Blog 6: Are the media biased?

Are the media biased? The first time that I read this question my mind jumped immediately to the simple answer of yes.  Most people see the media as either conservative or liberal.  For a long time, I always assumed that you watched Fox News if you were a Republican and CNN if you were a democrat.  When I truly think about this question, however, I come to somewhat of a different conclusion.  If I separate strictly ‘the news’ from editorial articles and talk shows, there is significantly less bias between major news sources.  That being said, the news media is a highly profitable business and they actively work to have high ratings and large numbers of viewers. It is my opinion that in today’s world there are a large number of people who, for lack of a better phrase, want to be told what to think.  This is a large part of where the biased media stereotype comes from.

As a whole, I honestly think that there is only a minimal amount of bias in networks when it comes to reporting facts to the public.  Most major news sources do have some form of agenda setting, and almost all reporting comes with some sort of commentary, but when it comes down to it, the news media supplies Americans with accurate facts from reliable sources.