SPIN
verb \ˈspin\ : a special point of view, emphasis, or interpretation presented for the purpose of influencing opinion
SCORE
noun \ˈskȯr\ : a number that expresses accomplishment or excellence
What is Spin in the media?
Good journalism informs and empowers the public. Bad journalism fails to inform, or worse, misinforms the public. Spin can come from anywhere – Politicians do it, Public Relations professionals do it, Lobbyists do it, CEO’s do it.
Are you tired of Spin?
Whenever someone is trying to purposely influence you, you are being spun. You may not be able to pick the truth out of the spin, but given enough readers with enough unique frames of reference, the chances are good that someone can. If you can identify a spin, why would you not want to share your opinion so that others can see it, too? And if others can identify the spin, wouldn’t you want to be given the opportunity to see it for yourself?
Why is Spin harmful?
We typically call misinformation propaganda when it has malicious intents. The motivations behind spin may not seem to be as sinister, but can end up having the same effect.
Everyone likes to think that they have the freedom to come to their own conclusions, if given the complete and truthful facts or story. But everyone has their own frame of reference – their own way of looking at the world and their own beliefs and values. HOW or IF the information is presented can (and DOES) affect what people chose to see or ignore.
How does SpinScore combat media spin?
We don’t make the news. All we do is collect your interpretations, aggregate the opinions of thousands of readers just like you, and let you see the data for what it is. We don’t judge – you do.
It’s no secret that the Washington Post is liberal and Fox News is conservative. You may wish to engage or avoid “the other side” Do you know which authors in each organization get exposed for misrepresenting the news? We do!
Can my opinion really make a difference?
Over time, the patterns of abuse and spin will be revealed. But only if you let your voice be heard. You may think you are the minority, but expressing yourself might change other opinions. Every great change in society started with one voice. You can’t make a difference unless you speak up. And it’s time to speak. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr had a dream, and we do, too.
Why not just a five-star rating?
The customer feedback you see on e-commerce sites has permanently changed the way the modern world shops for goods and services. Before you give your hard earned cash to someone, don’t you check the customer reviews and read a few of the five stars and also a few of the one stars to find out if what causes others to be so dissatisfied will leave you feeling the same way?
News is not that simple. Seeing that a coffee mug shows up smashed in shipping 60% of the time is easy to make a buying decision. But information is far more complex than a coffee mug. Scoring allows you to pick the metric you want to score, and grade that metric specifically. Is something overly conservative, totally opinion based, factually incorrect, or excessively sesquipedalian? Score them ALL!
How Does it Work?
It works through using a browser extension you install into your browser. Most popular browsers are supported – Chrome, Edge, Safari, Firefox, Opera.
While you are reading anything on the internet, if you are viewing content that has been graded by others, you will see the passages highlighted and a small icon that you can use to bring up the full grading information and add your grade to the fray as well. If you run across something that you feel should be graded, just highlight it and grade away! Share your grade and your thoughts to social media if you chose to.