preview

Mass Media Bias

Decent Essays

In this new day and age we are granted with advanced technology that helps every one of us. A major capability that we now have is the capacity to spread information like no other. The television and internet are major sources to access material and influence the masses. The question becomes whether these sources really inform the people, or just put information out that benefits the few. Evening news is where the breaking stories take place and where we can see the difference in channel ideology. Citizens have a right to know what is going on in the country but due to biases we see this fail. This causes televison to poison the electoral system, glorify conflicts, and polarize views. Every news station has biases and it shows through the …show more content…

In her article Mass Media, she talks about how nightly news lead stories are ones of the most recent and extreme disasters or crimes. Things like this attract viewers which then means more money. Akin sees this as a negative to media because these are not the stories that should be the most important. More important stories are pushed aside in favor of the most recent, the most colorful, and the most shocking aspects of a conflict. Groups that understand this dynamic can cater to it in order to gain media attention. Most of the news I watch had more stories of soft news then it did hard. This is because people are more intrigued to stories that are more appealing and interesting at the moment. The more important stories can be seen as boring, when in reality they will have the biggest impact. The news can mislead and withhold important information for ratings and financial success and this in turn does not inform the public …show more content…

Channels put stories out there for ratings and revenue, because the more people that watch the more money they will get. This then causes them to put up stories that are attracting and exciting, not informative and important. I found it very interesting that commercials take up a least one third of a news segment which can show just how much advertising and money influence these stations. The mass media might be fast and efficient in getting out the breaking news, but is it really the important stories being told or just the most

Get Access