Do you think "BIG MEDIA" has an unfair influence with voters?

Question

How many people vote based on what they read in the paper about a candidate, or a 30 second TV ad, WITHOUT checking the FACTS for themselves?
If SUCH a liberal bias didn't exist - would the Democrats do as well?

**BIG MEDIA is mocking the libs constant use of BIG OIL...

Answer 1

I would say the Media does play a huge role in who gets elected. The Journalists who tell you how they FEEL about a situation rather than report facts tickle the ears and paint it in the best light when it is one of THEIR own ilk that's in trouble.

However, when someone who is NOT on their side, it's leave out the facts, spin it any way you can to cast doubt in that person. If you can't attack the message, attack the messenger. A lie told often enough will be mistaken for the truth. By the time the public figures it out, it will be too late. Modern Media 101.

I'll go one step further... I'll say most people vote based on the "Headlines"... VERY few people check the facts about candidates. Even fewer remember the promises from the last election.

I wish that there was a website that kept track of the promises that elected officials made during campaigning and THEN based on the amount of kept promises had the recommendation of being re-elected.

For example, when some blow hard politician says, "I'm going to make sure that we do something about all these tornadoes that are killing people be stopped."

When a politician makes a statement like that, I think it is fair game to ask him at the next election. "What have you done?" "What areas have you improved our county, city, state, or nation?"

When the list shows 90% completion, Automatic endorsement, 70%, Possible endorsement for re election with close evaluation.
50%, Evaluation with probation period for recall should they have fall even further.
Less than 50%, forget it. No endorsement. Elect someone else.

BTW, the politican that said he was going to stop tornadoes... Bill Clinton.

Answer 2

Nice Profile but the way this question is framed does not lend or leave much credence to it.
Media bias, sensationalism sells, of course.
Entertainment and celebrity sells , of course. Political correctness protects sales , of course.
Visusal and audio meidia is for entertaining and should be differentiated from the Journalistic Profession and today that distinction is not allowed because the ones who own the visual audo also own the written words outlets.
When it comes to Independent ability to write either opinion or factual works they find an almost complete bias against them by Conservative publishing houses that are also owned by the same Corps as visual and audio outlets.
How anyone who can say an organization wned by a ministr of moony fame and has contributed over 600,000,000 million dollars to neo conservative Republican and demos who support their causes and even ventures into intelligent operations in their cause is liberal bias is beyond rationality. Washington Post, Wall Strret Jornal are most assuedly not liberal and if any journalist dares to question an official policy no matter if dem or repub they are silenced immediatley by politcal force.
If anything the disinfromation put forth by ommision a oone shows their true colors and it sure is not liberal.
It is pro policy and disinfromation allowance to uphold it while being entertaining enough to draw advertizing dollars, which more and more come from the very same group of corproatecirlcle of .5% wealth holders, is beyond liberal or conservative but entering the realm of facisms propaganda machinery.
The owners of media do not serve US they serve profits , and each day that profit is going into a smaller and smaller circle of ownership[.
A previous note of Regan was dead on the nail as it was under his all consuming military policy of limited Intensity Warfare that the program began to incorporate all facets of media into justifying the politcal /military Corproate actions in both foreign and domestic conformity.

Answer 3

Yes it does, the media as long as I can remember is more interested in shaping the news rather than reporting the news.

If only 20% of the voting public slavishly believe everything they saw on main stream news that is usually enough to carry any election, why do you thing so many liberals go ballistic about Rush, Sean, Fox news, because before that they did not have any competition in the presenting of the news and even with like a 8 to 1 ratio between liberal news and conservatives news the liberals are still unhappy with the 1

Answer 4

The "liberal" media is a joke. Disney and NewsCorp, two of three biggest media outlets, are very very conservative. Most journalists have their check signed by massive media conglomeration most of whom are in bed with the neocons and the extreme right wing. This whole lie about a liberal media is just a way for the far right to dismiss any fact or truth that would diminish their ability to manipulate their base with misinformation and fear.

