BUILT-IN BIAS – I heard something on ABC radio before that reminded me of the very real problem of media bias.

The newsreader was reporting that the individuals who murdered two police officers in Arkansas this week were rightist anti-government types who'd hinted at violence before.  A spokesman for the Southern Poverty Law Center was interviewed about the incident, and claimed that anti-government groups with violent tendencies have been growing in the last few years.

I had no real problem with the report.  It seemed pretty straightforward, and described, reasonably, the beliefs of the people involved.  What angered me, though, was the contrast between this report and the ones we get after real terrorist attacks, like Fort Hood, where the media does handstands to avoid attributing the outrage to militant Islam.  We're usually told nothing of the perpetrator's beliefs until Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, or some other brave journalistic souls bring it out. 

It's the double standard, based in left-wing ideology.  The rightist anti-government types are the enemy.  The jihadists are merely misunderstood, or have "grievances."

Journalism it ain't, which is why so many Americans have lost faith in the mainstream media.

May 23, 2010