The News Media

Identifying Biased Media

Many now believe that media is biased but the context of what bias is may vary depending on the preferences of the readers . Bias affects news reporting in a variety of ways . It may be reflected on the preferences of the editor /owner of the publication or broadcast institution maximizing profits , and /or politics or entertainment (Baron 1

Media institutions acquire income from advertisements and this practice affects how the media chooses what kind of news it should report . Media sensationalism is also an end result as people are

attracted to read news that are sensationalized , this in turn increases readership and consequently , increase in profit from advertisements

The issue whether media can still produce and present objective news is still subject to debate . It may be true that some institutions can present objective and unbiased news , but many forms of media are now inclined to side with a group because of preferences or to maximize profit

In politics , horse-race journalism , which focuses on various election data instead of emphasizing the candidates ' plan of action , is being given too much attention . This results in news items that are all about the election proceedings . During these times , media institutions all report election-related news and forget about other similarly or more important issues that need to be reported

The findings of some researchers suggest that the media (1 ) are neither objective nor honest (2 ) employ framing devices (3 ) deliberately manipulate news (4 ) are controlled and influenced by government and business interest (5 ) may choose unreliable sources (6 ) accept the faulty premise ' that the government has good intentions (7 ) through the use of the word we ' implies acknowledgment of government policies (8 ) do not use historical context (9 ) fail to follow up on the stories and (10 ) does not encourage the maintenance of a critical perspective for the readers (Nelson

Bias results in skepticism on the side of the readers which results in a reduction in the demand for news . However , biases are being tolerated when it means that a journalist can be hired for a lower salary (Baron 23 . Journalists may have incentives to write biased news stories , but it can be cushioned by an attitude of professionalism and a media institution that does not tolerate bias

On the other hand , investigative journalism has been known as the most controversial form of journalism and over time , it has changed and adapted to the current setting (Hawks ) but this kind of reporting involves a lot of risk and violation of human rights

Sometimes , investigative journalists go beyond the bs and invade the privacy of others just to get the report that they need . Exposure is the theme of the current investigative reporting process as it creates excitement and uproar and draws a lot of attention from the public . It is also believed that scandals draw more attention from the public which would result in more generated profit for the media institution

Journalists follow their targets as if they are bounty...