Interest Groups

A big part of how politics is conveyed to people all around our country is through interest groups. Interest groups consist of people with similar interests and once they are together, they push an agenda unique to their beliefs. The group works together to protect and promote their ideals. I chose to look at the issue of abortion and how interest groups from both the liberal and conservative side view the issue. I looked at the NARAL Pro-Choice America interest group from the liberal side and the Pro-life Action League from the conservative side.

The first group I looked at was the NARAL Pro-Choice America interest group, generally made up of liberals. In the about section of the blog, we see the history of the organization and what they stand for. This article is coming from the point of view of a group that, through experiences, developed the belief that people should have the right to abortion if they want one. They believe accessibility to abortion is critical and extremely important to the millions of people around our country. They, along with supporters of the pro-choice cause, work to ensure that women and couples headed for an abortion are given access to the proper resources and clinics to help aid them on their journey.

Just as in any other article online, websites are always, whether they know it or not, affected by bias. A large portion of this article focuses on what the organization does and what they believe in. However, during some parts of the article, we begin to see rhetoric that tries to help push the pro-choice belief. For example, one phrase that stood out to me talked about “defeating the anti-choice agenda and politicians who push it.” Because they so strongly believe in pro-choice, they are willing to try and prove to everyone why they should be too and are trying to defy beliefs commonly held by Republicans. The polarization between the two groups has become so much greater than differences between the two groups in the 70’s. Democrats and Republicans both believe very different things and because this is true, they will do whatever it takes to disprove the ideals of each other and make everyone believe in their ideals instead. Because Democrats would do anything to disprove the ideals of Republicans, that automatically makes this website bias. Because they so greatly differ when it comes to what they believe in, they say whatever they want to even if it’s not entirely true. Interest groups have one job: to get you to believe in what they say. Their job doesn’t necessarily include telling others the truth.

The second group I looked at was the Pro-Life Action League interest group, generally made up of conservatives. In the about section of their website, we see the stories and backgrounds of some of the most significant people in the organization. This article is coming from the point of view of a man named Joe Scheidler. He once went to a pro-life event in his city and ever since, he has been advocating for pro-life. He believes that no one should have an abortion and frowns upon clinics that offer them because everyone has the right to life. He and his committee, along with those that support pro-life work towards promoting the pro-life agenda.

This website uses language in order to persuade their readers into believing in pro-life, something starkly different from what most Democrats believe. A phrase that stood out to me discussed saving your “unborn brothers and sisters.” This insinuates the fact that we have a responsibility to aid in saving babies that are about to be aborted, creating a sense of familiarity with people you don’t even know. This specific phrase is effective in the sense that it doesn’t feel like someone is just telling you why you should believe in their ideals. They are trying to relate their beliefs to you in a way that makes you feel positive about what you’re doing and creates an overarching sense of familiarity by mentioning “brothers and sisters.” Overall, the way the website discusses abortion is done in a way where you feel that pro-life is the right choice because of the rhetoric throughout the language. They try and appeal to your pathos by including stories of how those featured on the website found their beliefs in pro-life, and how it’s your responsibility to do the same. Like mentioned before, Democrats and Republicans will do anything to disprove the ideals of the other. In this case, the Republicans will do anything to persuade readers in believing pro-life is the correct choice, even if it means withholding the truth in their writing.

Both of these articles clearly have one goal in mind: to try and get others to believe in their issues through facts and persuasion. Whether one acknowledges it or not, we are all affected by bias. Bias impacts the ways in which we speak, our actions, why we think what we think, and more. When it comes to Liberals and Conservatives, they view things through very different perspectives. One divisive issue centers around abortion. The views of both parties are polar opposites. After reading the two articles I read, it seemed that Liberals tended to be pro-choice while Conservatives seemed to be pro-life. Both of the articles used specific rhetoric and had their own bias when talking about the stance on their issue. In the article from the NARAL Pro-choice America, a large portion of this article focuses on what the organization does and what they believe in. However, during some parts of the article, we begin to see rhetoric that tries to help push the pro-choice belief. For example, one phrase that stood out to me talked about “defeating the anti-choice agenda and politicians who push it.” Because they so strongly believe in pro-choice, they are willing to try and prove to everyone why they should be too. When it comes to the article from the Pro-life Action League, This website uses language in order to persuade their readers into believing in pro-life. A phrase that stood out to me discussed saving your “unborn brothers and sisters.” This insinuates the fact that we have a responsibility to aid in saving babies that are about to be aborted. Additionally, all of the facts they present on the website discuss how pro-life is the right choice or facts that ultimately lead to swaying you on the argument. Overall, the way the website discusses abortion is done in a way where you feel that pro-life is the right choice because of the rhetoric throughout the language. They try and appeal to your pathos by including stories of how those featured on the website found their beliefs in pro-life, and how it’s your responsibility to do the same. Both of the articles want you to believe in their cause because, ultimately, they believe their point of view is correct. When you have a belief so strong, it’s only natural to want everyone else to believe in the same thing, but that just isn’t possible. So, in short, both of the articles have the same common goal: to persuade their readers (this will always come with a hint of bias). However, both websites do this in different ways, through different language and rhetoric. They persuade others in different ways to make sure their point is understood, and hopefully believed by the readers at the end of the article.