AUBREE THOMAS • ASHLEY SPRINGER • BRIE OLSEN • TERENCE LARSON

TRUTH vs. TRUTHINESSTRUTH vs. TRUTHINESS

IMMIGRATION

Abandonded shoe along the U.s.-Mexico border (Getty Images, 2011).

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CONTENTSIntroduction............................................ 2Pre-quiz ................................................. 3 Background .............................................. 4 The SMELL TEST ............................................ 11 Fox News ................................................. 12MSNBC ................................................... 20SATIRE .................................................... 28Speeches .................................................. 36Analysis ................................................. 41Conclusion ............................................. 44 Post-quiz ............................................... 45 BIOGRAPHIES ............................................. 47

All information, including videos and pictures, in this publication are for educational use only. This use is protected by the

educational fair use provision of the United States Copyright law.

COVER PHOTOSTOP: Mari Gonzalez in a still from the documentary East of Salinas (Mow & Laura, 2015).

BOTTOM: Cornelio Ramires and his daughter, Rosa (Kim, 2013).

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INTRODUCTIONFor this issue, we will be looking at four different medians: Fox News, MSNBC, satire and speeches. We specifically pulled videos on the subject of immigration. For each video, we have pulled four facts and fact-checked then and have applied the SMELL test — see page 11. We are looking at how news is presented and how accurately, specifically we are looking at “truth vs. truthiness”. Stephen Colbert said: “We are a divided nation... we are divided between those who think with their head and those who know with their heart”. Truthiness, according to Colbert, is feeling the truth and news (Philips, 2005). In the second edition of “Detecting Bull”, author John E. McManus said: “We’ve all seen and heard more than enough guys and gals like that at work, in the marketplace, and in politics. They are frequently in error, but rarely in doubt” (2009, p.46). We will be diving into the truth vs.truthiness of the videos from each of the sources mentioned before. For more on truth vs. truthiness, go to this link: on.cc.com/1KS28h6

TRUTH vs. TRUTHINESS

bibliographyMcManus, J. H. (2009). Detecting bull: How to identify bias and junk journalism in

print, broadcast and on the wild web (Second ed.). Sunnyvale, CA: Unvarnished Press.

Philips, S. (2005, October 17). The Word - Truthiness. Gasperak, E. The Colbert Report. New York City, New York: Comedy Central. Retrieved from http://www.cc.com/video-clips/63ite2/the-colbert-report-the-word---truthiness

(Philips, 2005)

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1) Tashfeen Malik was an illegal immigrant to the United States.

a) True b) False

2) How many immigrants can be shielded from deportation under DAPA, or Deferred Action for Parents of Americans?

a) Less than 3,000 b) More than 4 million c) Roughly 7.5 million d) None, DAPA was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court

3) How many states filed lawsuit against President Barack Obama’s executive actions on immigration?

a) 37 b) 28 c) 26 d) 15

4) How many foreigners stayed in the United States beyond their lawful admission period in 2015?

a) 2.7 million b) 500,000 c) 342,539 d) 527,127

5) While Mexicans are the majority of illegal immigrants, their rates have been decreasing.

a) True b) False

Obama said he plans to focus on what illegal immigrants first?

a) Criminals b) Families c) Mexicans d) All illegal immigrants

7) What is a nickname Obama has received in relation to immigration?

a) The Terminator b) The Open Door c) The Deporter-in-Chief d) None of the above

8) How many illegal immigrants have been deported under Obama’s administration?

a) Less than 1.5 million b) More than 2 million c) Roughly 27 million d) Just over 800,000

9) All immigrants are from Latin America.

a) True b) False

10) Social media and the internet are big factors in the lives of American jihadi sympathizers.

a) True b) False

PRE-QUIZBEFORE WE DIVE INTO THE BACKGROUND OF IMMIGRATION, TAKE THIS QUIZ.

see answers on page 45.

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BACKGROUND

According to the Department of Homeland Security, in 2012 there were 11.4 million undocumented immigrants living in America. Of those immigrants, 59 percent were from Mexico and most had lived in the United States since before the year 2000 (Baker & Rytina, 2012). The Pew Research Center has said unauthorized immigrants make up 3.5 percent of the U.S. population (Krogstad & Passel, 2015).

Unauthorized immigrants come to the United States for a number of reasons. A Pew Research Center report from 2009 showed respondents

from Mexico said crime, economics, drugs and corruption are major problems in their country. Of those surveyed, 33 percent said they would migrate to the United States if they were able and 18 percent said they’d move here “without authorization.” The study also noted that 39 percent of respondents said they have friends or relatives living in the United States (Pew Research Center, 2009). In recent years a surge of child immigrants from Central America (as of 2014, the largest group of refugees to come to the United States since 1980) have came to the United Stated to escape gang and drug violence (Greenblatt, 2014).

IMMIGRATION

Mercedes Rosa Ruiz, age 97, originally of Nicaragua (Nicholson, 2013).

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Immigrants who cross the Southwestern border face a dangerous journey. Coyotes, smugglers who are paid to take immigrants across the border, often belong to criminal organizations. Immigrants may encounter crime and violence along their journeys. Once immigrants make it across the U.S. border, they are often left alone to face the heat of the Southwestern desert, where many immigrants die of such things as dehydration and heatstroke. However, according to one news reporter who paraphrased a U.S. Border Patrol official, “what many immigrants face at home is worse” (Flakus, 2014).

Undocumented immigrants living in the United States face a new set of struggles, including fear and uncertainty. Armando Ibanez, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, was quoted by CBS News as saying: “In general, I think you have to live in fear of being separated from your family any time, any moment.” In the same story, Martha Arevalo, the director of a nonprofit that helps undocumented immigrants named Central American Research Center, said: “Every

day people leave their homes and go to work and go to school with fear that when they come back their families are not going to be the same” (Shaban, 2014).

However, it should be noted that not all immigrants to the United States are from Latin America. In an NPR interview with University of Minnesota professor and author Erika Lee cited a Pew Research Center poll that said Asians are overtaking Hispanics in the number of immigrants who come to the United States each year. The interview noted that in recent years, as many Mexican immigrants who are coming to this country are returning to their homeland. Much of the unauthorized immigration is from visitors who

come legally but overstay their visas. Lee said “some of this rhetoric about building walls and increasing border security is a little out of date in terms of the so-called Latino immigration problem” (Garcia-Navarro, 2015; Pew, 2015).

There is much debate about the negative effects of unauthorized immigration. Marc Rosenblum of the Migration Policy Institute (a non-partisan immigration research group) told PBS Newshour there is no correlation between immigration and crime. Rosenblum said “immigrants are disproportionately unlikely to be

in prison” and “cities with lots of immigrants don’t

Country of Origin Estimated Population (2012)Mexico ......................................................11,430,000El Salvador ................................................ 6720,000Guatamala ................................................... 690,000Honduras ..................................................... 560,000Phillipines .................................................... 310,000India .............................................................. 260,000Korea ............................................................ 230,000China ............................................................. 210,000Ecuador ........................................................ 170,000Vietnam......................................................... 160,000

Top ten countries of birth for undocumented immigrants living in the United States in 2012 (Baker & Rytina, 2012).

(Reuters, 2013).

“In general, I think you have to live in fear of being separated from your family any time, any moment.”

—Armando Ibanez (Shaban, 2014)

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have lots of crime.” However, Jessica Vaughn of the Center for Immigration Studies, a group seeking increased border security, said there are certain crimes associated with unauthorized immigration, like drug smuggling and human trafficking, and these problems need to be dealt with (Truth vs. perception, 2015). Time reported that although immigrants pay taxes, help the economy, don’t reduce wages and don’t abuse government programs, there may be some instances where low-wage native workers lose jobs to immigrant workers (Matthews, 2013). There are also reports of ranchers along the U.S.-Mexico border who feel threatened by smugglers and unauthorized immigrants crossing their properties (Potter, 2011 & “Arizona Rancher,” 2014).

For these reasons, immigration is a divisive issue in American politics. A September 2015 Gallup poll showed 25 percent of respondents would only vote for a presidential candidate who shared

their views about immigration. When asked about another hot-button issue, abortion, just 21 percent of respondents said they would only vote for a candidate who agreed with them (Attanasio, 2015).

There is a lot of the emotion behind the debate about immigration. Journalist’s Resource, a project of the Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and its partners, reported its research has shown negative attitudes towards immigrants are based largely on prejudices such as native people’s discomfort with people speaking languages other than their own, not sharing a common culture and negative stereotypes about ethnic groups held by native-born individuals (Journalist’s Resource, 2014).

CNN Money noted much of the fear Americans have about immigration is based on myths. They list the beliefs that undocumented immigrants don’t pay taxes, use up public resources and

Protesters rallying against deportations (Redmond, 2015).

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take jobs from Americans as some of the misconceptions those who are opposed to immigration have about immigrants (Santana, 2014).

However, despite the divisive nature of the immigration debate, there is common ground between the two major political parties on the issue. Both Republican and Democratic party platforms call for comprehensive immigration reform, including securing the border and cracking down illegal activity (Democratic National Committee, n.d.; Republican National Committee, n.d.; https://gop.com/issue/immigration).

For years politicians have been talking about immigration reform (Nakamura & O’Keefe, 2014). Yet, Congress hasn’t been able to take much action. The sticking point seems to be the issue of whether or not to allow undocumented immigrants to remain in the country and eventually gain citizenship. The Republican Party is against, what it calls, amnesty (Woodruff, 2014). The GOP platform stated: “We oppose any form of amnesty for those who, by intentionally violating the law, disadvantage those who have obeyed it. Granting amnesty only rewards and encourages more law breaking” (Republican National Committee, n.d.).

Not all Republicans are opposed to amnesty. In the 1980s, Ronald Reagan signed a bill that, among other things, gave amnesty to 2.9 million undocumented immigrants (NPR Staff, 2010). In 2013, a group of eight centrist Republicans and Democrats passed an immigration reform bill, but the House of Representatives didn’t consider it. Former Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner said the House Republicans would instead write their own legislation. However, in February of 2014, Boehner announced the reform wouldn’t go forward because of “widespread doubt about whether [the Obama] administration can be trusted to enforce our laws.” (Nakamura & O’Keefe, 2014).

