The brainstorming process I used when identifying the bias in the primary sources included asking questions about the pertinent issues that could affect the articles’ credibility, objectivity, and trustworthiness. In particular, the strategies of asking open-ended questions such as “Where and when was the source created?” “What historical context surrounded the author?”, “What was the purpose of the source?” Similarly, yes-or-no questions helped me determine whether the sources contained bias. Specifically, I asked myself the questions such as “Are there political/economic/social agendas behind the investigated issue?” and “Is the author competent and reliable?” These strategies were the most successful in my brainstorming process for bias in the primary sources.
The most significant challenge I faced when identifying the historical narratives in Ruben’s (1995) and Wasman’s (2019) articles was the scarcity of contextual information that would inform the agenda behind the authors’ claims. To identify the absent voices in the historical narratives, I used the methods of evaluation and contextual analysis to set the narratives in the perspective of the time when they were created (World of Antiquity, 2020). The agenda of climate change in the two articles differed due to the politically and emotionally influenced messages the authors and interviewees communicated.
When assessing the two primary sources for the lacking narratives, one might state that both articles do not demonstrate the perspective of the actual outcomes of Earth Day as an environmental event. In particular, Ruben (1995) exhibits exclusively environmental aspects of the holiday by omitting its founding and historical relevance. On the contrary, Waxman (2019) concentrates on the role of the founder of the holiday, referring to him in the title as Mr. Earth Day; however, he under-addresses the environmental outcomes of the holiday, the social implications, and the overall historical role of the event. Therefore, each source is biased and narrow-focused in its own way, which only justifies the need for using multiple evaluated sources to gain an unbiased perspective on an investigated issue.
References
Ruben, B. (1995). Speaking for the Earth. Environmental Action, 27(1), 11-13.
Waxman, O. B. (2019). Meet ‘Mr. Earth Day,’ the man who helped organize the annual observance. Time.
World of Antiquity. (2020). How to research a history topic | basics of the historical method [Video]. YouTube.