Thesis (including advantages and objections):
Social media platforms are being used to propagate fake news to an innocent audience who are forced to think in a predetermined direction as intended by political leaders.
Topic Sentence for Advantage Section:
Advantage 1: Social media platforms have the capacity to spread fake news within a short period of time to a large audience.
Advantage 2: The effectiveness of social media platforms attract quick responses from an audience which believes in fake news.
Advantage 3*: Social media platforms forms the only available channel of obtaining news and information in remote areas such as the country’s suburbs and rural areas.
Advantage 4*: It is through social media platforms that an effective planning process of mobilizing the public and organizing political processes – such as protests – within a short time.
Topic Sentence for Objection/Refutation Section:
Support Example 1:
Objection: Audiences should have other sources that verify the authenticity, validity, and genuineness of information that spreads around as fake news.
Refutation Fake news is an optional source of information in which people should decide whether to believe in the information provided or seek for exact and validated sources of news.
Support Example 2:
Objection: For political information to be verified, audiences of social media platforms should seek alternatives sources of information such as respective official websites where formal communication is posted.
Refutation Responsible government agencies should ensure that perpetrators of fake news that contributes to violence should face legal action other than advising a public audience to seek authenticated information from other sources.
Support Example 3*:
Objection: Facebook users have the sovereignty to contribute to the spread of fake news by deciding to like a post or commenting on it as a way of providing a response.
Refutation Sole actions of social media users should implicate the involved individual – at a personal level – if the information provided leads to civil unrest and political instability.
Support Example 4*:
Objection: Identifying other sources – aside from social media platforms – would be a vital verification process which separates fake news from verified sources.
Refutation It is difficult to rule out the effectiveness and efficiency of social media platforms in spreading information irrespective of whether it is fake or genuine news.