Took 13 mins to answer all question correctly.
Here is my analysis:
Summary:
Para 1: Mass Media has made it difficult to have unbiased jurors.
Para 2: Judges use some techniques to eliminate bias; Critics argue these techniques are not effective.
Para 3: Voir dire; Critics' view on voir dire.
Para 4: Authors opinion on the subject: Mass Media should be part of the collective experience of juroirs.Passage Summary: Author endeavors to explain the problems and criticism associated with mass media's effect on jurors' bias and argue against the critics' opinion.
1. Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main point of the passage?Search for an answer that expresses something close to our passage summary.(A) Due to the expansion of mass media, traditional methods for ensuring the impartiality of jurors are flawed and must be eliminated so that other methods can be implemented. -
INCORRECT(B) Criticisms of traditional methods for ensuring the impartiality of jurors have led some countries to abandon these methods entirely. -
INCORRECT(C) Of the three traditional methods for ensuring the impartiality of jurors, voir dire is the most popular among judges but is also the most flawed. -
INCORRECT(D) Voir dire is ineffective at ensuring impartiality due to the latitude it offers potential jurors to misrepresent their knowledge of the cases they are called to hear. -
INCORRECT(E) Due to the expansion of mass media, solving the problem of minimizing partiality in the courtroom requires a redefinition of what constitutes an impartial jury. CORRECT2. One critic characterizes judges' instructions as requiring "mental contortions" (line 25) most likely because of a belief that jurors cannot be expected to(A) deliberate only on what they learn in a trial and not on what they knew beforehand -
CORRECT(B) distinguish between pretrial speculation and the actual facts of a case -
INCORRECT. It is not implied that jurors cannot "DIFFERENTIATE" between pretrial speculation and the actual facts of a case.(C) hear about a case before trial without forming an opinion about it -
INCORRECT. It is not stated that jurors will always form an opinion if they hear about the case before trial.(D) identify accurately the degree of prior knowledge they may possess about a case -
INCORRECT. This is not what author meant by "mental contortions"(E) protect themselves from widely disseminated pretrial publicity -
INCORRECT. This is not what author meant by "mental contortions"3. The primary purpose of the third paragraph is to
Chose an answer that resembles our paragraph summary.(A) propose a new method of ensuring impartiality -
INCORRECT. No new method is proposed by author in third para.(B) describe criticisms of one traditional method of ensuring impartiality -
CORRECT.(C) argue against several traditional methods of ensuring impartiality
INCORRECT. Only "voir dire" is discussed in third paragraph.(D) explain why judges are wary of certain methods of ensuring impartiality -
INCORRECT. Judges are not wary of voir dire; Critics are wary.(E) criticize the views of those who believe judges to be incapable of ensuring impartiality. -
INCORRECT4. With which one of the following statements would the author be most likely to agree?
THE ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION IS IN THE LAST PARAGRAPH.(A) Flaws in voir dire procedures make it unlikely that juries capable of rendering impartial decisions can be selected. -
INCORRECT(B) Knowledge of a case before it goes to trial offers individual jurors the best chance of rendering impartial decisions. -
TRICKY, BUT INCORRECT. Author never tells us what is the "best" chance.(C) Jurors who bring prior opinions about a case to their deliberations need not decrease the chance of the jury's rendering an impartial decision. -
CORRECT. This is what the author is telling us in the last para.(D) Only juries consisting of people who bring no prior knowledge of a case to their deliberations are capable of rendering truly impartial decisions. -
INCORRECT. See the last paragraph.(E) People who know the facts of a case are more opinionated about it than those who do not. -
INCORRECT. Nothing of this sort could be implied.5. The passage suggests that a potential benefit of mass media coverage on court cases is that it will
See last paragraph to answer this question: "But if a jury is to be truly impartial, it must be composed of informed citizens representative of the community’s collective experience; today, this experience includes exposure to mass media."(A) determine which facts are appropriate for juries to hear. -
INCORRECT(B) improve the ability of jurors to minimize their biases. -
INCORRECT(C) strengthen the process by which juries come to decisions - CORRECT(D) change the methods judges use to question potential jurors. -
INCORRECT(E) increase potential jurors' awareness of their degree of bias. -
INCORRECT6. Which one of the following principles is most in keeping with the passage's argument?
See last paragraph to answer this question: "But if a jury is to be truly impartial, it must be composed of informed citizens representative of the community’s collective experience; today, this experience includes exposure to mass media."(A) Jurors should put aside their personal experiences when deliberating a case and base their decision only on the available in formation. -
INCORRECT(B) Jurors should rely on their overall experience when deliberating a case even when the case was subject to mass-media exposure before trial. -CORRECT.(C) Jurors should make every effort when deliberating a case to ignore information about the case that they may have learned from the mass media. -
INCORRECT(D) Jurors should be selected to hear a case based on their degree of exposure to mass-media coverage of the case before trial. -
INCORRECT(E) Jurors should be selected to hear a case based on their capacity to refrain from reading or viewing mass-media coverage of the case while the trial is in progress. -
INCORRECT7. Of the following, the author's primary purpose in writing the passage most likely is to
Search for an answer that expresses something close to our passage summary.(A) search for compromise between proponents and critics of voir dire. -
INCORRECT(B) call attention to the effects of mass media on court proceedings. -
INCORRECT. Even though this is what the majority of the passage does, this answer choice fails to present the overall summary. The last paragraph must also be considered in the overall summary Choice E is better.(C) encourage judges to find new ways to ensure impartial jurors. -
INCORRECT(D) debate critics who find fault with current voir dire procedures. -
INCORRECT(E) argue for a change in how courts address the problem of impartiality - CORRECT.