Everyone in the world of journalism is biased. We get that. What we don't often see is how biased they really are, and how often news sources, especially mainstream media, disseminate inaccurate, idiotic or simply fabricated information.
Good thing there's the Fifth Estate, comprised of bloggers and, in particular, media watchdog groups like Media Matters, FAIR.org and Newsbusters, which expose and combat conservative and liberal media bias, respectively.
One of the stars of this field, Mark Finkelstein of Newsbusters, lives in Ithaca and came to share his tips on blogging and keeping tabs on the media with our class. It was interesting to hear Mark's tips on how to be a successful blogger, but beyond that, I was unimpressed by the work he does, at least recently (I didn't go too far back into his archives).
Maybe it's because I'm liberal, but I just can't help but taking issue with Mark's statement about all of the misinformation in conservative-minded news sources; when probed, he said, "I have enough to criticize on the Left, I don't have time to criticize the Right."
Is there really an equitable amount of bias coming from both ideological perspectives? And is the bias really as frequently explicitly, deliberately inaccurate in liberal media?
Let's just look at entries in the last week on Finkelstein's blog. He takes inappropriate potshots at Elliot Spitzer, condemns an MSNBC reporter for calling Christine O'Donnell, she of the anti-masturbation, pro-dabbling-in-witchcraft movement, a "freak show," and rightfully called Mike Barnicle "bumbling" because he made two factual errors on air — errors, it is essential to note, that were swiftly corrected by the other news anchors on air with him.
Then there's Media Matters, which has recently posted another one of Glenn Beck's denials of evolution, analyzed the Family Research Council's claims that the gay rights movement is actually to blame for the recent string of LGBT teenage suicides, and takes a look at Fox News' propagandistic, unofficial endorsement of the Tea Party.
Looking at those two lists, for some reason I feel like an anchor calling Christine O'Donnell a freak show is the least of our country's media bias worries.
Good thing there's the Fifth Estate, comprised of bloggers and, in particular, media watchdog groups like Media Matters, FAIR.org and Newsbusters, which expose and combat conservative and liberal media bias, respectively.
One of the stars of this field, Mark Finkelstein of Newsbusters, lives in Ithaca and came to share his tips on blogging and keeping tabs on the media with our class. It was interesting to hear Mark's tips on how to be a successful blogger, but beyond that, I was unimpressed by the work he does, at least recently (I didn't go too far back into his archives).
Maybe it's because I'm liberal, but I just can't help but taking issue with Mark's statement about all of the misinformation in conservative-minded news sources; when probed, he said, "I have enough to criticize on the Left, I don't have time to criticize the Right."
Is there really an equitable amount of bias coming from both ideological perspectives? And is the bias really as frequently explicitly, deliberately inaccurate in liberal media?
Let's just look at entries in the last week on Finkelstein's blog. He takes inappropriate potshots at Elliot Spitzer, condemns an MSNBC reporter for calling Christine O'Donnell, she of the anti-masturbation, pro-dabbling-in-witchcraft movement, a "freak show," and rightfully called Mike Barnicle "bumbling" because he made two factual errors on air — errors, it is essential to note, that were swiftly corrected by the other news anchors on air with him.
Then there's Media Matters, which has recently posted another one of Glenn Beck's denials of evolution, analyzed the Family Research Council's claims that the gay rights movement is actually to blame for the recent string of LGBT teenage suicides, and takes a look at Fox News' propagandistic, unofficial endorsement of the Tea Party.
Looking at those two lists, for some reason I feel like an anchor calling Christine O'Donnell a freak show is the least of our country's media bias worries.