In November 2014, saying he was frustrated with Congress’s inaction on immigration, President Obama announced executive actions that included halting the deportation of four million

undocumented immigrants who have lived in the United States for over five years and whose children are U.S. citizens. The order, known as the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans or DAPA, was blocked by a judge and is expected to be heard in the Supreme Court this summer (Stevenson, 2016). Obama has faced backlash from Hispanic groups because of the large number of deportations during his administration. By 2014, 2 million immigrants had been deported under the Obama administration. As many immigrants were deported during the first five years of the Obama administration as during the entire eight years of the Bush administration. This earned Obama the nickname “deporter and chief” (Gonzalez-Barrera & Krogstad, 2014).

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Arizona rancher: No one-size-fits-all solution to border enforcement [Video file]. (2014, August 26). Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/arizona-rancher-one-size-fits-solution-border-enforcement

Attanasio, C. (2015, September 14). Immigration as divisive as abortion, Gallup poll finds. Latin Times. Retrieved from http://www.latintimes.com/immigration-divisive-abortion-gallup-poll-finds-339610

Baker R. & Rytina, N. (2012, January). Estimates of the unauthorized immigrant population residing in the United States: 2012 [PDF document]. Retrieved from http://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/ois_ill_pe_2012_2.pdf

Democratic National Committee. (n.d.). Immigration. Retrieved from https://www.democrats.org/issues/immigration-reform

Flakus, G. (2014, August 6). Illegal immigrants face danger in hot Texas border region. Retrieved from www.voanews.com/content/illegal-immigrants-face-danger-hot-texas-border-region/1973355.html

Garcia-Navarro, L. (2015, October 11). America’s immigration rhetoric out of touch with the numbers. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/2015/10/11/447688060/america-s-immigration-rhetoric-out-of-touch-with-the-numbers

Gonzalez-Barrera, A. & Krogstad, J. M. (2014, October 2) U.S. deportations of immigrants reach record high in 2013. Retrieved from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/10/02/u-s-deportations-of-immigrants-reach-record-high-in-2013

Greenblatt, A. (2014. July 9) What’s causing the latest immigration crisis? A brief explainer. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/2014/07/09/329848538/whats-causing-the-latest-immigration-crisis-a-brief-explainer

Journalist’s Resource. (2014, July 16). Public attitudes towards immigration: research review. Retrieved from http://journalistsresource.org/studies/government/immigration/public-attitudes-toward-research-review

Krogstad, J. M. & Passel J. (2015, November 19). 5 facts about illegal immigration in the U.S. Retrieved from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/11/19/5-facts-about-illegal-immigration-in-the-u-s

BACKGROUNDBIBLIOGRAPHY

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Matthews, C. (2013, January 30). The economics of immigration: Who wins, who loses and why. Retrieved from http://business.time.com/2013/01/30/the-economics-of-immigration-who-wins-who-loses-and-why

Nakamura, D. & O’Keefe, E. (2014, June 26). Timeline: The rise and fall of immigration reform. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2014/06/26/timeline-the-rise-and-fall-of-immigration-reform

NPR Staff. (2010, July 4). A Reagan legacy: Amnesty for illegal immigrants. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128303672

Pew Research Center (2009, September 23). Most Mexicans see better life in U.S. – one-in-three would migrate. Retrieved from http://www.pewglobal.org/2009/09/23/most-mexicans-see-better-life-in-us-one-in-three-would-migrate

Pew Research Center. (2015, September 28). Modern immigration wave brings 59 million to U.S., driving population growth and change Through 2065. Retrieved from http://www.pewhispanic.org/2015/09/28/modern-immigration-wave-brings-59-million-to-u-s-driving-population-growth-and-change-through-2065

Potter, M. (2011, November 25). Along Mexican border, US ranchers say they live in fear. Retrieved from http://www.nbcnews.com/id/45440385

Republican National Committee. (n.d.) Reforming government. Retrieved from https://www.gop.com/platform/reforming-government

Santana, M. (2014, November 2014). CNN Money. Retrieved from http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/20/news/economy/immigration-myths

Shaban, B. (2014, November 22). “You have to live in fear”: One undocumented immigrant’s story. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/news/you-have-to-live-in-fear-one-undocumented-immigrants-story

Stevenson, P. (2016, January 20). The legal drama over Obama’s executive order on immigration, explained. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/01/20/the-legal-drama-over-obamas-executive-order-on-immigration-explained-video

Truth vs. perception of crime rates for immigrants [Video file]. (2015, July 10). Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/newshour/videos/#149597

Woodruff, B. (2014, November 18). What do Republicans mean when they say amnesty? Slate. Retrieved from http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2014/11/what_republicans_mean_when_they_say_amnesty_only_immigration_hard_liners.html

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Donald Trump (Harnik, 2015).

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THE SMELL TESTThe SMELL Test, which was developed by John H. McManus, is used to critically evaluate our media sources. The different components of the test include:SOURCE — This component of the SMELL Test asks us to “consider the source of the information” when looking at different reports (McManus, 2012, p. 7). Who said it? Are they a reliable and credible source of information?

MOTIVATION — What is the source’s purpose for telling us the story? McManus tells us to ask, “Is it merely informational, or perhaps an effort to sell us something?” (McManus, p. 8). Understanding the motives of our sources will help us realize how critical we need to be of them. The three main motives are motivated to inform, persuade and entertain.

EVIDENCE — With evidence we need to consider if there is enough proof to support the claims made in the story or report. As McManus said, “the truth value of a claim rests on either external validation or the credibility of the person making the claim.”(McManus, p. 9)

LOGIC — In considering the logic of the story, we need to ask ourselves if there are any gaps in the information that has been presented. Does it make sense in light of information that we already know? Or is something missing that just doesn’t add up?

LEFT OUT — What is missing from the story? By understanding what is missing from the story, we are able to find out if there is any bias present that we were previously unaware of.

bibliographyMcManus, J. H. (2009). Detecting bull: How to identify bias and junk journalism in

print, broadcast and on the wild web (Second ed.). Sunnyvale, CA: Unvarnished Press.

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FOX NEWSVIDEO #1

In the video, Browne said if the Supreme Court were to side with his administration, Obama “could

halt the deportation of up to five million immigrants” (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016). According to an article in the Washington Post, the president announced days after the midterm election “a new program to defer the deportations of up to 5 million illegal immigrants…” (Nakamura, 2016). The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website said “Preliminary estimates show that roughly 4.9 million individuals may be eligible for the initiatives announced by the President” (“Executive Actions on Immigration”, 2015). According to POLITICO, Obama’s executive actions would allow “more than 4 million undocumented immigrants to stay and work legally in the United States…” (Min Kim, 2016). These sources confirm the fact to be true.

Browne also said in the video that “the Obama administration has deported more than two million

people in seven years” (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016). According to an article in the Pew Research Center, there have been “more than 2 million deportations since Obama took office” (Gonzalez-Barrera & Krogstad, 2014). POLITICO also said two million immigrants have been deported during Obama’s presidency (Min Kim, 2016). These sources confirm the fact to be true.

A third fact presented by Browne in this video is there were “raids that targeted 121 Central American

immigrants for deportation” under Obama (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016). An article in the Washington Post said: “The Obama White House has publicly supported the raids by the Department of Homeland Security, which… apprehended 121 Central Americans with outstanding deportation orders…” (Nakamura, 2016). Multiple other news articles and websites also confirmed this number. These sources confirm the fact to be true.

Lestingi said Obama “has told his administration, his executive office that they need to focus on the people who have broken serious laws…

and make them a priority to deport first and then the parents, that have done nothing other than come across the border and have kids here that are U.S. citizens, should be the lowest priority” (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016). The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website lists executive actions announced by Obama in 2014 to and his plans to “prioritize deporting felons not families” (“Executive Actions on Immigration”, 2015). According to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 56 percent of ICE removals were convicted criminals in 2014 and 59 percent in 2015 (“FY 2015 ICE Immigration Removals”). These sources confirm the fact to be true.

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SOURCE The sources of this video are reporter Patti Ann Browne, Democrat Joe Lestingi and Republican Amos Snead (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016). There is also a clip shown of the White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016).

MOTIVATION The majority of the video is motivation designed to inform in regards of the issues of immigration, deportation and the executive actions Obama is taking in regards to immigration (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016). There is a slight motivation designed to persuade, particularly with Lestingi, in how whatever the outcome of the lawsuit could still benefit the Democrat party (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016).

EVIDENCE The evidence used in this video is Obama’s immigration could halt the deportation of up to five million immigrants, the Obama administration has deported more than 2 million people, there were raids under Obama targeting 121 Central Americans for deportation and Obama focuses on deporting criminals first and parents and children as the last priority (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016).

LEFT OUT For the most part, the video is pretty logical and things flow from one step to another. There are some opinions put out there by Lestingi and Snead which could fall under the fallacy over-generalization such as when Snead said “vast overreach” and it being a major impact on the presidential campaigns. Mostly, the over-generalization takes place as each source said just Democrats or Republicans instead of including a classifying term, such as “most” or “few”.

LOGIC What was left out of the video was sources from those who would be directly impacted by the acts. This would include the U.S. born citizens whose parents were illegal immigrants, legal immigrants and officials from states who have high rates of immigration.

SMELL TEST

Watch this video online:bit.ly/1KPjHoW

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FOX NEWSVIDEO #2

The first fact of this video is “45 million foreigners entered with business or tourist visas” (“Report: Over 500,000”, 2016). According to

an article by Pew Research Center, there were 45 million arrivals whose tourist or business visas expired in 2015, but some people are included more than once (Passel & Cohn, 2016). Because of this, the fact in the video can be considered half true as there were 45 million arrivals, but not 45 million foreigners who entered.

The second fact for this video is “527,127 foreigners remained beyond the lawful admission period” (“Report: Over 500,000”,

2016). According to the same Pew Research Center article, the Department of Homeland Security “estimates that about 416,500 people were still in the country this year” (Passel & Cohn, 2016). Pew also said “about 527,000 remained in the country after their permission to stay expired” (Passel & Cohn, 2016). The Department of Homeland Security matches these facts as it said “521,127 individuals overstayed their admission… by January 4, 2016 the number of Suspected In-Country overstays… had dropped to 416,500” (“Homeland Security”, 2016). These sources confirm the fact to be true.

Blackman said DAPA would shield deportation of “roughly 4 and a half million aliens who are here

illegally”(“Report: Over 500,000”, 2016). POLITIFACT said: “More than 4 million people were estimated to qualify under DAPA executive action…” (Giln, 2015). The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website, as mentioned in the first video analysis, said “Preliminary estimates show that roughly 4.9 million individuals may be eligible for the initiatives announced by the President” (“Executive Actions on Immigration”, 2015). Because the numbers match up seemingly evenly, “roughly” and “more than” being qualifying words, the fact can be confirmed to be true.

