Scoring the News

A new study from UCLA and the University of Missouri has created a rubric for classifying the political leanings of news outlets. Scoring the news with a system used by the Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) the study had interesting results. While news Networks like fox were of course regarded as right wing the study didn’t find them to be as radical as some liberals would like to paint them. Take note that the research was not done on op-ed pieces because the goal was to find bias in the regular news. My preferred news outlet The News Hour with Jim Lehrer scored the best—or most centrist news outlet in the study. I also get my news from MSNBC video because it has the best platform for the internet. NBC scored on the left as I presumed. I also enjoy NPR Radio which Conservatives taught as a liberal mouth piece but it proved to be no less liberal then most other news outlets including Newsweek another source of news that I use (poet-n-didn’t-know-it). The study tried to recruit researchers who had both voted Republican and Democrat and didn’t seek outside funding.

I question the studies completeness in ranking the conservative or liberal leanings of the news outlets solely on the citation comparison and the referrals to think tanks. I think that the way that the news is packaged has a lot to do with who watches it and therefore how the news is portrayed. Shows like PBS’s News Hour don’t cover sensational stories and actually most of the show is spent discussing issues with a right and left perspective. On the other end of the perspective Fox News’ website is incredibly sensational with an abundance of videos about sex (no doubt a popular search on the internet). When trying to find the best sources for news we must remember that most sources are for profit which means that the truth (or at least fairness) is less important then getting and keeping customers.

Hey check this article out yourself…
http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/Media-Bias-Is-Real-Finds-UCLA-6664.aspx?RelNum=6664

A letter to Mr. Obama

I decided that Barack Obama would be the best Candidate for President several months ago. Integrity, Perspective, and Hope that he describes in his book and on the campaign trail were the reasons I believe he would be the best choice for President. I purchased his book the Audacity of Hope, attended a $25 rally where Mr. Obama spoke, and have worn a Barack Obama pin nearly everyday for two months.
Then I came across a video on the Internet that clearly shows Mr. Obama not participating in a National Ceremony that expresses respect for our Country. Specifically I am mentioning the ABC footage of Mr. Obama not placing his hand over his heart during the National Anthem. I can’t imagine what is going through Mr. Obama’s head! The footage makes Mr. Obama seem distant from everyday Americans in their thinking about patriotism and it leads conservative opponents to make comments about Mr. Obama’s willingness to protect America from extremists.
I need an explanation from Mr. Obama as to why he chooses to not participate in this important ceremony and an apology before I can decide to support him again.
I respect Tim Russert and watch Meet the Press almost every weekend. I appreciate the Meet the Candidates segments and watch all the candidates over the internet. I also appreciate that Mr. Russert will push his guests with tough questions, and I think that questioning Mr. Obama about this incident could be a good news story and it could also make or break Mr. Obama's campaign. I hope that Mr. Russert will take my advice and discuss this issue on Sunday. I will be watching on Sunday no matter what.