Kat Delitto

Olivia Armstrong
COM 101
6 March 2015

American News Media: Biased Mess or Democratic Success?

The first American newspaper was printed by Richard Pierce and edited by

Benjamin Harris in Boston, Massachusetts on September 25, 1690. However, since it was

published without authority from the government, it was immediately suppressed, its

publisher arrested, and all copies destroyed. From this tumultuous beginning, media in

the United States fought hard for the right to publish uncensored opinions. This right

wasnt granted until the ratification of the Bill of Rights that guaranteed the true freedom

of speech that is present in Amendment 1, reading, "Congress shall make no law

respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or

abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to

assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. Though our news

media has hit some hurdles along the way, it has traditionally strived for the goal of

presenting us with the news even in the face of tyranny. But now, our society faces new

obstacles in our news media reporting. Today, sensationalism and bias has been creeping

into news reporting and masquerading as impartial journalism.

Technology has rapidly expanded the sources and platforms of how and where media is

consumed. Now people can get their news from websites, blogs, Twitter feeds and other

social media as well as the traditional news media like newspapers and nightly television
news. Although it is hard to say whether bias has increased with expanding platforms and

increased freedom or if the emergence of watchdog groups like The Colbert Report and

The Late Night Show with Jon Stewart are simply bringing the problem to the

forefront, there is no doubt that news in the U.S. is biased. The bias and misinformation

that plaques news sources in the United States brings into question the laws in place

regarding freedom of press and what effect government intervention would have on our

news and our society.

While the causation may not be agreed upon, the bias in the news is far from a

secret. The most evident influence of spin in the media comes from the two major and

most influential political parties of the United States, known as the Republican and

Democratic parties. The bias that these political parties impart onto our news sources is

no secret and there is no lack of evidence that this partisan slant exists. ABC news, owned

by Disney, is considered by many to have a strong liberal bias in its news stories. This

suggestion of bias was supported when one of the channels newscasters, Brian Ross, was

dubbed by the internet to be Americas Wrongest Reporter after an incident following

the Colorado movie theater shooting. Mr. Ross claimed that the shooter, James Holmes

may have had connections to the Tea Party, a group known for its conservative

viewpoints on political issues. This statement was not only embarrassingly false, but

according to RT news was solely based on Ross seeing Jim Holmes, a Tea Party member

from Colorado, social media page.

Also considered to be liberally biased is the CNN network, dubbed by many in the 90s

as the Clinton News Network due to its blatant leftist reporting. During a CNN
broadcast at the Iowa Caucus, anchorman Wolf Blitzer went live to speak with Corporal

Jesse Thorsen, a US military veteran as well as a Ron Paul supporter. As Thorsen began

to speak passionately in his praise for Ron Paul, then a Republican presidential candidate,

the feed was cut. While this was blamed on technical difficulties, many different sources

complained of censorship. Controversy struck the station again in 2011 when Amber

Lyon, a former CNN reporter, came forward with claims that she was told by CNN to

ensure her reports helped sway US opinion towards supporting an attack on Syria. Ms.

Lyon claimed this was a common occurrence at the network as detailed in an article

written by Glenn Greenwald in The Guardian newspaper. CBS has frequently been

accused of being too Pro-Obama and Pro liberal in their reporting. One of its anchors and

managing editors, Scott Pelley, in a global warming report made a very controversial

statement saying interviewing skeptics of climate change was the same as finding

a Holocaust denier. After what many considered a very one sided piece, Pelley

questioned whether doing an interview with professor and political activist Elie Wiesel,

would require him to find a Holocaust denier. Bernard Goldberg, a CBS staffer for 28

years, wrote a book Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How The Media Distort The News.

The book takes aim at what Goldberg viewed as intrinsic liberal bias in the American

media. Perhaps the most heavily criticized for bias and misinformation is conservative

station Fox News. Bill OReilly a Fox News television host went so far as accusing the

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of aiding Al-Qaeda on the March 1 broadcast of

Westwood One's The Radio Factor with Bill O'Reilly. He made this claim after the ACLU

had filed suit saying American citizens accused of terrorism were being denied due
process and were being killed in predator drone strikes. These incidents happened before

they had been convicted of any crime.

The issue of bias appears in the print media as well. Print news sources that are generally

considered to show leftist leanings such as Newsweek, The New York Times, and The

Washington Post often report the same story as their conservative counterparts like The

Wall Street Journal and The Sun with different twists. According to Gallup polls, 60% of

the American population recognizes the issue of bias in the news media and 19% of

Americans think that the government should take active steps in every area it can

suggesting that government regulation is an appealing solution to the issue of bias in

news reporting.