The final fact from the video to be focused on is “Texas and the 25 other states, 26 in total,” filed lawsuit

against DAPA (“Report: Over 500,000”, 2016). The same POLITIFACT article said there was a Texas case including 26 states “challenging Obama’s announcement” of DAPA and executive actions on deportation (Giln, 2015). According to the American Immigration Council website, the case is still going on as the Supreme Court will review the Fifth Circuit’s decision (AIC CITE). These sources confirm the fact to be true.

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SOURCE The sources of the video are the reporter, Josh Blackman, an associate professor of law, and Sen. John Cornyn (“Report: Over 500,000”, 2016).

MOTIVATION The video is motivated to inform as the majority of the video is focused on presenting facts and information to the viewers.

EVIDENCE The evidence used in the video is homeland security, DAPA, DACA, a DHS entry-exit overstay report, a clip of Sen. John Cornyn, a judiciary committee member, and the Supreme Court taking the case of the lawsuit against Obama’s immigration action (“Report: Over 500,000”, 2016).

LEFT OUT This video seems to flow pretty logically from one step to another, though there are slight errors in the facts presented. Blackman uses contingencies such as “probably” instead of stating something definitively when not stating a fact (“Report: Over 500,000”, 2016).

LOGIC L: There are no sources of those who would be directly involved or impacted, such as immigrants or children of immigrants or officials from the 26 states filing the lawsuit.

SMELL TEST

Watch this video online:bit.ly/1KPjQc7

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VIDEO #3The Fox reporter said concerning Tashfeen Malik that officials did “not even having a face-to-face meeting

with her as was requested” (“Feds lose track of”, 2015). The official website of the U.S. House of Representatives, under the Judiciary Committee, quoted chairman Bob Goodlatte about Malik’s immigration file (“Updated: Goodlatte statement”, 2015). “The immigration reviewing Malik’s application requested more evidence to ensure the two met in person but it was never provided,” Goodlatte said according to the website (“Updated: Goodlatte statement”, 2015). According to an article in The Washington Post, according to Goodlatte, “the materials in the file did not conclusively show that Malik and her future husband, Syed Rizwan Farook, had met in person…” (Halzak, 2015). The Washington Post also said Goodlatte is working on a bill that would “call for visa applicants and their sponsors to go through in-person interviews as part of their application process” (Halzak, 2015). These sources confirm the fact to be false.

Gorka said Malik was “applying to come here on a fiancé visa” (“Feds lose track of”, 2015). According to

the Judiciary Committee webpage, Malik was applying for a fiancé visa, specifically a K-1 fiancé visa (“Updated: Goodlatte statement”, 2015). An article in POLITIFACT also said Malik was brought to the U.S. on a fiancé visa

(Sherman, 2015). These sources confirm the fact to be true.

Gorka said “of the 82 ISIS suspects killed or arrested in America in the last two years, half of them broadcast

their Jihadi sympathies on the internet” (“Feds lose track of”, 2015).There is a published report by Gorka confirming his statement(Gorka & Gorka, 2015). “The role of social media in recent developments in the jihadist scene in America, as elsewhere, is central” (The George Washington University, 2015, p. 26). The report also said “an underlying sense of sympathy and compassion appeared to play an important role in initially motivating young Americans to be interested and invested in the Syrian Conflict” (The George Washington University, 2015, p. 15). Furthermore, the report said “ISIS activists and sympathizers are active on a variety of platforms, from open forums like Facebook, Google+, and Tumblr to more discrete messaging applications… But Twitter is by far the platform of choice of this informal echo chamber” (The George Washington University, 2015, p. 21). Because of this information, the fact can be considered to be most likely true.

The fourth fact to be focused on from the video is the title: “Feds lose track of thousands who have had

visas revoked” (“Feds lose track of”, 2015).. The Department of Homeland Security’s website

FOX NEWS

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SOURCE The sources of this video are reporter NAME, a video of a hearing on Capital Hill featuring Rep. Trey Gowdy, Rep. Jason Chaffetz, Alan Bersin and Michele Thoren Bond, and Sebastian Gorka, the Major General Matthew C. Horner Distinguished Chair of Military Theory at Marine Corps University (“Feds lose track of”, 2015).

MOTIVATION The motivation in this video is to inform and persuade. The video presents a lot of information, but also seems to be trying to prove there is a serious issue.

EVIDENCE The evidence used in this video is the clip from the hearing, Gorka’s research and Tashfeen Malik’s visa information (“Feds lose track of”, 2015).

LEFT OUT While there is some logic in the video, there are more fallacies. This video has the fallacy of a flawed comparison as Gorka compares the hearing to “watching an Abbott and Costello skit or Laurel and Hardy” (“Feds lose track of”, 2015). There are also a few other fallacies such as over-generalization like when Gorka said “It literally leaves one speechless… The system is so utterly broken it is beyond words” (“Feds lose track of”, 2015).

LOGIC L: The video of the committee hearing is edited and leaves out the information that Mr. Bersin is not the individual who would have the information on the location of the foreigners. There is also a lack in sources as there are no individuals to present opposing views and no government officials.

SMELL TEST

said there were 416,500 Suspected In-Country overstays as of Jan. 4 (“Homeland Security”, 2016). In the longer video of the hearing, the Homeland Security official, Mr. Bersin, said he doesn’t know how many of the 9,500 revoked visas due to terrorist ties remain in

the U.S., but he heads the office of policy and the operational components would have the information (“DHS Can’t Say”, 2015). Because of this information, there is not sufficient evidence to claim the fact is either true or false.

Watch this video online:bit.ly/1n0LhUA

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

FOX NEWSDHS Can’t Say How Many of 9,500 Revoked Visas for Suspected Terror Ties Remain in U.S. (2015,

December 17). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from https://grabien.com/file.php?id=69315

Executive Actions on Immigration. (2015, April 15). Retrieved February 16, 2016, from https://www.uscis.gov/immigrationaction#2

Feds lose track of thousands who have had visas revoked. (Dec. 19, 2015). New York City, New York: Fox News. Retrieved February 24, 2016, from http://video.foxnews.com/v/4668483693001/feds-lose-track-of-thousands-who-have-had-visas-revoked/?#sp=show-clips

FY 2015 ICE Immigration Removals. (n.d.). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from https://www.ice.gov/removal-statistics

Giln, J. (2015, March 5). Federal judge called Obama immigration action ‘unconstitutional,’ David Jolly says. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.politifact.com/florida/statements/2015/mar/05/david-jolly/federal-judge-called-obama-immigration-action-unco

Gonzalez-Barrera, A., & Krogstad, J.M. (2014, October 2). US government deports fewest immigrants in nearly a decade. Pew Research Center. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/10/02/u-s-deportations-of-immigrants-reach-record-high-in-2013

Gorka, S. L., & Gorka, K. C. (2015). ISIS: The Threat to the United States (pp. 1-20, Rep.). Threat Knowledge Group. Retrieved from http://threatknowledge.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/TKG-Report_The-ISIS-Threat.pdf

Halzak, S. (2015, December 19). Tashfeen Malik’s visa ‘sloppily approved,’ according to congressman who reviewed immigration application. The Washington Post. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2015/12/19/tashfeen-maliks-visa-sloppily-approved-according-to-congressman-who-reviewed-immigration-application

Homeland Security. (2016, January 19). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from https://www.dhs.gov/news/2016/01/19/dhs-releases-entryexit-overstay-report-fiscal-year-2015

Min Kim, S. (2016, January 16). Democrats lash out at Obama over immigration raids. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.politico.com/story/2016/01/immigration-deportation-democrats-obama-217378

PAGE 19

Nakamura, D. (2016, January 19). Obama struggling with immigration rules and cruelties of deportation. The Washington Post. Retrieved February 16, 2016, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obama-struggling-with-immigration-rules-and-cruelties-of-deportation/2016/01/18/5c2d4258-bba7-11e5-b682-4bb4dd403c7d_story.html

Passel, J. S., & Cohn, D. (2016, February 03). Homeland Security produces first estimate of foreign visitors to U.S. who overstay deadline to leave. Pew Research Center. Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/02/03/homeland-security-produces-first-estimate-of-foreign-visitors-to-u-s-who-overstay-deadline-to-leave

Report: Over 500,000 visitors to US overstayed visa periods. (Jan. 23, 2016). New York City, New York: Fox News. Retrieved February 24, 2016, from http://video.foxnews.com/v/4718794365001/report-over-500000-visitors-to-us-overstayed-visa-periods/?#sp=show-clips

Sherman, A. (2015, December 29). [VIDEO]What is the citizenship status of terrorist suspects in the United States? Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2015/dec/29/what-citizenship-status-terrorists-united-states

The George Washington University. (2015). From Retweets to Raqqu. Washington, D.C.: Vidino, L. & Hughes, S.

Understanding the Legal Challenges to Executive Action. (2016, January 21). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/just-facts/understanding-legal-challenges-executive-action

Update: Goodlatte statement on Tashfeen Malik’s immigration file. (2015, December 19). Retrieved February 21, 2016, from http://judiciary.house.gov/index.cfm/press-releases?id=53896CE9-9524-486B-B506-566C327E6073

What SCOTUS immigration ruling means for Obama’s legacy. (Jan. 20, 2016). New York City, New York: Fox News. Retrieved February 24, 2016, from, http://video.foxnews.com/v/4713706153001/what-scotus-immigration-ruling-means-for-obamas-legacy/?#sp=show-clips

PAGE 20

MSNBCVIDEO #1

“Raids will just target adults and children previously caught trying to enter the U.S. illegally or those

ordered to leave at some point over the last two years”(“Immigration Raids”, 2016). A press release issued by the Department of Homeland Security confirmed this fact. In the press release, Secretary Jeh C. Johnson said: “The focus of this weekend’s operations were adults and their children who were apprehended after May 1, 2014” (“Statement by”, 2016). A similar statement was found in a Washington Post article which stated ICE raids were affecting those who had been asked to leave by an immigration judge (Markon & Nakamura, 2015). These immigrants had already tried using legal solutions to stay in the United States and had no other claims that could have been made (“Statement by”, 2016). These sources confirm this fact to be true.

