The men and women who produce news for newspapers, television programs, radio stations, or the Internet have a unique job. They must sift through vast quantities of information and report on events that will affect the lives of their readers, viewers, or listeners. This means they must be selective not only in what they decide to cover, but also in how they cover it.
They are surrounded by people and situations that may be a source of conflict, anger, envy, or impatience. In addition, they work within a large, complex organization whose employees have their own goals and needs. For example, a reporter in Washington wants to get all the “facts” behind a story; but a publisher in Denver has to pay the bills. As a result, compromises are often made.
Inevitably, news coverage is biased. The bias of a particular news organization can be based on political ideology, the interests of its owners or advertisers, or a simple lack of time to investigate an event. Critics of the media argue that major sources of news favor one party, candidate, or point of view and that this creates rampant misinformation.
It is often the case that the public gets most of its ideas about politics from news coverage. For example, the widespread media coverage of the September 11 terrorist attacks evoked strong feelings of sympathy and fear in the United States for the victims. In contrast, the public in Western Europe is generally more politically engaged and informed because of the strong tradition of public service broadcasting.
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