Lesson 15: Cherry Picking

Spot the Faulty Logic #

A student claims, “Our school’s basketball team is amazing! They won their last three games!” (But they don’t mention that the team lost their first twelve games of the season.)

Discussion: Talk with your teacher about this example. What important information is being left out?

How/Why It’s Often Used #

When we want to prove a point, it’s tempting to focus only on evidence that supports us. Cherry picking makes an argument seem stronger than it actually is by hiding the full picture. Sometimes people do this intentionally to deceive others, but often they do it unconsciously because of their own biases.

This fallacy is extremely common in advertising (“4 out of 5 dentists recommend…” - but what about the 5th dentist?), in arguments between people, and in how we sometimes think about ourselves (remembering our successes more than our failures).

Cherry Picking in Action #

Did you spot the faulty logic? #

By mentioning only the recent wins and ignoring the twelve losses, the student creates a false impression of the team’s performance. The full record (3-12) tells a very different story than “won their last three games.”

Second Example #

“This diet is scientifically proven! Here are five studies that show it works.” (But they don’t mention the fifteen studies that showed it didn’t work.)

The Flaw #

Selecting only the supportive studies while ignoring the contradicting ones doesn’t prove the diet works - it just shows the person is only presenting part of the picture.