Fact and Opinion: Is There

Really a Difference
Every man has a right to be wrong in his
opinions.
But no man has a right to be wrong in his
facts.
 Let’s Get The Facts Straight!

Facts are statements that can be proven.

Opinions can not be proven. They are based on
someone's thoughts, their feelings and their
understanding.
Though you may be able to use facts to add
credibility to an opinion, it is still an opinion!
Though an opinion may be widely accepted, that
does not make it a fact.
 Let’s Get The Facts Straight!
A fact is something that can be proven by a reliable
authority such as:
Proven
A Statistics
scientific law
history book
Governmental
Measurements
law

Mathematics An observation

None of these authorities are fool proof, but

information that they provide is considered to be fact.
Lets Look at Some Examples
of Facts
Facts must have a reliable authority

John F. Kennedy was History Book

President 1961-1963
The adult human body Science
has 206 bones
56% of US gun Deaths Statistic
are suicides
21 is the legal drinking Governmental Law
age in Cincinnati, OH
 More Examples of Facts
What About Observations?
Observations are facts because they can be proven by the
senses.

Fact How it is Provable

Some flowers are larger You can bring in flowers
than others. of various sizes

The shirt is green. You can bring in the

shirt so that the color
can be seen
 Getting the Facts on Facts
Some facts change over time.

It was once considered to be a fact that the world was flat.

We believed that those traveling too far in either direction

could literally fall off!

Because new things are being discovered everyday, reliable

authorities are sometimes forced to alter what we all once
considered to be facts.
Lets Look at Some Examples
of Opinions
Here are some of the same topics that we saw as facts.
Can you figure out how they were changed to opinions?

John F. Kennedy was an excellent

President.
Apparently,the adult human body has more bones than
necessary.
All of these words are
It is likely
that the US suicide ratehints
will that
decrease soon.
there is an
opinion present.
It is unfair
for the legal drinking age to be 21.
Types of Opinions

There are Several Types of

Opinions:
 Hypothesis Statements
 Theory Statements
 Assumptive Statements
 Value Statements
 Exaggerated Statements
 Types of Opinions:
Statements of Hypothesis
A Hypothesis is an assumption made in an attempt to
explain an observation. Though an Observation is a
Fact, a Hypothesis is an Opinion.

For Example, if I were to elaborate on a previous observation and say:

Some flowers are larger than others

because they are in more fertile soil.

This hypothesis would have to be further investigated and

scientifically proven to be considered a fact.
 Types of Opinions:
Statements of Theory
A theory is an opinion that is a widely believed
explanation for a group of observations. Here are
two well known examples:

 The Theory of Relativity.

 The Evolutionary Theory.

Though many scientists believe that these theories are true, we

still consider them to be opinions rather than facts because
they have not been proven.
 Types of Opinions:
Statements of Assumption
An assumptive statement is an opinion that is an
improvable prediction. Here are three examples

If Hillary Clinton ran for President she would

definitely win.
The war in Iraq will eventually cost the US all of its
allies.
When that new movie comes out it will definitely be
at the top of the charts!
Though these are stated as though they are true, they are
only assumptive opinions.
 Types of Opinions:
Statements of Value
A value statement is any claim that is based on
someone's beliefs. Here are three examples

Colin Powell is an excellent candidate for president.

The use of animals in lab testing is cruel and must be
stopped.
The Bahamas is the most beautiful place on Earth.

Value Statements are often opinions attempting to sway the

reader to a certain belief.
 Types of Opinions:
Statements of Exaggeration
An exaggerated statement is one that embellishes
the facts, often to sway the reader. Here are two
examples
There were millions of people rioting on the streets
of down town Cincinnati.
The president has not made one good decision since
he has been in office!

Writers often use exaggeration to make their point more

clear. They are still opinions.
Opinions: Words To Look
Out For
There are Certain Words that will Warn You that
You are Being Given an Opinion and
Not a Fact!
Maybe Successful

Perhaps Necessary

Best / Worst Apparently

Experts Agree Probably

{Click mouse to continue}

Getting the Facts About Opinions
An opinion is not necessarily wrong, it is merely not a
provable fact.
For example:

“Bridgett is a very beautiful young lady.”

Even if everyone agreed with this statement, it is still

an opinion because it is not provable. Beauty is
relative.
 Keeping Your Facts Straight
Do you think that you can separate facts from opinions?

The next slide will have five statements.

Decide whether each statement is a fact,
fact or
an opinion.
opinion Write down you answers on a
separate sheet of paper.
 Keeping Your Facts Straight
Separate the facts from the opinions.

The best way to choose a spouse is based on brains, not

beauty.
The car probably stopped running because it ran out of
gas.
The Learning Center is in the Educational Services
Building.
If I were to go on to receive my Bachelors, I would not
be successful.
There are 121 prescription drugs that come from plants.
 Keeping Your Facts Straight
How well did you do?
The car probably The Learning Center is
stopped running in the Educational
because it ran out of Services Building.
gas. -Fact
-Opinion: hypothesis
If I were to go on to The best way to
receive my Bachelors, choose a spouse is
I would not be based on brains, not
successful. beauty. -Opinion:
-Opinion: Assumption value statement

There are 121 prescription drugs that come from

plants.
-Fact