Question

Imagine you are researching the facts surrounding the sinking of the maine. you have two sources available to you.source

a.a hollywood movie about the spanish-american war.source
b.a book written by a historian who is an expert in us history.which source do you trust more? why?

Answer 1

b. because an experienced historian is more likely to get the facts right rather than a movie that's twisted to be more dramatic, comedic, etc.

Answer 2

The correct answer is B.

In any situation, the historian should be a more reliable source than a film, but even more if the underlying story refers to the Spanish-American War.

When the USS Maine sunk in Havana Port during the Cuban war of independence against Spain, the Spanish were blamed for the explosion (even tough it happened in strange circumstances). The yellow press in the US portrayed Spaniards as cruel murderers. This turned the popular opinion to support the intervention of the US in the war in the Cuban side.

It can be easily deduced that a Hollywood movie will likely adopt the same morbid viewpoint that the yellow press did and be less objective.