Spring Break
The truth is not all journalists are biased
Kyle Hansen
Issue date: 5/2/07 Section: Opinion
I am not afraid to admit it - I am addicted to news.
I have always enjoyed following current events, mostly because I am extremely curious. Actually, I am more than curious, I am your full-fledged nosy-neighbor busybody. I have to know what is going on around me, so much so that I am addicted.
It would not be too bad if I lived in the 1800s, but today's technology has made everything worse.
I love technology, but it is now so easy to get news and information that I can easily find myself doing it all the time.
Plus, one has to be careful in the age of customizable news.
It is way too easy to only get the news you want to hear.
I just moved to a new area and am getting to know my neighbors. I told one of them that I am a journalism major at San Jose State University. The response he gave was typical.
He looked me straight in the eyes and said, "So tell me, when are we going to get some unbiased news?"
I am used to the question. Some form of it comes almost every time I tell people what my major is.
First, I told him, that the news he is getting is probably a lot less biased than he thinks it is.
I didn't elaborate to him, but the truth is that the news is a lot less prejudiced than it seems, it just does not fit your bias. I have yet to meet anyone who thinks that the media are unbiased, and the truth is that they are not.
I find it hilarious that when I talk to someone that is liberal, they complain that the news is conservative; and when I talk to a conservative person, they complain that the news is liberal. So, which one is it? It can't be both.
Everyone has some bias, even we journalists, but we try really hard to report only the news that really matters and to cover all aspects as thoroughly as possible. For the most part, we do a good job. We just do not match your bias, whatever it may be.
This brings me to the second thing I told my neighbor: be careful where you get your news.
I have always enjoyed following current events, mostly because I am extremely curious. Actually, I am more than curious, I am your full-fledged nosy-neighbor busybody. I have to know what is going on around me, so much so that I am addicted.
It would not be too bad if I lived in the 1800s, but today's technology has made everything worse.
I love technology, but it is now so easy to get news and information that I can easily find myself doing it all the time.
Plus, one has to be careful in the age of customizable news.
It is way too easy to only get the news you want to hear.
I just moved to a new area and am getting to know my neighbors. I told one of them that I am a journalism major at San Jose State University. The response he gave was typical.
He looked me straight in the eyes and said, "So tell me, when are we going to get some unbiased news?"
I am used to the question. Some form of it comes almost every time I tell people what my major is.
First, I told him, that the news he is getting is probably a lot less biased than he thinks it is.
I didn't elaborate to him, but the truth is that the news is a lot less prejudiced than it seems, it just does not fit your bias. I have yet to meet anyone who thinks that the media are unbiased, and the truth is that they are not.
I find it hilarious that when I talk to someone that is liberal, they complain that the news is conservative; and when I talk to a conservative person, they complain that the news is liberal. So, which one is it? It can't be both.
Everyone has some bias, even we journalists, but we try really hard to report only the news that really matters and to cover all aspects as thoroughly as possible. For the most part, we do a good job. We just do not match your bias, whatever it may be.
This brings me to the second thing I told my neighbor: be careful where you get your news.
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