded Details
Reasoning
Sources

WHISPERS – Analytical Reading

Directions: Use the text marking article “Harmless Things You Should Really Wash Your Hands after Touching” to apply the WHISPER strategy on the chart on the reverse side of this paper.

Word choice – Be aware of connotation – When reading, notice if you feel positively or negatively, or neutral. Go back and look for emotion-filled words.

Examples: positive words include luxurious, fragrant, beneficial, lovely

Negative words: uncomfortable, lazy, disgusting, sour, grating, boring

Headlines/Titles – Titles convey the main idea. Check to see if the title conveys a feeling (negative, positive, or neutral) Example: Song of the Trees – positive Can you explain why?

Consider this: Poisonous toxins spread through the bay” The word poisonous has a negative connotation.

Included Details – Identify major points or details. Often the details included can influence your opinion. Check details to see if they are factual or if they have negative or positive tone.

Statistics – How are the statistic used? An article may say hundreds showed up to protest when the actual number was 150. That statistic may be misleading. Another example is to report a percentage increase. Did the article give a prior number and the final number? A student’s score jumped 20%. Sounds great, right? What if the beginning score was a 20 and the final score is 24. That is not so great!

Pictures – Just like details, pictures can convey information or feelings. Is the picture factual or opinionated?

Excluded details – Did the article leave out information?

Reasoning – Is the argument valid? Did it make sense? Is the article truthful, based on facts and well-supported opinions?