!

Bias in American Media and its Effects on American Politics

In media, bias is usually defined as reporting news in favor of one view and
unfairly of another. In regards to American media, it can be claimed without doubt that
there is a present bias. Such bias has been influential to the minds of many voting
Americans who help shape American politics.

Due to our imperfect human nature, it only makes sense that the media would
present a bias point of view. When it comes to journalism and newspapers, liberals have
been the most predominant force in that media. Since 1964, it has been estimated that
about 80% of professionals in the media are liberal. Over past few decades this
predominantly liberal media has reported in such a way that it would advance their
agenda. One of the most infamous cases is the Duke La Crosse Rape. Once the media got
a hold of this story sent it to the national spotlight they constantly reported that this case
was a racial issue. They claimed that it was a racial issue because rich white college
kids took advantage of a poor African American girl. A year after the girl accused the
three students of raping her it was found that they were in fact innocent. The media,
however, decided to stay quiet on this piece of news. The fact that they didnt claim these
new facts shows that the media is clearly in favor of spreading their beliefs whether not
they may be right. The media, through their use of certain words have also presented bias.
When discussing the issue of abortion, abortion rights advocates have used terms such as
Pro-Choice. Using the term pro-choice has helped create an image that abortion is a pro
womens rights and thus, if anybody opposes womens rights then they appear sinister for
being thought of being anti-women. Doing this only makes sense because 80 to 90% of
journalists favor abortion rights. Journalists themselves have also admitted to bias. Time/
MSNBC political analyst Mark Halperin admitted in late 2013 that the press failed to
scrutinize ObamaCare during 2010 and in the election of 2012. This lack of reporting
shows how to media selectively presents what it wants to report, they choose that which
they believe helps support their cause.

American media bias has effectively affected American Politics. In this case,
American Politics refers to public opinion, which shapes voting. In the 2000 presidential
election the media falsely claimed that bush had already lost in Florida. An immediate
effect of this was that it caused voters to not vote because they thought that it was over.
This event demonstrates the power that the media has in shaping voting because in
Florida the margin was a lot closer than it should have been. In the long run the media
has also affected voting and peoples opinions. John Heilemann of the New York
Magazine claimed that the medias soft coverage on Obama helped move him into the
White house. When one has almost the entire media establishment on their side its
almost impossible to lose politically. An example of this has already been previously
mentioned, ObamaCare. Today almost everybody has heard of ObamaCare and it has
become an issue that has hurt Obamas image. The fact that the media did not cover
ObamaCare as extensively as it could have helped reelect Obama into office. Had the

media covered more on ObamaCare then he would have had a tougher time getting
reelected into office because of the negative connotation that it has helped build.

!
Sources
!

Shaw, David. "Abortion Bias Seeps Into News." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times,
1 July 1990. Web. 20 Apr. 2015.

Journalists Admitting Liberal Bias, Part One." Media Research Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 23
Apr. 2015.

The Top 50 Liberal Media Bias Examples." Western Journalism. N.p., 10 Dec. 2011.
Web. 23 Apr. 2015.

Research on Media Bias - Discover the Networks." Research on Media Bias - Discover
the Networks. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

Understanding Bias - American Press Institute." American Press Institute RSS. N.p., n.d.
Web. 21 Apr. 2015