Question

passing along information is an important part of the news process. earlier pej research finds the role of twitter in disseminating breaking news is not limited to the arab uprisings—the death of whitney houston, for example, was announced on twitter 55 minutes prior to the ap confirming the story. —\the role of social media in the arab uprisings,\ heather brown, emily guskin, and amy mitchell how does this passage develop the overall claim about social media and the spread of information? ○ it demonstrates how social media has little power in sharing news due to the limited number of users. ○ it demonstrates how social media users need to be careful because reported news often is not accurate. ○ it demonstrates how social media is the best source for breaking news because it is highly accurate. ○ it demonstrates how social media has the capacity to spread information faster than traditional outlets.

Explanation:

1. Analyze the first option: The passage shows Twitter (social media) spread news early, so saying it has little power is wrong.
2. Analyze the second option: The passage focuses on speed of spreading, not accuracy or being careful, so this is incorrect.
3. Analyze the third option: The passage doesn't claim social media is the "best" or "highly accurate", just about speed of spreading, so this is wrong.
4. Analyze the fourth option: The example of Whitney Houston's death being announced on Twitter 55 minutes before AP confirms shows social media spreads information faster than traditional outlets, which matches this option.

Answer:

D. It demonstrates how social media has the capacity to spread information faster than traditional outlets.