PrepTest 129

Incorrect. Whether or not a reward was expected by Azco's owner doesn't speak to whether the Mayor reciprocated his support with a favor here.

Correct. Argument or Facts:
Argument/Argument

Valid or Flawed:
Flawed/Flawed

Question Type:
Weaken

Stimulus Summary:
R: The Mayor gave time to Azco News Service on the community channel, so she must be concerned with diversity of news programming.

M: Nope, she was just doing a favor for Azco's owner, who supports her.

Answer Anticipation:
In asking us to find a counter Randy could make to Marion's argument, the stem is tasking us with weakening her argument.

The two are debating a common concept that shows up on the LSAT—motive. The two agree on the action of the Mayor—she gave time on a local station to a certain news service. However, the question is why—is it her dedication to diversity in news services, or is it a favor to a political supporter?

Since we're trying to weaken Marion's view, and she contends that the Mayor's action was a political favor, we're looking for an answer that weakens that argument. While it could do so by strengthening the argument that the Mayor was motivated by a desire for diverse news sources, it doesn't need to do that—anything that calls into question the motive of Marion will weaken her argument.

Answer Explanation:
If the Mayor did the same thing she did for Azco's owner for someone who isn't a political supporter of hers, then that calls Marion's contention that the Mayor did this action to reward a supporter into question. At least once she carried out this action for a purpose other than rewarding a supporter, so that may also be the case when she did so for Azco.

Key Takeaway:
When an LSAT argument brings up motive, it's almost always going to be relevant to the logic and correct answer, so be sure to note it.

Incorrect. Marion claims that the act was to reward the owner of Azco for his support, not the channel for its support.

Incorrect. This may provide a motive for the Mayor to continue to provide time on the news channel ("continued presence"), but it doesn't provide a motive for her initial action.

Incorrect. The viewership of these programs—especially Mega Cable TV, since they're not related to the Mayor's action—is out of scope.