New & Old media folks need to be open & honest

I now firmly believe that it is impossible for any media outlet to be unbiased. So, I think it's about time for all editors and journalists to come right out and admit the following:

"I am a human being, and I have an opinion. And, sometimes my opinion effects what I write. I don't mean to do it intentionally, but it just happens."

When I was in journalism school I was tought to get opinions from every angle possible, and to keep my opinion out of the story. However, I find this is not the case in many, not all, of the journalism pieces I read.

Few media outlets admit to being bias, however we know they are. For example, CNN tends to slant its news to the left, while Fox News tends to slant its news to the right.

A wise person once said, "Never get all your news from one source."

I think the reason this person said this was because different news sources approach the news from a different angle. Quite often, intentional or not, the most recent trend is to approach the news from either the liberal or conservative perspective (i.e. CNN and Fox News).

I have no problem with this. My only wish is that more anchors would come right out and tell us what their point of view is, just so we know. It's no big deal. I just want them to be honest.

Bill O'Reilly and Lou Dobbs are the exception. They both are very open about what their opinion is. Both of them are the editorial pages for their respective media outlets.

Wolf Blitzer tries to be fair in his reporting, however he tends to lean liberal. Why can't he simply come out and say, "Hey, guys, I'm a liberal. However, I will do my best to portray the news as fairly as I can. However, I am human, and I might be prone to a slip up now and again."

I think people would respect him a whole lot more if he did that. The same is true for, say, Britt Hume of Fox News. I love to watch his round table discussions, but I am also aware that these discussion tends to lean conservative. And it's quite obvious that Hume is a conservative.

So, why doesn't he come right out and admit it. Let's just all be honest here.

When we pick up a magazine like National Review, there is no secret that the magazine is a conservative magazine. However, when we pick up a magazine like Time, we only learn through our readings that it tends to lean liberal, however it denies this truth.

Newsmax is conservative and so is the Drudge Report, no matter how many times they deny these truths. It's no big deal. Just like Newsweek and Time are liberal. They all may have one or two oposing columnists, but the basic overal lean of these magazines is obvious.

It's okay. Let's just be honest.

We are very much aware that the bottom line for these media outlets is not what they will tell us; it is not to do fair and honest reporting: it is to make a profit. That is the bottom line for any business, and journalism is not an exception.

That, folks, is why publishers, like those of the New York Times, do not want to stop their reporters from being bias in their writings, because they know they cater to a more liberal leaning audience.

I'm not saying there are no conservatives who read this paper, but many Conservatives have since departed the Times for more conservative outlets such as the Wall Street Journal. It's business as usual. It's fine.

When you have a business, it is your right to do with it whatever you want, so long as you make enough money to stay in business. If you want your media outlet to lean one way or the other that's quite all right, just be honest about it.