Right.

http://journalism.org/node/13307

Of course it's biased. There is always bias.

The real value is in being honest about it.

Some media outlets lie about their bias and that's harmful. (FOX is one of these)

So, then McCain is getting the media shaft? That's why he's gonna lose huge?

Don't think so.

Others send readers a biased DVD then endorses the candidate most likely to be harmed by it.

The media for the 2008 Presidental race is out of control...unprecedented in it's bias coverage as pointed out in the article...a very scary thing for our country.

>>The real value is in being honest about it

wow...a new roll of the press...honesty...Thought that was the problem.

Maybe McCain has been portrayed as negative because he's wrong on more positions? Nah, that couldn't be it!

Not at all.

I think bias is ok. I don't think it can be avoided and that's ok too.

Being honest about that bias means presenting the material with enough clarity so that people can differentiate between fact and opinion.

That way, people can consume a variety of media sources, understand the facts and consider the opinions, coming to their own conclusions.

When we have media sources that LIE or MISREPRESENT their bias, and PRESENT WITH A LOW LEVEL OF CLARITY, the consumers of the media are mis-informed, confusing opinion with fact and the result of that is inability to reason properly and with that comes poor conclusions.

The lack of clarity is scary. Bias is a non-issue.

It's scary because we've got a significant fraction of the people totally confused about the difference between truth and conviction, and fact and opinion.

People who suffer from this (and FOX viewers are by far the largest, most identifiable group) have difficulty thinking for themselves, and value strong authority figures over human rights.

Heck, he's wrong on just about all the positions. I struggle to see where he's right!

People confuse bias with truth.

I think bias is ok. I don't think it can be avoided and that's ok too.

Sure. When it's in favor of the candidate you support.

If the bias was reversed, the libs would be screaming bloody murder.

Actually, I wouldn't.

I cry foul when they are not honest about the bias. (FOX)

The bias has actually been not aligned with Obama most of the time. McCain got a lot of passes for most of the campaign. When he insulted the media, they cut down on that. A lot of them cut down on that when they also realized that McCain is gonna lose.

That's just self-interest.

Anyway, McCain isn't losing because of media bias. He's losing because his positions are not well aligned with a majority of voters.

While it bothers me to see mass marketed misinformation, or opinion posing as journalism, I think bias is the least of our worries:

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United States of America

2008 Press Freedom Index

The United States rose twelve places to 36th position. The release of Al-Jazeera cameraman Sami Al-Haj after six years in the Guantanamo Bay military base contributed to this improvement. Although the absence of a federal "shield law" means the confidentiality of sources is still threatened by federal courts, the number of journalists being subpoenaed or forced to reveal their sources has declined in recent months and none has been sent to prison. But the August 2007 murder of Oakland Post editor Chauncey Bailey in Oakland, California, is still unpunished a year later. The way the investigation into his murder has become enmeshed in local conflicts of interest and the lack of federal judicial intervention also help to explain why the United States did not get a higher ranking. Account was also taken of the many arrests of journalists during the Democratic and Republican conventions.

Reporters Without Borders

Every American should be angry and ashamed that our freedom of the press still ranks so low. Do people really give a damn about the First Amendment anymore?

Could it just be that the McCain campaign has provided the media with more fodder for negative coverage? Think about how erratic the message from the campaign has been, the gaffes, and their consistent desire to always campaign on character, not the real issues.

Even many of McCain's supporters lament that he has not run a good campaign. Call it bias if that helps you rationalize the perception, but he hasn't made things easy on himself.

When you support DUHbya 90% of the time how can the press be in your corner? You gotta use your head now.....

Zach, that's exactly why there is a lot of negative coverage. McCain isn't running a positive message.

And he's not running a positive message because his platform just isn't positive.

In the early stages, the media gave McCain a LOT of passes too. Not only did he get some deference, but he got it after blundering many times.

It all stopped when he and Palin decided to challenge the media. Happened in one of the debates. Can't remember off hand, but I think it was the first one.

After that they went sour.

His own fault all the way.