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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Section 2: Chapter 5, "It May Just Be Me, But..." through Chapter 8, "Bringing the News".

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Chapter 5, "It May Just Be Me, But..." what does Foster say is usually the difference between quoted anonymous sources and sources speaking "on background"?
(a) The only difference is actually whether the information is quoted or paraphrased.
(b) Background sources tend to be highly-placed officials, while anonymous sources tend to be leakers.
(c) Reporters are not usually asked to verify information obtained in a quote, but they are supposed to double-check information given "on background."
(d) Quoted anonymous sources are more likely to be accurate than information obtained "on background."

2. In Chapter 7, "All in How You Look at Things," what does Foster say the term "Fake News" originally referred to?
(a) Online sources of maliciously false news.
(b) News that powerful politicians dislike.
(c) News the reader dislikes.
(d) Tabloid content.

3. In Chapter 3, "The Power of the Prologue," why is "foreward" spelled with an "e" instead of as we usually see it, "forward"?
(a) This is a proofreading error in the text.
(b) Without the "e," the word means a direction; with the "e," it means a piece of writing that comes ahead of another.
(c) Foster is using an unconventional spelling to draw attention to the idea "fore," which means "ahead."
(d) The spelling "foreward" is a British spelling, like "flavour," and is therefore an accepted alternate spelling.

4. In Chapter 2, "The Ecology of the Nonfiction Biosphere," Foster says that rules are determined by content, not codex. What does this mean?
(a) The rules for each form are determined by historical precedent, not by the topic under discussion.
(b) The rules for each form are determined by the purpose of the writing, not by traditions.
(c) The rules for each form are determined by subject matter, not by the medium of transmission.
(d) The rules for each form are determined by the type of writing, not the physical format that is used to convey the writing.

5. In Chapter 1, "The Structure of Nonfiction Information," what does Foster say is the purpose of the "four Ps?"
(a) To explain the structural design of the work.
(b) To lay out the essentials of the work to follow.
(c) To fill the reader in on important context.
(d) To establish the writer's credibility.

Short Answer Questions

1. In Chapter 7, "All in How You Look at Things," Foster makes what point about newspaper articles?

2. The section of this book called "What's Going on Around Here?" is what part of the book?

3. In Chapter 6, "Source Code," what does Foster say is an advantage of using data as evidence?

4. In Chapter 6, "Source Code," where does Foster suggest writers should gather information about historical figures?

5. According to "The Building Blocks of Arguments," what is the implicit argument of most nonfiction writing?

(see the answer key)

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