Alan Gomez, an immigration reporter for USA Today, was a source during the MSNBC

broadcast. Gomez said: “We are continuing to see a new surge of undocumented immigrants that are coming from Central America –Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador. In the summer of 2014, we saw tens of thousands undocumented immigrants coming from there, most of them minors. Those numbers are shooting back up again” (“Immigration Raids”, 2016). FactCheck confirmed the number of immigrant minors from these three

countries has been increasing since 2012 (Shapiro, 2014). According the U.S Customs and Border Protection, there has been an increase in both the number of minors and families that have been caught crossing the southwest border (“Southwest Border”, n.d.). Their website indicates that a total number of 10,105 minors were apprehended in the fiscal year 2015, compared to the total of 20,455 minors in the fiscal year 2016 (“Southwest Border”, n.d.). These sources confirm this fact to be true.

MSNBC reported “part of the concern is that many of the people are fleeing horrific violence in

the countries of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador” (“Immigration Raids”, 2016). The Economic Policy Institute said the main reasons they are immigrating to the United States is because of “violence and criminality in their home countries” (Costa, Cooper, & Shierholz, 2014). FactCheck also confirmed the increase in minors coming to the U.S. is because of the increasing crime rates (Shapiro, 2014). Pew Research Center offered more specifics on the subject. It reports that “Honduras is the world’s murder capital, with a homicide rate of 187 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2013 driven by a surge in gang and drug trafficking violence” (Gonzalez-Barrera, Krogstad, & Lopez, 2014). These sources and statistics confirm that this fact is true.

PAGE 21

Alan Gomez also said: “Over the last couple of decades, Mexicans have dominated the undocumented

immigrant population here in the United States…but they have stopped coming here. They’ve slowed down and the flow has really even out. Most of them are going back to Mexico”(“Immigration Raids”, 2016). The Pew Hispanic Center reports that the amount of illegal Mexicans living in United States reached its highest amount in 2007. However, it continues to explain that “the Mexican-born

population has declined, falling to 11.7 million in 2014”(Gonzalez-Barrera, 2015). The Migration Policy Institute also confirmed Mexico is not the number one source of undocumented immigrants (Chishti & Hipsman, 2015). The Pew Hispanic Center reported this is occurring because more Mexicans are returning back to their home countries, rather than staying in the United States (Gonzalez-Barrera, 2015). These sources confirm the fact that the amount of Mexican immigrants have decreased.

SOURCE MSNBC uses Alan Gomez, an immigration reporter for USA Today, as the major source of information in the report. Gomez provided the majority of information about why the deportation raids were occurring and why the surge of undocumented immigrants from Central America has increased (“Immigration Raids”, 2016).

MOTIVATION This news clip was designed to tell the audience about the deportation raids that have been occurring and give them background information about the undocumented immigrants. This background information included what types of immigrants were being apprehended and why they were happening. With this in mind, the primary motive of this clip was to inform the audience.

EVIDENCE The MSNBC reporter and Alan Gomez bring up many different facts and statistics in their report of the raids. This information is able to serve as evidence for the validity of the news report.

LEFT OUT This report is logical because it offers so much information to the audience. The report really focused on informing the public, so there wasn’t much bias present in the report or information shared. All of the information was easy to understand as well.

LOGIC This report included a lot of statistics and information regarding undocumented immigrants. However, it would have been interesting to include actual viewpoints and opinions on the deportation raids. In the beginning of the clip, MSNBC presents the opinions of the 2016 presidential candidates, but those are the only people we hear from. It may have been good hear the voice of the affected immigrants or of some government officials.

SMELL TEST

Watch this video online:on.msnbc.com/1mwnX1Y

PAGE 22

MSNBCVIDEO #2

Jerry Markon said: “Nobody’s saying the border is totally secure, but there’s a lot of indicators that it’s

more secure than it has been” Luke Russert, the MSNBC reporter, added there are several things, such as increased border patrol and advanced technology, that have been implemented to keep the border more secure (“Fewer People”, 2016). A report issued by the Department of Homeland Security is able to confirm these statements are true. DHS reports the government has increased the amount and technology and resources needed to correctly manage the US border (“Border Security”, 2015). In regards to the southwest border, the DHS said: “The Border Patrol is better staffed today than at any time in its 88-year history” (“Border Security”, 2015). Politifact is also able to confirm the government has spent $11.9 million and has increased the amount of troops on the ground to keep the border under control (Cabaniss, 2015). These sources confirm that this fact is true.

Jerry Markon reported: “As the Department of Homeland Security continues to pour money into

border security, evidence is emerging that illegal immigration flows have fallen to their lowest level in at least two decades” (“Fewer People”, 2016). The Pew Research Center on Hispanic trends said the number of illegal immigrants has slowed down and “shows no sign of rising” (Passell, Cohn, Krogstad,

& Gonzalez-Barrera, 2014). It also reported “about a fifth (21%) had been in the U.S. for two decades or more as of 2012” (Passell, Cohn, Krogstad & Gonzalez-Barrera, 2014). These statistics confirm the immigrant population growth has slowed down.

Jerry Markon said: “Most of the actual drop occurred during the recession from 2007-2009. That’s

not so shocking. What’s even more interesting is that the population has not grown. It has stabilized since then at 11.2 or 11.3 million” (“Fewer People”, 2016). The Economic Policy Institute reported there were roughly 11.7 million immigrants in the United States (Costa, Cooper, & Shierholz, 2014). While these numbers aren’t exactly the same, they are close enough to confirm this fact as true.

“They are getting older as they stay here. The vast majority are now 35 or older and the median age has

jumped from 28 to 36 in the last seven or eight years” (“Fewer People”, 2016). The Migration Policy Institute provided a slightly different median age for the average immigrant. It reported there is a “median age of 43.1 years, compared to 35.9 for the native born”(Zong & Batalova, 2015). MPI also reported the age of 80 percent of the immigrant population ranges from 18-64 years old (Zong & Batalova, 2015). Since these numbers are close to the ones cited in the news report, this fact is partially true.

PAGE 23

SOURCE Luke Russert’s main source of information comes from an article published in the Washington Post titled: “Fewer immigrants are entering the U.S. illegally, and that’s changed the border security debate” by Jerry Markon (“Fewer People”, 2016). Markon is present on the show and is able to share additional information with the audience. The article in the Washington Post uses different sources including the Pew Research Center and their statistics on immigration.

MOTIVATION The motivation behind this report is to share the Washington Post article with the audience since it provides information contrary to popular belief. Luke Russert said: “The article goes against all the conventional wisdom that we hear on capitol hill” (“Fewer People”, 2016). The job of this report was to educate the public about the changes in immigration rates and border security that they may not have been previously aware of.

EVIDENCE The main source of evidence in this report is the article published by Jerry Markon in the Washington Post. However, this article contains other sources, such as the Pew Research Center. The Pew Research Center is a reliable source of information, so it serves as good evidence for the validity of the article.

LEFT OUT The news and information reported in this clip were logical and easy to understand. Both Luke Russert and Jerry Markon cite a variety of facts and statistics, but all of the information is supported by reliable sources the audience can trust. All of the information ties together in a way that should be clear to the audience.

LOGIC This report only focused on the on the article in the Washington Post. It left out any sources that had opposing viewpoints to the article.

SMELL TEST

Watch this video online:on.msnbc.com/1HAKWvw

PAGE 24

MSNBCVIDEO #3

MSNBC reported that Secretary Jeh Johnson of the Department of Homeland Security said: “Our

borders are not open to illegal migration; if you come here illegally, we will send you back consistent with our laws and values” (“WH doesn’t back”, 2016).This quote from the secretary was verified by checking the press release available from the DHS (“Statement by”, 2016).

Steny Hoyer, a democrat from Maryland, said: “The president said we were going to focus on felons,

not families” (“WH doesn’t back”, 2016). A transcript of the President’s Address to the Nation on Immigration on November 20, 2014 confirmed this was an actual statement from President Obama (“Remarks by”, 2014) .

Cristina Jimenez said that the ongoing deportation raids are “cementing the president’s

reputation as the ‘Deporter in Chief’.” MSNBC continued to report “he has had the highest number of deportations of any presidency” (“WH doesn’t back”, 2016). Reuters reported “America is expelling illegal immigrants at nine times the rate of 20 years ago; nearly 2m so far fall under Barack Obama, easily outpacing any previous president” (Corones, 2015). This article even confirms Obama’s nickname of “Deporter-in-Chief” and states that it came from immigration activists

(Corones, 2015). Pew Research Center was more specific. It reported that “the Obama administration deported a record 438,421 unauthorized immigrants in fiscal year 2013…”(Gonzalez-Barrera & Krogstad, 2014). Pew Research Center also confirmed 2 million deportations have occurred under President Obama (Gonzalez-Barrera & Krogstad, 2014).

MSNBC reported that “121 mothers and children were also a part of the numbers coming from three states

that were deported” (“WH doesn’t back”, 2016). Reuters confirmed that there were 121 people detained during the raids (“U.S. takes”, 2016). Reuters also said: “The apprehensions targeted adults and children who crossed the southern border illegally after May 1, 2014” (“U.S. takes”, 2016). A broadcast by National Public Radio said that the majority of deportations included mothers with children (Burnett, 2016), but since we were unable to confirm that specific number, this fact is false.

PAGE 25

SOURCE This news clip contained numerous sources of information, including members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and other congressional members. The names of the congress members were Linda Sanchez, a democrat from California, and Steny Hoyer, a democrat from Maryland. During the news clip, MSNBC interviewed Cristina Jimenez. Jimenez is the managing director of United We Dream, an immigrant rights group.

MOTIVATION In this case, the motive of MSNBC was to persuade viewers that the current deportation raids were wrong and shouldn’t be allowed to continue. All of the sources provided information that was against the deportation raids. No information was shared regarding the other side of the story.

EVIDENCE There was plenty of evidence to support the facts and statistics shared by the sources during the news clip. The majority of the facts could be traced back to reliable sources of information, such as the Department of Homeland Security and The White House.

LEFT OUT The news and information that was presented in this news clip made sense and it provided interesting information about the ongoing deportation raids. It is logical because the information came from groups and organizations that were tied to illegal immigrants. From the information shared, the audience was able to get a clear understanding of why these deportation raids were causing problems.

LOGIC MSNBC only offered sources and information explaining why the deportations are bad for America. All of the sources believed the deportations should stop as soon as possible. MSNBC left out the opposing viewpoint. There are politicians and groups who approve of these deportations. However, they weren’t given a voice in this clip.

