Gas PR

Check out this atrocious CNN example of public opinion manipulation in the continued gas war. Notice how the piece opens with -

'Think you pay a lot for gas? Perhaps you'd prefer to live in Venezuela.'

The Real Effect
A brilliant example of switching the argument. See how the issue raised is no longer whether gas prices are acceptable but switches the focus to how ungrateful you are for expecting lower prices. In addition, it manages to make the inference that you need to live in a dictatorship(Venezuela) to get the low prices. What a piece of work.

Edited for appearance on 3/2/2010.