The following is a memorandum from the business manager of a television station.
"Over the past year, our late-night news program has devoted increased time to national news and less time to weather and local news. During this period, most of the complaints received from viewers were concerned with our station's coverage of weather and local news. In addition, local businesses that used to advertise during our late-night news program have canceled their advertising contracts with us. Therefore, in order to attract more viewers to our news programs and to avoid losing any further advertising revenues, we should expand our coverage of weather and local news on all our news programs."
Write a response in which you examine the stated and/or unstated assumptions of the argument. Be sure to explain how the argument depends on these assumptions and what the implications are for the argument if the assumptions prove unwarranted.
Response :-
Here it is asserted by the business manager of a television station that since last one year, television station has devoted more time to national news and less time to weather and local news in late-night news program. During last one year most of the complaints received from the viewers are concerned with the coverage of local and weather news. Business manager further says that in addition to the complaints received, local businesses that used to advertise in their station have terminated their advertising contract with them. Hence he argues that in order to revive interest among viewers and to avoid further losing of advertising contracts, television station should restore the time devoted to weather and local news to it's former level.
Many evidences are needed to evaluate the argument of business manager as his argument is not fully convincing. First of all, he has assumed that the complaints of viewers regarding coverage of local and weather news is about the time devoted to those news. It might be possible that viewers are dissatisfied with the quality of news-reader or quality of audio and video and similar other technical problems. It is also possible that viewers are not satisfied with the authenticity of content shown in the news. Hence evidences are needed which suggest that viewer's complaints are related with amount of time devoted to local and weather news, in order to strengthen the argument of business manager.
It may also be possible that number of complaints received by the viewers is very less. If this is the case, then there isn't need of any change just because of complaints of few viewers. If most of the viewers are satisfied with the structure of programs then there is not any need of changing it for the sake of few viewers. Hence evidences are needed which suggest that considerable number of complaints were received in order to strengthen the argument.
Also it is wrongly assumed by the manager that local businesses have terminated their contract with the television station because of less time being devoted to local and weather news. It is possible that local businesses aren't satisfied with the viewership of television station. If viewership of television station is not high then they might feel of moving to another station for advertising their products. It is also possible that local businesses are dissatisfied with the television station because of some cheating. For e.g. it might be possible that television station is not showing their advertisement in the same manner which was decided in the contract. Thus evidences are needed which suggest that local businesses are dissatisfied with amount of time devoted to local and weather news, in order to strengthen the argument of business manager.
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