propaganda technique
Card stacking
Also called: Stacking the deck, Selective presentation
Card stacking presents only the facts that support one side and leaves out those that do not, giving a distorted overall picture.
How it works
Each fact may be true, which makes the technique hard to challenge. The distortion lies in the selection and in what is missing.
Examples
An advert lists a drug's benefits in large print and its serious side effects nowhere.
A report praises a project's three successes and skips its five failures.
How to spot it
- Only advantages, or only disadvantages, are given.
- Obvious questions are not addressed.
- Numbers lack a baseline or comparison.
How to respond
- Ask what the other side would say.
- Look for the omitted costs, risks or failures.
- Find a neutral summary that weighs both.