One poll taken after the first 1960 presidential debate suggested that John Kennedy lost badly: only 21 percent of those...
GMAT Expression of Ideas : (Expression) Questions
One poll taken after the first 1960 presidential debate suggested that John Kennedy lost badly: only 21 percent of those who listened on the radio rated him the winner. _______ the debate was ultimately considered a victory for the telegenic young senator, who rated higher than his opponent, Vice President Richard Nixon, among those watching on the new medium of television.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
In other words,
Therefore,
Likewise,
Nevertheless,
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "One poll taken after the first 1960 presidential debate suggested that John Kennedy lost badly: only 21 percent of those who listened on the radio rated him the winner." |
|
| [MISSING TRANSITION] |
|
| "the debate was ultimately considered a victory for the telegenic young senator, who rated higher than his opponent, Vice President Richard Nixon, among those watching on the new medium of television." |
|
Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: The 1960 presidential debate showed different results depending on the medium - Kennedy appeared to lose among radio listeners but won among television viewers.
Argument Flow: The passage presents initial polling data suggesting Kennedy lost the debate among radio listeners, then pivots to show that the debate was actually considered a victory for Kennedy because television viewers rated him higher than Nixon. The missing transition needs to signal this shift from apparent defeat to ultimate victory.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- We need a transition that shows contrast or contradiction
- The first part tells us Kennedy appeared to lose based on radio listeners, but the second part says the debate was actually considered his victory because of TV viewers
- The transition must signal that despite the radio poll results, something different happened overall
- The relationship we need is: "Even though the radio poll suggested Kennedy lost, the debate was still considered his victory."
- So the right answer should be a word or phrase that indicates contrast - something that means "despite this" or "even so" or "however."
In other words,
✗ Incorrect
- Signals that you are restating the same idea in different terms
- This does not work because the second part is not restating the first - it is presenting opposite information
- Trap: Students might think this works because both sentences are about the same debate, but they are actually presenting contrasting viewpoints
Therefore,
✗ Incorrect
- Indicates that what follows is a logical consequence of what came before
- The debate being considered a victory does not logically follow from Kennedy losing in the radio poll
- Trap: Students might incorrectly see the overall victory as somehow resulting from the radio poll loss
Likewise,
✗ Incorrect
- Means "in the same way" or "similarly"
- This suggests the second part agrees with or parallels the first part
- But Kennedy winning on TV is the opposite of losing among radio listeners, not similar to it
Nevertheless,
✓ Correct
- Means "despite what was just said" or "even so"
- This perfectly captures the contrast: despite the radio poll showing Kennedy lost, the debate was still considered his victory
- This transition acknowledges the radio poll results while introducing the contrasting TV viewer results that led to the overall assessment