Media Bias
15 September 2009 | By joe-kgmi in UncategorizedHere is an excellent message I received after our show on media bias this morning…
“One point that I think should be mentioned with regard to the media is that nobody should expect to have a media source they can trust. Skepticism is the most important tool that a citizen of this country can have. Throwing away media sources serves little purpose; if a clear cut bias is apparent, as with Fox or Newsweek, then take it with a grain or spoonful of salt and extract what information from the source that you can. Even in a biased article it is possible to get some idea of what the actual story is, and seek more truth elsewhere.
In my opinion the most dangerous scenario is being demonstrated currently by political commentators of all ideologies who constantly assault the integrity of the media and try to draw people away from a source of news that is biased in a way they don’t agree with. This has the effect of focussing groups of people only on media with a bias that they appreciate. If we don’t agree with a media source that’s not a bad thing, it’s a bad thing if we begin saying “I don’t agree with that source so I will ignore it.” That makes for isolated and subsequently ignorant, easily riled masses of people. Exactly what we’re seeing today.” – Perry
I agree that we do need to check out media we see as biased against our views. I would never have looked into Van Jones’ background without all the noise about him from right wing talk radio. When I did research him I found him to be a smart and worthy guy who looks to have some answers about how a green economy can preserve our standard of living and help preserve the environment. I know I was supposed to come away believing he is just a died-in-the-wool marxist, but, hey, I’ve got a brain. I’m not a Glenn Beck robot.
17 September 2009 | Wardo Said:
No, you are not a Glen Beck robot. You prove every morning that you are a Liberal robot. No matter what the topic, you always go with the far left view. Acorn isnt a bad org., unions aren’t corrupt, no matter what the facts are, you just say “thats not true”, and dismiss all evidence. You seem, when it comes to politics, to dismiss rational thinking, and take everything on with a far left slant. Sometimes Joe, coincidence is more than just that. CBOT (consistent behavior over time) is enough to prove, to a rational person that accusations are more than likely true.
19 September 2009 | BarnCat Said:
Another point needing brought up is the most Vocal are Not the Majority, just the Loudest. Seagulls are loud, does anything they emit make sense? Planes, Trains, Boats and other vehicles are loud, are they saying anything? The Republican party are protesting loudly too.
Must be my bias at work here but all I can hear from them is accusations, rumors, gossip, name-calling, folding - spindling - and mutilating of facts to suit their own woefully inaccurate view of our changed world.
Basically? Noise!
They complain about not being listened to, make no mistake, we hear them loud and clear. We just can’t make any sense of it.
Once folks start listening to both sides of any of the issues they’ll begin to see what they look like to the other side, look into a mirror, find some ways to make sense out of what all they say and hear. If at all possible. I’d rather they just clapped with one hand but who knows, maybe someday the repudiaticons will find ways to present their views in ways that don’t annoy, incite, infuriate, bore, disgust, nauseate or cause the channel to up and change.
22 September 2009 | Duncandog Said:
A free and diligent media is what makes this country work. There are alot of really big things happening lately that are not even mentioned in the media.
As far as Van Jones goes, he is on record as saying that capitalism is unsustainable. He did not just want ‘green capitalism’, he saw it as a step towards some kind of green Nanny State, where the social engineers will choose what’s best for us, and we will all happily comply. That is marxism,pure and simple. He also said he wantedto re-distribute ALL wealth…
28 September 2009 | BarnCat Said:
Social Engineering is probably already in full swing, it’s just candy coated and colorful and known as The Media.
Anything more Direct might be Noticable.
How are we to break out of the feedback loop that The Media’s leading us around by the nose with? By Talking to Eachother, outside, in three dimensions, realtime, solid state, live. Just a representation of an opinion here, a point of view, but coming up with our own opinions may put us up above the armchair politicians who don’t know the world outside of the screen and speaker is going through changes that are affecting us alot more imMEDIAtely and directly than the self-nullifying oppositioning currently defining our existence.
29 September 2009 | The Tracker Said:
BIAS?? Just look at your own website’s “local news” headlines:
Report Spells Out Possible Impacts of Chuckanut Drive Development
Bellingham High School’s Jamie Yoos is Washington’s Teacher of the Year
Former Starbucks CEO Selected To Run Haggen
Whatcom County Council Could Make Columbia Valley ‘No-Shooting’ Zone
Man Robbed At Gunpoint On Bellingham Bike Trail
Hundreds Protest as Glenn Beck Gets Key To Mount Vernon
Bellingham School District Enrollment Up Slightly
School Board Preparing Plan To Reopen Lowell Elementary:
The Glenn Beck story should have just been Glenn Beck get’s key to the city because that was the story, but sensationalism requires KGMI to prefix the headline with “Hundreds protest” which should have just been “in the story” not the story. When Obama visited the Orange county fairground’s in southern California, an ABC new’s reporter said (on air) “I haven’t seen any protestor’s” but what he did not know is that local fox channel was filming the story about the protest and protestor’s and he was in the shot with the crowd of protestor’s. They tell us what they want us to hear. Just as you said on the air, “Your news report’s are flavored by your bias” and are not just a “straight read” of the events. Perhaps you could let everybody know when you come out of a break that you’re a chef and not a reporter and will be flavoring the stories to your liking.
29 September 2009 | Tom Said:
Gotta love that Fox news is Biased media. I know they may be swayed more towards the right but not nearly as far as everyone else is swayed left. Too bad that an attempt at fairness is ridiculed by everyone left of center.
09 October 2009 | Windy Said:
The media is not biased left/right, however it IS biased authoritarian. Verything themedia reports (and everything it doesn’t) is designed to push authoritarianism and bigger government and to repress liberty and Constitutionally limited government.