That being said, I put little faith in ANY network news or Candidate commercials. Both are trying to sell you something. I'm not buying...

My political news comes from CSPAN. That way, I'm sure to get comments "in context" and not watered down into 15 second sound-bytes edited for entertainment value.

Answer 5

In the 2000 elections and/or its aftermath, 87% of journalists surveyed either voted Democrat or favored Democrats. Of course, this was reported in the media, so it might not be true. This would account for the liberal bias in the media. As a practical example, note the free pass Clinton got when he issued his careful statement that "I did not have s-xual relations with that woman". As soon as he said it, an ignorant civilian like me immediately knew that he had done SOMETHING like it but was crafting the statement so that if/when he got caught later, he could say he was only referring to -ntercourse. Where was the followup from the media to clarify? It was totally missing because the Bill of Wrongs was a liberal media darling. If they won't go after the truth because doing so would conflict with their personal politics or agendas, then their influence is unfair.

The usual counter to this observation is that the news really is controlled by large conservative corporations that censor or otherwise stifle these poor journalists. But when an industry is dominated by a player with 87% “market share” it usually is subject to intensive antitrust scrutiny. The liberal media enjoys a first amendment exemption from civil or criminal liability for this “viewpoint monopoly”, but we the consumers should be at least as suspicious of the viewpoint monopoly of the mass media as we are of more traditional monopolies (Microsoft).

Courses in media literacy should be required in primary school, or at least junior high, but since the educational establishment is also overwhelmingly liberal and schools are more about indoctrinating than educating, I'm not expecting to see it in the curriculum any time soon.

Answer 6

the media is not liberal bias. it has become more an entertainment forum,to get ratings. many are influenced by media. end the ads or least limit it to the candidates issues,instead of a tool for bashing. the best thing to do is educate yourself to issues,never blindly vote based on party

Answer 7

There IS a media bias....

Those who don't see it......need to check the last time anything good coming out of Iraq.

Its been systematic ever since Vietnam, just after Nixon's resignation. The only way I can get a counterpoint IS to listen to Rush, Hannity, and watch FOX.

The mainstream media is supposed to REPORT the news, not to give us the Dems version of it. Reporting means to show BOTH sides of an issue in a neutral way, to allow people to make up their own minds. NOT to tell us only one side of the story.

Does FOX slant to the right? Yes, however its the ONLY TV media I actually can get a different viewpoint of a particular issue.
Not to mention they actually try to get both sides represented.

As someone stated earlier, most folks don't do any research for themselves. They just spout what the media tells them and go on with their lives thinking happy, happy, joy, joy thoughts.

Answer 8

Good question. The media is staunchly liberal. That is a fact, not an opinion. The media has not reported that America has been safeguarded by our military actions. The media has not reported that we were attacked by al qaida 8 times durning Clintons administration. The media does not report the positive influence we have towards those who are oppressed. The media does not report that we give hope to the people who seem hopeless. The media loves to tell us how much we have failed and refuses to report how much we have succeded in the last 8 years. The media loves Obama, and Hilary. The media refuses to acknowlege the progress that Condoleeza has made yet insists on reporting how positive Sean Penn and Oprah are. I'm not worried though. Americans are not that stupid. Thank goodness for the silent majority.

Answer 9

Fair and balanced news officially ended with the Reagan Administrations's dropping that requirement from FCC rules. No longer must news be fair and balanced. With greater consolidation of News Ownership, opposing views have less and less chance of being heard. I think it's a terrible problem in all forms of media today.

Answer 10

There is no question that a liberal bias exists in most media. The question is why?

I think it boils down to the simple concept that "sex sells." For example, creating a conflict over the Iraq war, as well as withholding truths about the reasons for the war, creates an interest in politics, and thus the sale of advertising.

WIth regards to political candidates, the same "sex sells" theory is used to dig up as much sensation as possible.

The truth that most political candidates are regular people, albeit successful, doesn't generate as much excitement as the mud slinging.

But does this influence voting? I wonder. I think our world-view tends to influence our politics. I think it comes down to parenting and education.