But government involvement may actually hurt not help media bias. Many fear

that government intervention would stifle the inherent freedoms in our Bill of Rights.

According to a summary from firstamendmentcenter.org on the rights of the press, under

the 1st Amendment, newspapers are free to publish information as seen fit regardless of

any perceived bias as long as there are no other laws, such as slander laws being broken.

Under 1st amendment law, the United States Government cannot regulate any news

content including attempting to regulate any bias that may exist. Some states passed

right of reply statutes that require newspapers criticizing candidates to give those

candidates space to respond. In Miami Herald Publishing Co. v. Tornillo (1974), the U.S.

Supreme Court said such statutes violated the First Amendment because the government

cannot compel a newspaper to publish information. A responsible press is an

undoubtedly desirable goal, the Court said, but press responsibility is not mandated by

the Constitution and like many other virtues it cannot be legislated. The protections
granted by the 1st Amendment allow Americans the right to obtain news and the comfort

of knowing it has not been government censored. Another way to look at the bias that

fills our media is to consider that the bias existence means that the protections set in the

1st Amendment are effective and that news sources are able to print their stories the way

they want, which promotes freedom of speech. In many ways the bias is just proof of the

effectiveness of our Constitution to protect our right to speak freely and openly. So while

bias in the media can be seen as a negative effect of the 1st Amendment right to freedom

of press, it is also important to consider the harsh realities of media without it.

A difficult question in seeking solutions to improve objectivity in reporting is the

thought that perhaps government intervention of media bias could solve the problem.

While it is a possible solution, there are also many negative repercussions that could

occur from this. For one, the United States prides itself on its unique hybrid of democracy

that allows us to have many of the freedoms people take for granted. This includes the

right of freedom of speech and freedom of press. But what would government

intervention look like? It is not even something that needs to be left up to the

imagination. This type of government control is currently happening around the world

with disastrous consequences in many cases. Media censorship and government

involvement in the news is characteristic of some other political systems, mainly those of

communism and authoritarianism. Media in a communist government involves heavy

government control on what is said. The communist viewpoint is generally considered

one party, one view. It is safe to say there would be much more censorship and active

promotion of the prevailing view of the ruling party. In an authoritarian government, the

governments view on the media is that the only things that will be published are things
that do not challenge the government and its views. Currently in Ukraine, the news is

highly controlled by the government and as a result there is limited information on topics.

Very few in the country are well informed. The government withdraws news stories it

doesnt approve of and arrests journalists for any type of criticism that is directed at those

in charge. While these systems may eliminate the type of partisanship bias we see in our

media, it would be creating new types of bias, which would be completely controlled by

the government and whichever new system would be created along with it. So although

freedom of press creates bias that may elicit talk of government involvement, it is

important to remember that this bias is also a symbol of the democracy that is established

in the U.S. Most Americans greatly value the freedom our country provides and would

not appreciate the results of this type of censorship.

Since bias clearly exists and government involvement may weaken what many

consider to be integral parts of democracy, how can we protect ourselves from being

brainwashed or even subtly influenced by misinformation in the news? How do we find a

balanced view amongst the many differing opinions that slant and distort the news we

consume?

Learning to become more media literate is an important step in empowering people to

become more critical thinkers and better consumers of news and information. Unless one

moves to an isolated mountaintop, we must accept that media is an integral part of our

culture. Media literacy is a very appealing option for dealing with the bombardment of

information that can be slanted and inaccurate. Becoming more media literate is

something that anyone can teach himself or herself.

What is media literacy and how can we incorporate it into our lives to minimize the effect

of bias? Media literacy is the ability to evaluate and communicate messages in a variety

of forms. By becoming media literate, we simply become aware of the bias that exists

and take that into account when reading or viewing the news. When reading a news story

it is important to consider what factors may have influenced the author and understand

that there is a strong political influence in media. While government intervention would

hinder democratic rights, media literacy does the opposite. It allows us to form our own

opinions by looking at all the sources not controlled by any one entity aimed to tell us

what to do. Next time you read a headline remember to ask yourself questions about your

personal beliefs and compare them to what the article is telling you. Sometimes

improving media literacy means stepping back from a story to ask if all sides of the story

are being told. Are important details being omitted? For example, after reading news

stories about the Ebola threat, try to find a scientific journal that may shed some light on

the true medical threat versus the obvious sensationalism that a news story may portray.

Check more than one news source with alternate political leanings to see if there is a

common thread that ties the stories together more objectively. Always bear in mind that

there may be political or commercial influences on any type of content. By thinking for

ourselves and being media literate we keep intact our democracy and ensure that no one

group gets complete control of the media and gain influence over public opinion.