SMELL TEST

Watch this video online:on.msnbc.com/1PkozhI

PAGE 26

BIBLIOGRAPHY

MSNBCBorder Security Results. (2015, July 17). Retrieved February 7, 2016, from https://www.dhs.gov/

border-security-results

Burnett, J. (2016, January 5). Central American Families Fear Deportation As Raids Begin. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.npr.org/2016/01/05/462057211/u-s-begins-to-deport-central-americans

Cabaniss, W. (2015, July 2). 5 myths about immigration. Retrieved February 4, 2016, from http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/article/2015/jul/02/5-myths-about-immigration/

Chishti, M., & Hipsman, F. (2015, May 21). In Historic Shift, New Migration Flows from Mexico Fall Below Those from China and India. Retrieved February 23, 2016, from http://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/historic-shift-new-migration-flows-mexico-fall-below-those-china-and-india

Corones, M. (2015, February 25). Tracking Obama’s deportation numbers. Retrieved February 3, 2016, from http://blogs.reuters.com/data-dive/2015/02/25/tracking-obamas-deportation-numbers

Costa, D., Cooper, D., & Shierholz, H. (2014, August 12). Facts About Immigration and the U.S. Economy: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions. Retrieved February 6, 2016, from http://www.epi.org/publication/immigration-facts

Gonzalez-Barrera, A. (2015, November 19). More Mexicans Leaving Than Coming to the U.S. Retrieved February 22, 2016, from http://www.pewhispanic.org/2015/11/19/more-mexicans-leaving-than-coming-to-the-u-s

Gonzalez-Barrera, A., & Krogstad, J.M., (2014, October 02). U.S. deportations of immigrants reach record high in 2013. Retrieved February 3, 2016, from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/10/02/u-s-deportations-of-immigrants-reach-record-high-in-2013

Gonzalez-Barrera, A., Krogstad, J. M., & Lopez, M. H. (2014, July 01). DHS: Violence, poverty, is driving children to flee Central America to U.S. Retrieved February 23, 2016, from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/07/01/dhs-violence-poverty-is-driving-children-to-flee-central-america-to-u-s

Immigration raids reportedly underway. (Jan. 4, 2016). MSNBC News. Retrieved February 5, 2016, from http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/deportation-crackdown-rounds-121-immigrant-adults-and-children

PAGE 27

Krogstad, J. M., & Passel, J. S. (2015, November 19). 5 facts about illegal immigration in the U.S. Retrieved February 5, 2016, from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/11/19/5-facts-about-illegal-immigration-in-the-u-s

Markon, J., & Nakamura, D. (2015, December 23). U.S. plans raids to deport families who surged across border. Retrieved February 7, 2016, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/us-plans-raids-to-deport-families-who-surged-across-border/2015/12/23/034fc954-a9bd-11e5-8058-480b572b4aae_story.html

Passel, J. S., Cohn, D., Krogstad, J. M., & Gonzalez-Barrera, A. (2014, September 03). As Growth Stalls, Unauthorized Immigrant Population Becomes More Settled. Retrieved February 24, 2016, from http://www.pewhispanic.org/2014/09/03/as-growth-stalls-unauthorized-immigrant-population-becomes-more-settled

Remarks by the President in Address to the Nation on Immigration. (2014, November 20). Retrieved February 6, 2016, from https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/11/20/remarks-president-address-nation-immigration

Shapiro, L. (2014, July 18). Surge of ‘Unaccompanied Children’. Retrieved February 3, 2016, from http://www.factcheck.org/2014/07/surge-of-unaccompanied-children

Southwest Border Unaccompanied Alien Children Statistics FY 2016. (n.d.). Retrieved February 23, 2016, from http://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/stats/southwest-border-unaccompanied-children/fy-2016

Statement by Secretary Jeh C. Johnson on Southwest Border Security. (2016, January 4). Retrieved February 5, 2016, from https://www.dhs.gov/news/2016/01/04/statement-secretary-jeh-c-johnson-southwest-border-security

U.S. takes 121 illegal immigrants into custody for deportation: Officials. (2016, January 04). Retrieved February 5, 2016, from http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-immigration-idUSKBN0UI20L20160104

WH doesn’t back down on deportation raids. (Jan.9, 2016).MSNBC News. Retrieved February 5, 2016, from, http://www.msnbc.com/up/watch/wh-doesn-t-back-down-on-deportation-raids-599050819676Fewer people are illegally crossing the US-Mexico border. (May 29,2015). MSNBC News. Retrieved February 5, 2016, from, http://www.msnbc.com/the-briefing/watch/fewer-people-illegally-crossing-the-border-453965379785

Zong, J., & Batalova, J. (2015, February 26). Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States. Retrieved February 4, 2016, from http://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/frequently-requested-statistics-immigrants-and-immigration-united-states

PAGE 28

SATIREVIDEO #1

In this video, guest commentator, Jessica Williams, referred to a Ted Cruz and said: “Ads like this

are just naked pandering to Republicans who fear immigrants” (Advertisement tonight, 2016). but do Republicans really fear Immigrants? A 2014 Brookings/PRRI poll revealed 50 percent of Republicans surveyed “believe immigrants are a burden on the country.” The poll revealed 33 percent of Republicans said they worried about the fact that nonwhites will likely outnumber whites by 2050 (Vinik, 2014). Another 2014 Reuters/Ipsos poll showed 86 percent of Republicans surveyed “believe undocumented immigrants threaten traditional U.S. beliefs and customs” compared to 70 percent of all Americans no matter their political persuasion (Bell, 2014). This claim is inconclusive because it is an overgeneralization and while a percentage of Republicans have certain biases against immigrants, it isn’t necessarily true of all.

In the video, Trevor Noah, playing devil’s advocate, mentioned “Ted Cruz is just reminding us that low-

skilled immigrants are taking American jobs.” Jessica Williams replied: “That wouldn’t be a problem, if it could be absolutely proven” (Advertisement tonight, 2016). The idea that immigrants are taking low-skilled jobs from Americans isn’t true, and it can be proven. According to FactCheck.org, “most economists and other experts say there’s

little to support the claim [that immigrants take American jobs]. Study after study has shown immigrants help the economy grow, expanding demand for goods and services the foreign-born workers and their families consume, and thereby creating jobs. There is even broad agreement among economists that while immigrants may push down wages for some, the overall effect is to increase average wages for American-born workers” (Novak, 2010). CNN Money clarifies that if all 8 million undocumented laborers in the United States suddenly left the country, 8 million new jobs wouldn’t be automatically created to fill them. Rather, the country would probably lose jobs because it would also lose business owners, spenders and contributors to the tax base (Santana, 2014).

In the video Jessica Williams blasted Ted Cruz for hypocrisy and said: “Highly-skilled immigrants are

taking jobs that Americans really want. If you want examples of immigrants who get jobs that Americans want, it’s actually high-skilled immigrants from countries like China and India” (Advertisement tonight, 2016). However, the claim that high-skilled immigrants take jobs is untrue. A 2011 publication by the American Enterprise Institute stated the opposite. A study the institute conducted found that “immigrants with advanced degrees boost employment for US natives. This effect is most dramatic for immigrants with advanced

PAGE 29

SOURCE During the clip, a Ted Cruz ad was played verbatim. The presenters gave comical commentary. They made a few factual claims, but didn’t cite sources.

MOTIVATION This piece was primarily created for humor. It was a critique on campaign advertising. It focused on the Ted Cruz campaign’s use of scare tactics concerning American’s fears about immigrants. It was motivated to entertain.

EVIDENCE Being a comical piece, the presenters didn’t seem to attempt to cite evidence backing the claims they made.

LEFT OUT Many of the claims and critiques made by the presenters in the clip were purposefully nonsensical. The crux of the presenters’ arguments against the video was that it was propaganda.

LOGIC Some of the obvious voices left out of the piece were from those who feel they have been negatively affected by immigration (unemployed people or people who work low-wage jobs). Economists seem to have concluded immigration doesn’t hurt the overall economy, but there may be certain groups and individuals who have lost jobs or been hurt economically because of new groups of immigrants. The Daily Show also didn’t seek for a comment from the Cruz campaign.

SMELL TEST

degrees from US universities working in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields” (Zavodny, 2011). The claim in not true. Bringing in high-skilled workers has been shown to increase U.S. jobs.

In the video, Jessica Williams mentioned high-skilled immigrant workers and said “you know

who supported bringing them in? Last year. In the last immigration bill? Ted Cruz” (Advertisement tonight, 2016). According to a CNN article, Ted Cruz “has long been a fierce proponent of expanding legal immigration

and visas for high-skilled workers, so much so that he repeatedly broke with immigration hardliners…” The conclusion came after CNN took a hard look at Cruz’s record, including votes from committees he served on (Raju, 2016). This claim is a verifiable truth. His record indicates that over time he has supported the immigration of high-skilled workers.

Watch this video online:cc.com/video-clips/q50juq

PAGE 30

SATIREVIDEO #2

In the video, Stephen Colbert’s

Spanish-speaking alterego, Esteban

Colberto, pointed out some things

that Republicans have said about immigrants

that might make Hispanics not support them,

and mentioned the term “Illegals” as one of them

(Obama’s immigration plan, 2014). A 2015 article

in The New York Times reported that ten years

prior to the article’s publication, Republican

strategist Frank Luntz chided conservatives for

alienating voters by using the term “illegals”

rather than “illegal immigrants” to refer to

undocumented immigrants. He said, ‘‘if you

used the word ‘illegals,’ you didn’t get a chance

to say anything else — Latino audiences would

turn you off.’’ The article also said since the

admonishment, several Republican presidential

candidates had used the term, including Mitt

Romney and Rudy Giuliani in 2007, Rick Perry in

2011 and Donald Trump in 2015 (Bazelon, 2015).

This statement is true. Republicans have used

and continue to use the term “illegals” even

though they’ve been advised it may alienate

Hispanic voters.

In the video, Esteban Colberto

mentioned another phrase uttered

by a Republican lawmaker that some

immigrants have “calves the size of cantaloupes”

(Obama’s immigration plan, 2014). In 2013, Steve

King, a Republican congressman from Iowa,

said: “For everyone who’s a valedictorian, there’s

another 100 out there that weigh 130 pounds

and they’ve got calves the size of cantaloupes

because they’re hauling 75 pounds of marijuana

across the desert” (Parkinson, 2013). The

congressman’s comments were condemned

by other Republicans like then House Speaker,

John Boehner. Boehner called King’s statements

“ignorant” and “wrong” (Parkinson, 2013). King

making the statement that some immigrants

have “calves the size of cantaloupes” is a record

of fact.

