Is mainstream media really that liberal?

Question

Latest MSNBC poll asked 144 media types what political party they have contributed to since 2004. Of the 144 respondents, 127 gave to the democrat party and it's candidates. Does this not prove to a certain extent, that the media has a liberal bias?

Answer 1

This is deceptive since the survey only included people who wanted to answer, and many of the right wingers in the media didn't bother to answer.

The media are biased - to the right! There is no "liberal media" and no sensible way to support such a claim despite constant right wing crying and carping about it. The broadcast media are owned and operated by seven or eight right wing corporations, and funded by right wing corporations' advertising. Cable companies are also generally right wing.

Corporate decisions dictate what we see and hear. Reporters dance to the tune set by their editors, and editors serve at the pleasure of their corporate bosses. The corporations making these decisions are right of center to extreme right wing.

When people complain about "liberal media" they are either repeating right wing propaganda or referring to social moderation. The media show tolerance of minorities and women and gays, and they refuse to support a single state religion or impose narrow views of religious morality on viewers, etc. These decisions are based on seeking good ratings and understanding that this is 2007 not the dark ages. Anyone who calls lack of bigotry, sexism, religious fanaticism and homophobia in the media proof the media are "liberal" is saying that bigotry, sexism, and religious fanaticism are conservative.

Some call news that presents both sides and / or that reports facts which ofter expose right wing lies "liberal," but that means facts and accuracy are liberal. I guess slanting the reporting to favor one side, telling lies, etc. are all conservative traits? That would make FAUX "News" (and too many other media outlets) conservative.

The corporate media are not liberal in ideology at all for all the reasons above. Besides supporting right wing candidates, the media also support completely unfounded right wing political positions like the absurd notion that supply side economics works. The media also strongly opposes unions, national health care, fair (as opposed to "free") trade, etc. All this is because media millionaires like their big tax cuts and don't care about outsourcing jobs. Also, they can afford the best health care, so they don't care about the 50 million who can't.

If anyone has any doubts about the media, think about this. The media featured nonstop support for the impeachment of Bill Clinton for personal indiscretions and trying to hide that embarrassment. The media says almost nothing about impeachment of Bush and Cheney for a massive campaign of war crimes, violations of the US Constitution, voter fraud, working with the oil companies in secret meetings, and many other crimes. The media are NOT liberal. If they were, they'd be doing impeach Bush and Cheney stories as much as they did the Monica BS. Case closed.

Answer 2

Good question Silly Asious. Unless you listen to political commentary and talk radio (most people don't), you would never realize the TV media is indeed bias. Example: Why was Romney asked if he had pre-marital sex with his wife? A really stupid question. No one would dare ask Hillary that. Anyway, down to basics. That is......Why is the media so left leaning? My own opinion here. Anyone who has spent any time at a university knows these schools lean left. The age of the students and radical ideas easily mingle. Most journalists come from university journalism education. And they bring their altered mind-set with them in to the work place. Therefore, TV news pushes on the items they want everyone to hear and believe, and silence opposition to their agenda - sometimes even by altering the truth.

Answer 3

Is that REALLY the POINT??! And if it IS, then shouldn't people be asking WHY it is that way??? The Media is- by its very nature- privy to a great deal MORE information than the average person is. Couldn't it just BE- that access to all that Info.- tends to naturally steer the people of the media- more towards the Left ??? Couldn't it just be that media "types" end up more intelligent than the rest of us BECAUSE they're privy to all that Info.- and thus they acquire a Liberal bent? And is THAT really such a BAD thing? People who don't want to "know something"- are WORSE than "deaf"; -and that's where the media comes in...

Answer 4

Well, without seeing the exact methodology of the of the study I can't make an informed comment. For example, was it major media moguls? The owners of the Wall Street Journal are fairly liberal, but the editorial page is a bastion of arch conservativism. Did it survey local news producers? Field reporters? How influential are the liberal versus conservative voices in shaping content? And so on and so forth. Also, how many gave to the Republican party? I work at a firm that gives heavily to both parties in order to buy access regardless of who is in office (yes, I am a harlot for the Corporate Man).

Regardless of the survey, I would argue that the real test of media bias is the content produced. The main media trend that worries me is not bias, but a tendency to sensationalism and infotainment that has robbed us of in depth analysis and failed to create an informed citizenry capable of governing itself.

As a liberal, my gripe with Fox News isn't about conservative leanings (I read WSJ, the Weekly Standard etc.) but it's move towards personality driven "journalism" rather than accurate reporting. As much as I resent, say, George Will's stance on pretty much EVERYTHING at least there are cogent arguments in his writing, not just loud declarations moral outrage (to his credit, O'Reilly has pretty much admitted this).

Of course, the same problem exists among liberals with people like Michael Moore the Air America or whatever the attempt at liberal talk radio was. But when you think about what your stereotypical liberal listens to, say NPR, no one can accuse them of just tuning in for brain soothing entertainment (sorry Lakhshmi Singh, I love you, but you just a tad boring).

Long story short, there are plenty of perspectives out there in the media, and I just pray you don't just seek out news sources that confirm your beliefs, but also those that challenge you to think about them critically.

Answer 5

Of course there is. This was not the first time this subject has come up. A study was done in 2000, that asked what the voting preferences in the media were and suprise, 80% of the network news toadies are voting democrats.

Answer 6

Yes .