Categories
Quick Analysis

Mistrust in Media Justified

The role of journalism in a free society is essential.  Concurrently, the responsibility of journalists to accurately report facts is equally important. The numerous, indeed, continuous examples of not just media bias, but outright dishonesty on the part of many major news organizations, as well as the refusal to even report key facts, should worry every American, regardless of political or ideological affiliation.

Although both should be avoided, falsification of a news story differs significantly from bias, or editorializing a particular reported item.

Examples are numerous. During the Obama Administration, media reports continued a constant drumbeat of alleged good news about unemployment levels decreasing, and job growth rebounding from the Great Recession.  The reality was startlingly different.

Even a cursory review of official statistics revealed a far less rosy scenario.  Middle class employment continued to decline. Since longevity in a position contributes to income level, that information was relevant, as well.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported, for example, in the fall of 2016 that the median number of years that wage and salary workers had been with their current employer was descending. An analysis at the time by Bloomberg outlined the dilemma: the minimal amount of jobs that were being created were in traditionally lower-paying fields, furthering a transfer of employment from middle income to lower income. Payrolls at factories fell by 13,000, after a 16,000 drop in the previous month, while retailers, who traditionally provide lower salaries, increased payrolls by 22,000. Employment in leisure and hospitality, also lower paying fields, rose 15,000.

As Obama left office, the American Enterprise Institute pointed out the reality that the media largely, and intentionally, ignored: “… job growth was lackluster…There are ninety-five million people out of the workforce…growth during the current expansion has been at its slowest rate since just after World War II…The number of people on food stamps has grown substantially…”

These worrisome facts were buried by many major news media.
It provides absence of sexual interest (sex drive), problems with side effects cialis having lovemaking and absence of orgasm. If you are one such male or sexual partner, you are an agent for the treatment of erectile dysfunction can be treated in a more natural way by finding a company that sells cheapest tadalafil india mouthsofthesouth.com, or other options. That sentiment was cialis canada cheap summed up by Ms. By hurrying to purchase your online tadalafil samples you completely overlooked the fact that there could be a strong link between atherosclerosis and the development of prostate enlargement.
The same could be said for foreign affairs. Both Russia and China dramatically built up their armed forces while the United States cut Pentagon spending. Outside of a few outlets, the extent of the challenge was barely mentioned.

Some news sites have criticized others for their failures. In 2016 Fox News reported, “After the ‘big three’ networks of ABC, CBS, and NBC neglected to cover the State Department Inspector General (IG) doling out a subpoena to the Clinton Foundation…PBS NewsHour Democratic Debate moderators Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff failed to even mention this, Hillary Clinton’s e-mail scandal or Benghazi.”

The Free Beacon recently provided an example of how CNN’s Chris Cuomo misled viewers on a gun control issue.  “CNN host Chris Cuomo recently spread a misleading story on Twitter about how easy it is to purchase an AR-15, only to double down when called out on the error. Cuomo retweeted a viral tweet with a picture of a young man holding a gun and text reading, ‘I was able to buy an AR-15 in five minutes. I’m 20 and my ID is expired.’ That quote and picture were taken from a 2016 story on the Tab headlined, ‘I was able to buy an AR-15 in five minutes.’ But once one reads the actual story, they learn that the author did not buy the AR-15; he stopped the purchase at the point at which he would have had to actually fill out paperwork.”

A Pew  analysis of trust in the media revealed that “Only about two-in-ten Americans (22%) trust the information they get from local news organizations a lot, whether online or offline, and 18% say the same of national organizations.”

That mistrust is well placed.