Answer:
3.2 Fact and opinion
It is very important, as an active reader, to recognise the difference between fact and opinion in texts. Facts are true and cannot be argued with, because they can be proven and are supported by evidence, while opinions vary according to the attitudes of the writer.
When you read this kind of text, you need to be able to tell the difference between facts that can be backed up by evidence and ‘facts’ that have been made up by the writer. You can do this by:
checking that any reports that are quoted actually exist and refer to the fact in question
finding other sources that give opposing points of view
thinking of the reason the text has been written and its audience (for example, an article in a popular newspaper may have been written to sell the newspaper rather than to give a true or fair account of an incident)
looking for sensationalist words, such as ‘horror’ or ‘disgraceful’, which might influence readers’ opinions.
An objective piece of writing is based on facts and can be backed up with evidence. Subjective writing expresses opinions and feelings rather than facts.
hope it helps :-).
