Due: Day 7, Sunday, February 1, 2026, 11:55 pm Value: 100 points Grading Category: Other Assignments, 2%
Instructions
Find or create a graph that "lies" by manipulating the presentation of data. Make sure to describe the graph and explain why it is deceptive — in other words a manipulation of data.
Do not fake/make up data and then present that data accurately in a graph. For example, you should not make up some fake data showing that females are, on average, 12 feet tall and males are, on average, 4 feet tall, and then present that accurately in a graph. Although this is a manipulation of data, the assignment is the manipulated presentation of the data.
You may submit your work as a Word Document, PowerPoint, or Excel file. Another option is hand drawing a graph and submitting a scan/photo of your hand-drawn graph. If you do not know how to create a graph in Excel, it is a useful skill to learn and an internet search will provide multiple tutorials on how to create a graph in Excel.
If you are taking ideas, or data, or concepts from elsewhere, make sure to include a reference. If you completely make up everything on your own then no reference is needed. Either approach is fine for this assignment. While APA style is the norm in this class, formatting graphs in APA is something we have not covered and so for this assignment there is no requirement to adhere to APA style and this has no impact on your grade.
Resources: The instructional media item How to Lie with Statistics, found in Statistics: Theory and Concepts, from Week 03 Learning Materials, should be used to complete this assignment. You are able to use other resources as you wish.
https://lmscontent.embanet.com/Media/USC/CMGT540/C...
Nickerson, D., Lowe, M., Pattabhiramaiah, A., & Sorescu, A. (2022). The impact of corporate social responsibility on brand sales: An accountability perspective (PDF). Journal of Marketing, 86(2), 5–28. https://doi.org/10.1177/00222429211044155