LSAT 156 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q9

LR Question 9 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Journalists often claim that their investigation of …

QUESTION TYPE: Role in Argument

CONCLUSION: Journalistic investigation of private lives is detrimental to society.

REASONING: It makes public figures focus on appearances and makes the public cynical.

ANALYSIS: The argument starts by telling us what journalists claim: that their investigations improve society. Then it immediately pushes back and says that, in reality, the practice is harmful.

So that first statement is not something the author believes—it’s the justification offered by others for the practice. The rest of the argument evaluates that practice and concludes it has negative effects.

So its role is to present a commonly given reason for the practice, which the argument then rejects in substance.

___________

1. This would mean the argument directly argues that the claim itself is false. But the argument doesn’t attack the claim head-on—it focuses on the consequences of the practice instead.
2. CORRECT. It presents a justification often given for the practice, which the argument then challenges by showing the practice is harmful.
3. This suggests the claim is used as evidence for another claim the argument rejects, which is not how it’s used—it’s just a stated justification.
4. This is backwards. The argument says the practice is more damaging, not less.
5. Too strong. It says “generally assumed by everyone,” which goes beyond what the stimulus says.