Media Bias: Does it exist? - Part I
Conservatives have always had the distinct impression that they weren’t getting a fair shake from much of the mainstream media. Currently the Press Gallery is trying to point the finger squarely at Prime Minister Harper, but the appearance of bias has been around since long before he took center stage.
Previously, this complaint has been dismissed as so much whining from frustrated Conservatives who could not win enough votes to form government. Since 2006 however, the Conservative minority government has proved to be one of the most effective and now the longest serving minority government in history. Still there seems to be a ‘they can’t do anything right’ portrait of Conservatives in the media.
Over the last several months, our research team has begun carefully culling media reports to determine if there is substantive evidence that ‘media bias’ against the Conservatives exists. As usual, care has been taken to source all citations so that we can speak credibly. Beginning here with Part I, we will present the results of our research and leave it to you to decide. Comments are welcome.
From the pages of the Toronto Star, Anotonia Zerbisias writes: “…the mass media filter the news through their ownership interests, advertiser concerns, the nature of their sources, the flak they get and the acceptable political ideology. Twenty years later, the model is more applicable than ever. We still don’t get the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth from the mass media.”
That is perhaps the basis of media bias. News is no longer reported, it is related through the lens of editorial comment. The facts are often subtly coloured in tones that skew the audience perception without overtly misstating what took place. As we have experienced even in local media, things are allowed to go to print without reasonable insistence on factual verity. Even our illustrious MP, Brian Murphy, has published several articles which were soundly refuted by readers.
No fair-minded person will complain at justified criticism. It is unfair and untrue critiques however which must be answered. In future postings we will examine further evidence of media bias and point out that Conservatives are most often the target. We understand that complaining about it will not resolve the problem, but hopefully illustrating the truth will reinforce the perception that the media thinks they run this country.
