The media is biased!

Bill0510
Tue, 01 Aug 2006 11:15:16 +0000

From the gallup website:

Half of Americans say they trust the mass media to report the news fully, accurately, and fairly. Confidence in the media has increased significantly since last year, but the level of confidence remains slightly lower than what Gallup has found in recent years. A plurality of Americans describe the news media as too liberal, while one in six say they are too conservative. Republicans are much less likely than Democrats to express confidence in the media, and are much more likely to perceive media bias, with most saying they are too liberal.

The first sentence states that half of Americans say they trust the mass media to report the news fully, accurately, and fairly.

Yet neither your nor the AIM article emphasized this point. The second sentence states that confidence has increased–“significantly”–yet the article emphasizes the decline–“slightly lower” according to the poll–from recent years. The referenced headline apparent stated: “Trust in media is growing.” Which is apparently a true statement.

I don’t have the benefit of the entire poll and, as you should be aware, figures lie and liars figure . . . so the stats can be made to say what you please.
While it may be true that the poll indicates half of the public thinks the media is too liberal, it appears to also say that half the public thinks the media accurately reports the news.

The orginal study did not attempt to determine whether viewes thought the presentation was too “liberal” or too “conservative.” Rather, the study merely tried to determine whether bias was in the eye of the beholder or in the presentation. Based on I will assume on scientifically valid methodology, the study concluded bias was in the eye of the beholder.

Answers to your article question will also serve this up. Quickly? I think the article was fine. [More careful look later] WMDs in Iraq is a true statement. It may not be an *accurate * statement as the predicate for invading Iraq, but on its face, it is a true statement.