MANY people doubt what they read
and hear in the news. In the United States, for example, a 2012 Gallup poll
asked people “how much trust and confidence” they had in the accuracy,
fairness, and completeness of the news reports of newspapers, TV, and radio.
The answer from 6 out of 10 people was either “not very much” or “none at all.”
Is such distrust justified?
Many journalists and the
organizations they work for have expressed a commitment to producing accurate
and informative reports. Yet, there is reason for concern. Consider the
following factors:
MEDIA MOGULS. A small but very powerful number of corporations own
primary media outlets. Those outlets exert a strong influence on which stories
get covered, how they are covered, and how prominently they are covered.
Because most corporations are designed for profit, decisions made by media
outlets can be motivated by economic interests. Stories that may hamper the
profits of the owners of a news organization may go unreported.
GOVERNMENTS. Much of what we learn in the media has to do with the
people and the affairs of government. Governments want to convince the public
to support their policies and their officials. And because the media draw on
content from the government, journalists and government sources at times
cooperate with one another.
ADVERTISING. In most lands, media
outlets must make money in order to stay in business, and most of it comes from
advertising. In the United States, magazines get between 50 and 60 percent
of their revenue from advertising, newspapers 80 percent, and commercial
television and radio 100 percent. Understandably, advertisers do not want
to sponsor programs that cast an unfavorable light on their products or style
of management. If they do not like what a news outlet is producing, they can
advertise elsewhere. Knowing this, editors may suppress news stories that cast
a negative light on sponsors.
DISHONESTY. Not all reporters are honest. Some journalists fabricate
stories. A few years ago, for example, a reporter in Japan wanted to document
how divers were defacing coral in Okinawa. After not finding any vandalized
coral, he defaced some himself and then took photos of it. Photos can also be
manipulated to deceive the public. Photograph-altering technology has become
more effective, and some manipulations are practically impossible to detect.
SPIN. Even if facts are as solid as bricks, how they are
presented depends on the judgment of the journalist. What facts should be
included in a story, and which should be left out? A soccer team, for example,
may have lost a match by two goals. That is a fact. But why the team lost is a
tale that a journalist can tell in many ways.
OMISSION. In arranging facts to create a compelling story,
journalists often exclude details that would introduce complications or
unresolved issues. This causes some facts to be exaggerated and others to be
diminished. Because television anchors and reporters may sometimes need to tell
a complex story in a minute or so, important details can be skipped.
COMPETITION. In recent decades, as the
number of television stations multiplied, the amount of time viewers spent
watching just one station fell drastically. To keep viewers interested, news
stations were compelled to offer something unique or entertaining. Commenting
on this development, the book Media Bias states: “The [television] news
became a running picture show, with images selected to shock or titillate, and
stories shortened to match an [ever-shorter] attention span on the part of
viewers.”
MISTAKES. Because they are human, journalists make honest mistakes.
A misspelled word, a misplaced comma, an error in grammar—these can all distort
the meaning of a sentence. Facts may not be carefully checked. Numbers too can
easily trip up a journalist who, in the scramble to meet a deadline, might
easily type 10,000 instead of 100,000.
FALSE ASSUMPTIONS. Accurate reporting is not as easy as some might think.
What seems to be a fact today may be proved wrong tomorrow. The earth, for
example, was once believed to be the center of our solar system. Now we know
that the earth circles the sun.
A Need for Balance
While it is wise not to
believe everything we read in the news, it does not follow that there is
nothing we can trust. The key may be to have a healthy skepticism, while
keeping an open mind.
The Bible says: “Does
not the ear itself test out words as the palate tastes food?” (Job 12:11) Here, then, are some tips that
will help us to test out the words we hear and read:
·
PROVIDER: Does the report come
from a credible, authoritative person or organization? Does the program or
publication have a reputation for seriousness or for sensationalism? Who
provide the funds for the news source?
·
SOURCES: Is there evidence of
thorough research? Is the story based on just one source? Are the sources
reliable, fair, and objective? Are they balanced, or have they been selected to
convey only one point of view?
·
PURPOSE: Ask yourself: ‘Is the
news item primarily to inform or entertain? Is it trying to sell or support
something?’
·
TONE: When the tone of a news
item is angry, spiteful, or highly critical, it suggests that an attack is
under way and not a reasoned argument.
·
CONSISTENCY: Are the facts consistent
with those in other articles or reports? If stories contradict one another, be
careful!
·
TIMELINESS: Is the information
recent enough to be acceptable? Something thought to be correct 20 years ago
may be discounted today. On the other hand, if the news item is a breaking
story, it may lack complete and comprehensive information.
So, can you trust the
news media? Sound advice is found in the wisdom of Solomon, who wrote: “Anyone
inexperienced puts faith in every word, but the shrewd one considers his
steps.”—Proverbs 14:15.
LEARN MORE: www.jw.org