In the video Esteban Colberto

mentions that Republicans use of the

term “anchor babies” might drive

off voters (Obama’s immigration plan, 2014).

The American Heritage Dictionary made news

in 2011 by labeling the phrase as derogatory.

Despite this, former GOP vice presidential

nominee Paul Ryan used the term in 2013

saying: “If you’re born here, you’re a naturalized

citizen. You have to change the Constitution…

But it’s really treating a symptom, right? People

are coming across the border illegally or

overstaying their visas. And therefore illegal

immigration is fairly easy, and then people

are having what’s called anchor babies”

(Carrasquillo, 2013).

In the video Esteban Colberto

mentions the phrase “squatting

out anchor babies” among the

phrases used by Republicans that might scare

away voters (Obama’s immigration plan,

Watch this video online:cc.com/video-clips/iw2iwg

PAGE 31

SOURCE The source used clips and quotes from news sources and speeches. These sources are supplemented with comedic commentary and satire.

MOTIVATION This clip was primarily a humorous sketch designed for entertainment purposes. The clip was motivated to entertain.

EVIDENCE Very few claims were made by the presenter. Rather, Colbert strung together quotes and clips (connecting them with commentary) to make a point. The show does a good job at attributing the sources, however, there could be some question about whether the sources were given proper context.

LEFT OUT The piece uses sarcasm and goes into wild tangents to present the issue in a humorous manner.

LOGIC The piece used lots of direct quotes and commentary from Republicans. Although Colbert played devil’s advocate, presenting things from a conservative point of view, the piece is going after Republicans (who weren’t given a chance to respond or give context to the quotes presented). Another voice left out was that of Hispanics.

SMELL TEST

2014). Although “squatting out anchor babies”

doesn’t appear to be a direct quote used by

any Republicans on the national scene, in 2010,

Republican senator from South Carolina Lindsey

Graham came close by saying, “people come

here to have babies. They come here to drop a

child. It’s called ‘drop and leave.’ To have a child

in America, they cross the border, they go to the

emergency room, have a child, and that child’s

automatically an American citizen. That shouldn’t

be the case. That attracts people here for all the

wrong reasons” (Jacobson, 2010). Even though

Republicans haven’t used the exact phrase

“squatting out anchor babies,” Republicans have

used offensive language to refer to immigrants

bearing children for citizenship purposes.

In the video Esteban Colberto

mentions the accusation of

immigrants as “stealing welfare”

as language that could alienate Hispanic

voters (Obama’s immigration plan, 2014). Have

Republicans actually used the term? Opponents

of illegal immigration have made the argument

for years that undocumented workers take

advantage of government benefits. Examples

include fact-checking website posts from 2009

and 2012, debunking social media claims that

undocumented immigrants receive welfare and

other federal programs (Bank, 2009; Jacobson,

2012).

The argument continues to be used — and was

stated explicitly by a Republican candidate, Ted

Cruz, in the 2016 elections. The website factcheck.

org contains the following quote concerning

a recent claim made during a Republican

presidential debate: “Cruz said he would ‘end

welfare benefits for those here illegally.’ But

immigrants in the U.S. illegally are already

barred from receiving most government benefits,

including food stamps and Temporary Assistance

for Needy Families.” However, this statement was

made more than a year after after 2014 Colbert

sketch (Factcheck.org, 2016). While the exact

phrase stealing welfare isn’t one that’s been found

in the news, the myth that illegal immigrants are

taking advantage of welfare programs persists in

conservative circles. The claim is half true.

Watch this video online:cc.com/video-clips/iw2iwg

PAGE 32

SATIREVIDEO #3

In this video Stephen Colbert mentions that President Obama ordered that 38 Honduran children

and women be repatriated to San Pedro Sula, which has the world’s highest murder rate (Questionable compassion, 2014). According to HuffPost Politics, on July 14, 2014, on the first flight after President Obama made a promise to speed up the deportation process for undocumented immigrants, 17 women and 21 children (ages 18 months to 15 years old) were sent back to San Pedro Sula, Honduras, which is the city with the highest murder rate in the world (Stargardter, 2014). San Pedro Sula does have the highest murder rate in the World, and Obama did send 38 deported women and children to that city.

INCONCLUSIVE. In the video, Fox News railed against a plan to house unaccompanied immigrant children

in a “luxury resort,” but it turned out the hotel was actually in poor condition and received bad reviews (Questionable compassion, 2014). According to Fox News, after a report aired on the conservative news network about the plan, the charity BCFS (formerly Baptist Child and Family Services) announced that they wouldn’t move forward with a plan to purchase a Texas hotel for $3.8 million because of the bad publicity from the report. However, the Fox News report didn’t mention that the facilities were in poor condition. An online article from Fox News says that “The Palm Aire Hotel is not exactly Club Med” (Starnes, 2014).

Media Matters for America adds the charity — which held a federal contract to house the children — planned to renovate the resort into dormitory-style housing for the children.The report said “conservative media have mostly ignored BCFS’ statement that the facility was going to be renovated and have used marketing images of the Palm Aire Hotel to leave the impression that the children would be housed in luxury conditions” (Willis, 2014). The basic fact of the story is true. An immigrant relief organization had plans to buy a resort. The condition of the report, and the appropriateness of the plan, is a matter of opinion.

TRUE. In the video Stephen Colbert states that immigrants from Central America bringing ebola (and other

diseases) to America is a “baseless fear” (Questionable compassion, 2014). A story from CNN politics said despite claims from some politicians, Ebola coming into the United States from Hispanic immigrants isn’t a danger, saying the disease hasn’t been reported in Latin America. The article cites the directors of the Centers for Disease Control and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases disputing claims that there’s a risk of Hispanic immigrants carrying Ebola to the United States (Santana, 2014). Experts on the matter agree. Stephen Colbert’s assertion that immigrants from Central America bringing ebola with them is not a valid concern is accurate.

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SOURCE The Colbert Report is a comedic news parody show. It is generally well researched, however, the show is known to take things out of context for comedic effect.

MOTIVATION Colbert’s primary motive is to entertain. He did this by pointing out the irony of comments of conservative politicians and commentators in saying they’re compassionate about the plight of immigrant children while calling for actions that seem uncompassionate.

EVIDENCE Colbert collected many sound bites and video clips to present this piece. The challenge is to determine whether these sources were presented in proper context.

LEFT OUT Colbert’s argument that there is irony in conservatives saying they’re compassionate in their stances about immigrant children, but acting differently is compelling, although snarky. One obvious fallacy is that Colbert is painting conservatives with a very broad brush. He’s overgeneralizing that all conservatives share the views of a few individuals.

LOGIC Colbert didn’t give voice to conservatives who might explain their points of view on how they can be compassionate about immigrants, but also tough on enforcement of laws. The voices of undocumented immigrants and those who feel affected by the surge of undocumented immigrants were also left out.

SMELL TEST

TRUE. In the video Stephen Colbert says that a Republican congressional candidate from Arizona, Adam

Kwasman, protested what he thought to be a bus load of immigrant children. The passengers were actually YMCA camp participants (Questionable compassion, 2014).

A report by Newsweek says that congressional candidate Adam Kwasman joined others to protest what they thought were a busload of immigrant children. The congressman tweeted: “Bus coming in. This is not compassion. This is the abrogation of the rule

of law.” However, the bus was actually filled with passengers from a local school district headed to a YMCA camp. In another tweet Kwasman said: “I was actually able to see some of the children in the buses. The fear on their faces.... This is not compassion.” However, reporters at the scene said the campers were actually in a good mood. The candidate later admitted he was wrong, tweeting: “I apologize for the confusion. That was my error” (Wofford, 2014). This claim is true. There is verifiable evidence that Kwasman made such tweets.

Watch this video online:cc.com/video-clips/z3gi0q

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

SATIREAdvertisement Tonight - Ted Cruz’s “Invasion” [Video file]. (2016, January 7).

Retrieved from http://www.cc.com/video-clips/q50juq

Bank, J. (2009, April 6). Cost of Illegal Immigrants. Retrieved from http://www.factcheck.org/2009/04/cost-of-illegal-immigrants

Bazelon, E. (2015, August 18). The unwelcome return of ‘illegals’. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/23/magazine/the-unwelcome-return-of-illegals.html

Bell, A. (2014, August 7). Americans worry that illegal migrants threaten way of life, economy. Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/-idUSKBN0G70BE20140807

Bobic, I. (2014, July 16). GOP candidate mistakes YMCA kids for migrants, describes ‘fear in their faces’. HuffPost politics. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/16/adam-kwasman_n_5591090.html

Carrasquillo, A. (2013, May 1). Paul Ryan: Illegal immigration is easy and then people have anchor babies. Retrieved from http://nbclatino.com/2013/05/01/paul-ryan-illegal-immigration-is-easy-and-then-people-have-anchor-babies

FactCheck.org. (2016, February 7). FactChecking the eighth GOP debate. Retrieved from http://www.factcheck.org/2016/02/factchecking-the-eighth-gop-debate

Jacobson, L. (2010, August 5). Fact-checking the claims about ‘anchor babies’ and whether illegal immigrants ‘drop and leave’. Retrieved from http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2010/aug/06/lindsey-graham/illegal-immigrants-anchor-babies-birthright

Jacobson, L. (2012, June 20). ‘Illegal Alien Facts’ vs. the Truth-O-Meter. Retrieved from http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2010/aug/06/lindsey-graham/illegal-immigrants-anchor-babies-birthright

Novak, V. (2010, May 13). Does immigration cost jobs? Retrieved from http://www.factcheck.org/2010/05/does-immigration-cost-jobs

Obama’s immigration plan - Esteban Colberto [Video file]. (2014, November 18). Retrieved from http://www.cc.com/video-clips/iw2iwg

PAGE 35

Parkinson, J. (2013, June 25). Steve King defends ‘cantaloupes’ comments about drug-’hauling’ DREAMers. Retrieved from http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/07/steve-king-defends-controversial-cantaloupes-comments-about-drug-hauling-dreamers

Questionable compassion for child immigrants [Video file]. (2014, July 17). Retrieved from http://www.cc.com/video-clips/z3gi0q

Raju, M. (2016, January 6). Ted Cruz’s immigration reversal. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/06/politics/ted-cruz-immigration-2016-election

Santana, M. (2014, November 20). 5 immigration myths debunked. Retrieved from http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/20/news/economy/immigration-myths/

