LSAT 120 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q16

LR Question 16 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Logan: Newspapers have always focused on ephemeral matters…

QUESTION TYPE: Point at Issue

ARGUMENTS: Logan concludes newspapers are useless to historians because they focus on ephemeral matters.

Mendez counters that newspapers help us understand the thoughts and feelings of an era (which is surely helpful to a historian).

ANALYSIS: Point at Issue questions are sometimes very straightforward. Logan and Mendez disagree on whether newspapers are useful to historians. That’s the only issue on which they both express an opinion.

___________

1. Mendez doesn’t express an opinion. But even if newspapers weren’t accurate about societal changes, they could still give a glimpse of popular attitudes.
2. This sounds good until the end. The “conventions of newspaper reporting” are the ways in which journalists do their work. Logan and Mendez are talking about the newspapers themselves, not how they are produced.
3. Logan does not talk about popular art. Maybe he thinks it’s a great resource for historians.
4. They are both talking about whether historians should use past newspapers. Maybe they both like present newspapers just the way they are.
5. CORRECT. Yes. Logan thinks newspapers are not useful, Mendez thinks they are.

Recap: The question begins with “Logan: Newspapers have always focused on ephemeral matters”. It is a Point at Issue question. Learn more about LSAT Point at Issue questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.