Question

read the excerpt from \the role of social media in the arab uprisings\ by heather brown, emily guskin, and amy mitchell.

twitter, facebook and other new media offer ways for the arab - american news media to reach audiences, but also pose a threat to smaller outlets. in addition to keeping up with the online presence of larger news organizations, arab - american media are forced to compete with user - generated content that is rapidly available to audiences. the utility of social media in accessing information became clear during the arab uprisings and events such as egypt’s parliamentary and presidential elections. however, suzanne manneh of new america media points out that the credibility of this information is difficult to verify \depending on where it’s from, to whom it’s attributed, and especially when various events are happening very quickly.\

which statement best evaluates the evidence in the text?

○ the authors’ use of quotations from eyewitnesses support the argument well, but the descriptions from their own experiences do little to support the claim.
○ the authors effectively use anecdotes to explain the challenges to arab american news media, but the statistics they incorporate detract from the claim.
○ the authors do not effectively support their claim because they do not include eyewitness testimony.
○ the authors effectively use verifiable information and a quotation from an expert to support their claim.

Explanation:

1. Analyze Option A: The text does not mention the authors' own experiences, so this option is incorrect.
2. Analyze Option B: The text does not use anecdotes (personal stories) or statistics, so this option is incorrect.
3. Analyze Option C: The text does include a quotation from an expert (Suzanne Manneh), so the claim that they do not include eyewitness/testimony - related support is wrong as the expert quote is a form of support, and the option's reasoning is flawed.
4. Analyze Option D: The text provides verifiable information about the role of social media in Arab - American news media (like competing with user - generated content, role in Arab uprisings) and includes a quotation from an expert (Suzanne Manneh) to support the claim about the credibility of information. So this option correctly evaluates the evidence.

Answer:

D. The authors effectively use verifiable information and a quotation from an expert to support their claim.