Santana, M. (2014, October 12). Ebola fears spark backlash against Latino immigrants. CNN politics. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/10/politics/ebola-fears-spark-backlash-latinos

Stargardter, G. (2014, July 14). U.S. deports honduran children in first flight since Obama’s pledge. Huffpost politics. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/14/us-deports-honduran-children_n_5586326.html

Starnes, T. (2014, July 16). Fed-backed group drops plan to buy fancy hotel to house illegals. Retrieved from http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/07/16/feds-to-house-illegal-immigrants-at-multimillion-dollar-hotel.html

Vinik, D. (2014, June 10). Fear of a non-white nation. New Republic. Retrieved from https://newrepublic.com/article/118076

Willis, O. (2014, July 16). How conservative media killed a charity’s plan to help migrant children in crisis. Media matters for America. Retrieved from http://mediamatters.org/blog/2014/07/16/how-conservative-media-killed-a-charitys-plan-t/200128

Wofford, T. (2014, July 16). Rep. Kwasman mistakes bus full of YMCA campers for bus full of undocumented immigrants. Retrieved from http://www.newsweek.com/arizona-congressman-mistakes-bus-full-ymca-campers-bus-full-illegal-immigrants-259276

Zavodny, M. (2011, December 15). Immigration and American Jobs. Retrieved from http://www.aei.org/publication/immigration-and-american-jobs

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SPEECHESVIDEO #1

President Obama said: “Let’s be honest. Tracking down, rounding up and deporting millions of people

isn’t realistic. Anyone who suggests otherwise isn’t being straight with you” (“Obama’s Immigration Address”, 2014). The Economic Policy Institute reported that attempting to deport all of the illegal immigrants would cost too much money and end up hurting the economy and the job market (Costa, Cooper, & Shierholz, 2014). According to the American Action Forum, “the federal government would have to spend roughly $400 billion to $600 billion to address the 11.2 million undocumented immigrants and prevent future unlawful entry into the United States” (Gitis & Collins, 2015).

“Over the past six years, illegal border crossings have been cut by almost half”(“Obama’s Immigration

Address”, 2014). According to FactCheck.org, there was less than a 50 percent drop in undocumented immigrant apprehensions (Gore, 2014). It reported there were “705,005 apprehensions of people illegally crossing the Southwest border in fiscal 2008, and 479,377 apprehensions in fiscal 2014...That’s a 32 percent drop” (Gore, 2014).

“This summer, there was a brief spike in unaccompanied children being apprehended at our border.

The number of such children is now actually lower than it has been in two years” (“Obama’s Immigration Address”, 2014). A fact check by the Associated Press reported the increase in child immigrants was more than a “brief spike” (Calwell & Werner, 2014). AP also reported in 2012, the Border Patrol caught “more than 24,000 children, followed by more than 38,000 in 2013. In the last budget year, more than 68,361 children were apprehended” (Calwell & Werner, 2014).

“Overall, the number of people trying to cross our border illegally is at it’s lowest level since the

1970’s” (“Obama’s Immigration Address”, 2014). Politifact reported that “In 2013, about 420,000 illegal immigrants were apprehended at the border. The last time it was lower than in 1972” (Sherman, 2014). However, the website also said border control wasn’t as tight in the 1970s, so a comparison can’t be made (Sherman, 2014). The Associated Press also reported border patrol apprehensions have been on the rise since the statistics came out (Calwell & Werner, 2014).

PAGE 37

SOURCE President Obama is the main source of information in his address.However, he cited statistics from the Department of Homeland Security and even quotes President George W. Bush in his speech. He also made several references to the republican and democratic parties.

MOTIVATION In his speech, President Obama is informing the nation about the current immigration situation in the United States. He discussed what is changing with immigration reform and is trying to persuade the nation to trust in the plan that he has to handle illegal immigration.

EVIDENCE Obama provided plenty of evidence to support his ideas on immigration reform. He cited several different statistics from the Department of Homeland Security, which is a reliable source of information.

LEFT OUT The information President Obama presented was logical and made sense. He discussed every aspect of immigration in the United States and didn’t leave any information out. For example, he discussed the increased security throughout the Southwestern border, the immigrants themselves, the new reforms and the effect they will have on the American citizens.

LOGIC While Obama covered a lot of information, he gave very little information about the people/political parties that opposed the new reforms. He mentioned them briefly, but didn’t get too in depth on why they disapproved.

SMELL TEST

Watch this video online:nyti.ms/11J1DYp

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SPEECHESVIDEO #2

“It is no great secret that across the United States undocumented workers perform a critical role in

our economy” (Attanasio, 2015). A report by The Hamilton Project said immigrants “are a net positive for the federal budget” (The Hamilton Project, 2010, p. 8). The report also said: “The most recent academic research suggests that, on average, immigrants raise the overall standard of living of American workers by boosting wages and lowering prices” (The Hamilton Project, 2010, p. 7). Because of this, the fact can be confirmed to be true.

“Today, shamefully, we have more than 12 million Latinos living in poverty” (Attanasio, 2015).

According to an article in the Pew Research Center, in 2013 there were 12.7 million Latinos living in poverty in the U.S. (Krogstad, 2014). Because of this source, the fact can be confirmed to be true.

“The real unemployment rate for young Hispanic college graduates in 11%, nearly double the rate of white

Americans” Attanasio, 2015). According to a report by the Economic Policy Institute, the unemployment rate of young Hispanics in 2015 is 5.8 percent (Davis, Kimball & Gould, 2010). Because of this, the fact is confirmed to be false.

“For young Hispanics with only a high school degree, the real unemployment rate is 36%”

(Attanasio, 2015). A report by the Economic Policy Institute said the unemployment rate among young Hispanics with a high school degree is 19.5 percent in 2015 (Davis, Kimball & Gould, 2010). Because of this, the fact is confirmed to be false.

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SOURCE In his Speech, Bernie Sanders used the Southern Poverty Law Center as a source of information on the working condition of illegal immigrants living in the United States. He also cited several differents acts and agreements such as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and the DREAM Act (Attanasio, 2015). He uses these sources to explain his support for the immigrants living in the United States.

MOTIVATION The motive of this speech is to persuade American citizens to support undocumented immigrants. At the beginning of his speech, Sanders said: “Today, I want to talk about two major issues facing our country. The need for comprehensive immigration reform and the need for an economy which works for all our people, and not just a handful of people on the top” (Attanasio, 2015)

EVIDENCE Bernie Sanders used many different statistics to provide evidence for his ideas and opinions on immigration. For example, when discussing the need to increase the unemployment rates among illegal immigrants, he cited the statistic stating the unemployment rates are around 11 percent and 36 percent (Attanasio, 2015).

LEFT OUT It was logical for Bernie Sanders to explain why illegal immigrants are important to our country while bringing up the things we need to do for them. By doing this, his argument was clear and easy for the audience to understand.

LOGIC Bernie Sanders didn’t include any information or viewpoints from the opposing side. Since this information was left out, he speech was definitely biased towards supporting illegal immigrants.

SMELL TEST

Watch this video online:bit.ly/1KPkdTY

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

SPEECHESAttanasio, C. (2015, Oct 13). Bernie Sanders On Immigration: Read Full Speech From Presidential

Candidate’s Address to NALEO. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.latintimes.com/bernie-sanders-immigration-read-full-speech-presidential-candidates-address-naleo-324484

Calwell, A.A, & Werner, E. (2014, November 21). Fact Check: Obama’s claim on illegal immigration. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://live.mprnews.org/Event/Obama_changes_immigration_policy?Page=2

Costa, D., Cooper, D., & Shierholz, H. (2014, August 12). Facts About Immigration and the U.S. Economy: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions. Retrieved February 6, 2016, from http://www.epi.org/publication/immigration-facts/

Davis, A., Kimball, W., & Gould, E. (2015, May 27). The Class of 2015: Despite an Improving Economy, Young Grads Still Face an Uphill Climb. Retrieved February 25, 2016, from http://www.epi.org/publication/the-class-of-2015/

Gitis, B.& Collins,L. (2015, March 6). The Budgetary and Economic Costs of Addressing Unauthorized Immigration: Alternative Strategies. Retrieved February 20, 2015, http://americanactionforum.org/research/the-budgetary-and-economic-costs-of-addressing-unauthorized-immigration-alt

Gore, D. (2014, November 26). Spinning Immigration Data. Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.factcheck.org/2014/11/spinning-immigration-data/

Krogstad, J. M. (2014, September 19). Hispanics only group to see its poverty rate decline and incomes rise. Retrieved February 25, 2016, from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/09/19/hispanics-only-group-to-see-its-poverty-rate-decline-and-incomes-rise/

Obama’s Immigration Address. (2014, November 21). Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/video/us/100000003247659/obamas-immigration-address.html

Sherman, A. (2014, December 19). Immigration: the year in fact-checking. Retrieved February 20, 2015, from http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2014/dec/19/immigration-year-fact-checking/

The Hamilton Project. (2010). Ten economic facts about immigration. Michael Greenstone and Adam Looney.

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ANALYSIS The cable news videos generally steered toward informant, though a couple also were motivated to persuade. The satires were more geared toward entertaining and persuading, though there were some accurate facts presented. The speeches were more focused on informing and persuading. The facts were most accurately presented in the cable news sources, though, than in comparison to the satires as the satires lacked facts and included the most inaccurate facts of the mediums, though not by a lot. The news sources were more reliable than the political speeches as the fact presented by the news sources were mostly true, while the speeches contained more half-true or false facts.

MSNBC was the medium that had the most truth in it and lack of truthiness. An example of the truth presented by MSNBC is when it said: “Raids will just target adults and children previously caught trying to enter the U.S. illegally or those ordered to leave at some point over the last two years” (“Immigration Raids”, 2016). An example of truthiness is when Cristina Jimenez said: “This is not the way to go about treating these families” (“WH doesn’t back”, 2016). Fox News was a mixture of truth and truthiness as it presented accurate facts, but contained some truthiness as well. An example of truth from Fox News is when Patti Ann Browne said if the Supreme Court were to side with his administration, Obama “could halt the deportation of up to five million immigrants” (“What SCOTUS immigration”, 2016). An example of truthiness is when Sebastian Gorka said: “It literally leaves one speechless… The system is so utterly broken it is beyond words” (“Feds lose track of”, 2015). An example of truth in the satire sources is when Jessica Williams mentioned high-skilled immigrant workers and said “you know who supported bringing them in? Last year. In the last immigration bill? Ted Cruz” (Advertisement tonight, 2016). An example of truthiness was found when Jessica Williams said: “Ads like this are just naked pandering to republicans who fear immigrants and to 18-25 year olds who fear office attire”(Advertisement tonight, 2016). The speeches on immigration also contained a mixture of truth and truthiness. An example of truth presented in the speech by President Obama is when he said: “Let’s be honest. Tracking down, rounding up and deporting millions of people isn’t realistic” (“Obama’s Immigration Address”, 2014). However, Obama also reported a statement of truthiness when he said deporting illegal immigrants “is not who we are as Americans” (Obama’s Immigration Address”, 2014).

