This is just a funny (and somewhat terrifying) example of when people make up an opinion just so that they don't look "uninformed" to the interviewer. Some people on the street outside of the studio for the Jimmy Kimmel show were asked whose performance they liked better in the "First Lady Debate" between Ann Romney and Michelle Obama. Obviously, there was no such debate, but they found people with opinions about it regardless.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EohGmG-QUhA
In addition to not wanting to appear uniformed, I believe that many people feel the need to form opinions as a result of certain societal expectations. As a society that prides itself on freedom of speech, there has come to be a certain belief that individual's should not only form, but also share their opinions with others. In certain situations, it has come to be the case that individuals are viewed as unintelligent if they do not have an opinion on a matter. This video is a good reminder that people can often end up looking more unintelligent when they try and form opinions that they do not actually have rather than admitting their own lack of knowledge about a particular issue.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I found this video quite humerous, I also found it saddening. I agree with you, Colleen. America is definitely a country that prides itself on being knowledgable, as well as the ability to speak freely. I have found that many people do not like admitting that they do not know something because they are fearful of being ridiculed and/or looked down upon. Thus, although it is sad that people try to seem knowledgable about something they know nothing about, I think that people do this because of the society we live in.
ReplyDeleteI agree that people don't like to admit that they don't know something, but after thinking about it, I think there was also somewhat of a panic response in these people in the video. If a person with a microphone and a camera comes up to you in New York and asks your opinion about a major televised debate the night before, then you either a) Trust yourself enough to know that there was no such debate, and that the person with the microphone is trying to trick you; b) Assume you just didn't hear about it, and admit that you didn't watch it/know about it; or c) Trust that the person with the microphone has no reason to lie to you about such an event, panic about seeming uninformed in front of the camera, and potentially the country, and make up some vague opinion based on what you already think about Ann Romney or Michelle Obama. Considering that, I wonder how these people would've responded if there was no camera or microphone around.
ReplyDeleteJimmy Kimmel often does these about made up events and the results are incredible. Many people will give opinions to made up events or actions in order to sound informed. I do agree that the responses may be different if there wasn't a camera. The pressure to sound informed heavily influences their answers. This video is meant to be funny, but the sad truth is that there are similar results in real surveys. Many people will sooner lie to sound informed than tell the truth that they don't know.
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