Facts Versus Opinion

Felix is a better singer than Mawi. Mawi is older than Felix.

These are two statements about two people who are currently creating a wave among Malaysian TV viewers. One major difference between these two statements is that one is a statement of fact and the other is a statement of opinion. The former is of course a statement of opinion and the latter is a statement of fact. In evaluating what you read it is important to be able to distinguish between a fact and an opinion. It is not always easy to keep the two apart. A writer often combines the two in such a way that you do not always notice where fact ends and opinions begin.

Facts are statements that tell what really happened or really is the case. A fact is based on direct evidence. It is something known by actual experience or observation.

Opinions are statements of belief, judgment, or feeling. They show that someone thinks about a subject. Solid opinions, of course, are based on facts. However, opinions are still somebody's view of something and are not facts themselves. Opinions use a lot words that interpret e.g. pretty, ugly, dangerous, etc. Words like probably, perhaps, I believe, I suggest also indicate statements of opinion.

Now try to distinguish facts from opinions from the following paragraph:

Compact discs reproduce truer sound than records. They cannot skip or scratch the way records do. Despite this, there will always be a market for record players because people don't like to change things they're are used to for new gadgets they can't understand.


The first part of this statement is true. CD players use digital computers, which do reproduce sound more faithfully than records do. Since CD players use laser and not needles, they can't damage discs or cause scratches or skips. The next part of the statement is a prediction based on two beliefs that may or may not be true. First, "People don't like to change things they're used to" is not a fact. It isn't true in all cases. New inventions take time to become accepted. CD players have now replaced record players completely. The 2nd opinion expressed, that people can't understand new gadgets, is invalid for similar reasons.

Here are statements taken from many newspaper. Decide whether they are statement of fact or opinions.

1. He was 3,000 miles away as his $1.25-million home burned to the ground, but Merv Griffin, 63, is determined to rebuild his jewel of the desert and rekindle his hopes of retiring there with longtime love Eva Gabor ( Star)

2. On any given night, an estimated 735,000 people in the U.S are homeless. As many as 2 million may be without shelter for one night or more during the year (Time)

3. Foreign, older, and wealthy-looking travelers are at high risk of becoming victims of airport crime (USA Today)

4. America's so-called crackdown on crime isn't getting results-in fact, murder, drug dealers, and thugs are spending less time in prison than they were 10 years ago, Justice Department figures show. (The National Enquirer)

Do you believe in UFOs? You may or you may not believe in UFOs. Nowe surf the web for articles on UFOs and/ or movie reviews. Try to detect statements of fact and opinion from those sites. Also, look for advertisements on any products e.g. cars, computers etc and search for the same i.e. statement of fact vs opinion. Publish both on your blog and others please provide feedback. This is another link to evidence on UFOs sightings.