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Analyzing Objectivity in Media: Challenges and Biases in Journalism

This analysis explores the concept of objectivity in media within liberal democracies compared to other cultures where media serves state interests. It discusses the definitions of objectivity, highlighting how the emphasis on multiple sources can lead to false equivalences and bias. Examples of biased reporting and the potential negative impact of striving for objectivity are examined, including the arguments for acknowledging inherent biases. Students engage in analyzing a Canadian newspaper article to assess its objectivity based on established guidelines.

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Analyzing Objectivity in Media: Challenges and Biases in Journalism

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  1. Week 8 CCT300 – Labs Objectivity in Media CCT300 – Critical Analysis of Media October 29, 2009

  2. The Real World View • Only in a liberal western democracy, is it expected that a journalist should strive for objectivity, balance, and a lack of bias. • Other countries see the media’s role differently … as an arm of the state, for the good of the people. • But even if desirable, is it possible to achieve any of these?

  3. Definitions: Objectivity • Reporting that emphasizes eyewitness accounts of events, corroboration of facts with multiple sources and "balance”. • Reporting things without bias, as if one just came to Earth from another planet. • A neutral point of view, not taking a stand on any issues on which there is some disagreement. Instead, journalists are simply to report what "both sides" of an issue tell them.

  4. Problems With Objectivity • The problem with the multiple source / balance approach is • It assumes there are only two (or three) sides to an issue • It assumes that all ‘sides’ are equal

  5. Examples Of Bias • Fox News Network (for examples, see Robert Greenwald’s “Outfoxed” – www.outfoxed.org) • Anything by Michael Moore(Video samples from Fahrenheit 9/11 – www.michaelmoore.com)

  6. In the Bias of the Beholder • Can word choice can change the slant of a story?ttp://www.umich.edu/~newsbias/wordchoice.html • Does fear of being biased damage journalism? Columbia Journalism Review’s Brent Cunningham believes so: http://www.cjr.org/issues/2003/4/objective-cunningham.asp

  7. Should we embrace Bias, then? • Should we acknowledge our position instead rather than hiding our views? • Can any human being be unbiased (and still be breathing?) • Is bias a bad thing?

  8. Is Bias Built In? • Some argue that bias is intrinsic to the news media. Examples include: • Commercial Bias • Temporal Bias • Visual Bias • Bad News Bias • Narrative Bias • Status Quo Bias • Fairness Bias • Expediency Bias • Glory bias Dr. Andrew R. Cline, Assistant Professor of Journalism, Missouri State University

  9. An Alternate Suggestion • “Objectivity called for a consistent method of testing information, precisely so that personal and cultural biases would not undermine the accuracy of journalistic work.“ Kodi Barth - Lecturer in Journalism, United States International University-Nairobi

  10. Activity • In pairs take a look at Fair’s FAQ on objective media in journalism: • http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=121 • Select a Canadian Newspaper from this list: • http://broadcast-live.com/newspapers/canadian.html • Select an article under any section and critically analyze it using FAIR’s FAQ. Follow the questions and make an assessment. Decide as a pair whether you consider this specific news article objective. Explain why or why not.

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