"Statements made in the media can surreptitiously plant distortions in the minds of millions. Learning to recognize two commonly used fallacies can help you separate fact from fiction."
One of them is a sophisticated "straw man" argument. The other is a bit more interesting in the context of some posts lately. The "weak man" argument includes picking out an outrageous example (one small group of German actors, for instance) and smearing an entire group (Europe) with it. Or one college professor and smearing the entire educational system.
They both seem much, much more common among "our" neocons than the liberals, though that may just be my bias. (I tend toward the left of liberal, and would probably move even farther left if I could find a way. Would be plain ashamed to be a neocon.)
Arf