The speeches were more politically driven than the news sources. While the news sources were focused on politics, the speeches were given from a political standpoint and were focused on persuading the public. The cable news sources were presenting the news and information and debating the issues, but were more focused on informing than persuading. MSNBC did not reference any speeches, but showed a caucus and presented it fairly. Most of the speeches or hearings presented in Fox News were fair, but in the video “Feds lose track of thousands who

PAGE 42

have had visas revoked”, the hearing was edited and cut so that it fit the argument Fox News was making.

In satirical news videos, they mimicked the format and presentation of cable news sources. The presenters did this by dressing up as profession news anchors. They acted and looked the part, but the content was much different than that of cable news. This irony brings forth the evidence of truthiness in news reporting as it is just an exaggeration of actual news.

The cable news sources were the most reliable and informational in regards to the facts as these mediums had the most truthful facts presented. Ten of the 12 facts checked for MSNBC and nine of the 12 facts checked for Fox News were completely true. Seven of the 13 satire facts and three of the eight speech facts were completely true.

The preamble to the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics said: “Ethical journalism strives to ensure the free exchange of information that is accurate, fair and thorough” (SPJ Code of Ethics, 2014). Through our research, we found the cable news sources and speeches were the most ethical in the way that they reported the stories. However, these sources were not completely as thorough as they could have been. Satire sources, on the other hand, are more likely to push the ethical boundaries, especially when it comes to “minimizing harm” (SPJ Code of Ethics, 2014).

Based on the Uses and Gratifications theory, people are likely to choose a form of media that will best fit their need and wants. These factors are going to determine whether an individual decides to get their information from cable news sources, speeches or satire.

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Advertisement Tonight - Ted Cruz’s “Invasion” [Video file]. (2016, January 7). Retrieved from http://www.cc.com/video-clips/q50juq

Feds lose track of thousands who have had visas revoked. (Dec. 19, 2015). New York City, New York: Fox News. Retrieved February 24, 2016, from http://video.foxnews.com/v/4668483693001/feds-lose-track-of-thousands-who-have-had-visas-revoked/?#sp=show-clips

Immigration raids reportedly underway. (Jan. 4, 2016). MSNBC News. Retrieved February 5, 2016, from http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/deportation-crackdown-rounds-121-immigrant-adults-and-children

Obama’s Immigration Address. (2014, November 21). Retrieved February 20, 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/video/us/100000003247659/obamas-immigration-address.html

SPJ Code of Ethics | Society of Professional Journalists | Improving and protecting journalism since 1909. (2014, September 6). Retrieved February 25, 2016, from http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp

WH doesn’t back down on deportation raids. (Jan.9, 2016).MSNBC News. Retrieved February 5, 2016, from, http://www.msnbc.com/up/watch/wh-doesn-t-back-down-on-deportation-raids-599050819676

What SCOTUS immigration ruling means for Obama’s legacy. (Jan. 20, 2016). New York City, New York: Fox News. Retrieved February 24, 2016, from, http://video.foxnews.com/v/4713706153001/what-scotus-immigration-ruling-means-for-obamas-legacy/?#sp=show-clips

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ANALYSIS

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With each video having the SMELL test applied to it, there were some interesting findings. The mediums all differed in their use of sources. In the MSNBC section, two of three videos’ sources were from published news articles. In the third, however, Congressional Hispanic Caucus and other congressional members and a managing director of an immigrant rights group. However, Fox News did not have a source representing immigrants, rather it had more official government sources or professors. In the satires, the host would play snippets of videos from other news sources and speeches. In the speeches, President Obama and Bernie Sanders were the sources.

In regards to motivation, there was much variation. Both MSNBC and Fox News were primarily motivated to inform, but each had one video that was motivated to persuade. The primary motivation for the satires were to entertain, but there are elements of motivation to inform in each, as well. In the speeches, both were moti-vated to persuade, though Obama had some motivation to inform as well.

The evidence used and they way it was presented in each medium was somewhat similar. In the MSNBC, Fox News and satire videos, there were many facts and statistics presented, references to reports and/or the use of videos or soundbites of the fact they were presenting. In the speeches, President Obama used multiple political sources, whereas Bernie Sanders cited various acts and agreements.

The logic of each medium also differed. The MSNBC and speech videos were logically presented in ways that made sense and flowed together. The Fox News videos, though mostly logical, contained a few logical fallacies such as overgeneralizations and flawed comparisons. All of the satire videos had some form of logical fallacies, such as overgeneralization, non sequiturs and lack of context. Though the arguments were compel-ling, when put to the SMELL test they did not hold up. In the speeches, both Obama and Sanders’ arguments were logical.

The final part of the SMELL test, “left out”, was interesting. As the topic is immigration, almost all videos did not have sources from those directly affected by immigration, whether it be specific lawmakers, U.S. citizens who are children of immigrants or immigrants themselves. Most of the videos also failed to either present or have someone represent the viewpoints from the opposite side. Though some videos did have each of these, the majority did not.

The fact-checking brought to attention some interesting, yet not completely surprising, things. The facts presented in both MSNBC and Fox News were, for the most part, true. There were a couple of instances where the fact was half-true, false or inconclusive, though. In Obama’s speech, the facts were more half-true as the facts weren’t completely correct. In Sanders’ speech half of the facts checked were true while the other half were false. In the satire videos, while the majority of the facts were still true, there were also more occurrences of things being half-true or false in comparison to the cable news sources.

In conclusion, in the comparison of truth vs. truthiness, MSNBC had the most truth, Fox News and the speech-es were a mixture of truth and truthiness and satire had truth but was mostly truthiness.

CONCLUSION

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POST-QUIZ

1) Tashfeen Malik was an illegal immigrant to the United States.

a) True b) False

2) How many immigrants can be shielded from deportation under DAPA, or Deferred Action for Parents of Americans?

a) Less than 3,000 b) More than 4 million c) Roughly 7.5 million d) None, DAPA was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court

3) How many states filed lawsuit against President Barack Obama’s executive actions on immigration?

a) 37 b) 28 c) 26 d) 15

4) How many foreigners stayed in the United States beyond their lawful admission period in 2015?

a) 2.7 million b) 500,000 c) 342,539 d) 527,127

5) While Mexicans are the majority of illegal immigrants, their rates have been decreasing.

a) True b) False

Obama said he plans to focus on what illegal immigrants first?

a) Criminals b) Families c) Mexicans d) All illegal immigrants

7) What is a nickname Obama has received in relation to immigration?

a) The Terminator b) The Open Door c) The Deporter-in-Chief d) None of the above

8) How many illegal immigrants have been deported under Obama’s administration?

a) Less than 1.5 million b) More than 2 million c) Roughly 27 million d) Just over 800,000

9) All immigrants are from Latin America.

a) True b) False

10) Social media and the internet are big factors in the lives of American jihadi sympathizers.

a) True b) False

1-b, 2-b, 3-c, 4-d, 5-a, 6-a, 7-c, 8-b, 9-b, 10-a

ANSWERS

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PHOTO CREDITSGetty Images. (2011). [untitled photograph of shoe along U.S.-Mexico border]. Retrieved from

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/3/11/death-in-the-desertthedangeroustrekbetweenmexicoandarizona.html

Harnik, A. (Photographer). (2015, December 16). [untitled photograph of Donald Trump). Retrieved from http://www.gq.com/story/donald-trump-sounding-presidential-gop-debate

Kim, E. T. (Photographer). (2013, October 25). [untitled photograph of Cornelio Ramires and Rosa Iselda]. Retrieved from http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2013/10/25/for-children-of-migrantworkersthefieldorthecar.html

Mow, J. & Laura, P. (Directors). (2015) [video still from motion picture East of Salinas]. Retrieved from http://eastofsalinas.com/portfolio/slideshow

Nicholson, L. (Photographer). (2013, April 17). [untitled photograph of Mercedes Rosa Ruiz Mejia]. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/news/gallery/2013/apr/17/1

Redmond, J. (Photographer). (2015, February 26). [untitled photograph of crowd protesting against deportations]. Retrieved from http://www.cfr.org/immigration/us-immigration-debate/p11149

Reuters (2013, June 26). [untitled photograph of boy waving flag]. Retrieved from http://tribune.com.pk/story/568559/in-us-asian-immigrants-better-off-than-whites-study

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BIOGRAPHIESAUBREE THOMAS is a junior at Utah State University and is majoring in agricultural communication with a minor in animal science. She grew up in the town of McKinnon, Wyoming, which has a booming population of 90 people! Aubree recently graduated from Casper College in Wyoming where she spent the majority of her time participating on the collegiate livestock judging team. A few of her passions include spending time with family and friends, riding horses and raising cows! Her dream is to live on a ranch with a family of her own and have a job educating others about agriculture.

ASHLEY SPRINGER is a junior at Utah State University studying journalism and communication with an emphasis in public relations and a minor in English. Springer has lived in Spokane, Washington; Chicago, Illinois; Herriman and Logan, Utah. She is currently an intern with the USU athletic department’s media relations and is huge sport nut. She particularly enjoys basketball and football, and she hopes to someday work for the NBA or NFL. When she is not busy doing homework or working, Springer enjoys reading, writing, doing various sports and “Netflixing.”

BRIE OLSEN is a junior studying journalism and communication with an emphasis in public relations. She just transferred from Southern Utah University and one day hopes to be an event planner/manager. She grew up in Manti, Utah but calls Cedar City, Utah home. Brie has little to no spare time between a full school schedule as well as a full-time job, but on the rare occasion she does, Netflix is her best friend.

TERENCE LARSON is studying agricultural communication at Utah State University. He works as a graphic designer for the university’s College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences, Extension and Utah Agricultural Experiment Station. In his free time he enjoys camping, shooting hoops, playing volleyball and (most of all) spending time with friends and family. He hopes to someday combine writing, designing and creating multimedia as a corporate communications professional or journalist in the agricultural field.