Understanding and identifying bias
- 2. Some sources have a reputation Research the Source for giving a particular slant on the news Google source title + reputation EX: The New York Times + bias +reputation
- 3. Look at how the writer treats the writer treats the people s/he is writing about Do some sources or witnesses "claim" their stories while others "explain" them? Make note of language that gives you a positive or negative feeling about a piece of information Also notice if it is just the writer’s opinion and not a verifiable truth.
- 4. Does the feeling the source gives Pay attention to the overall tone you relate to the information given (e.g. murder makes you feel sad) Or does it seem to relate to the writer's opinion (e.g. a particular political part is scary)?
- 5. Think about what is missing from the article Is there a source, witness, or explanation that has obviously been ignored? Is the "why" unclear? Does the article fail to present the position of one or more parties involved in the story?
- 6. These are vaguely-defined terms Watch for buzzwords ("the homosexual agenda" or "the Christian agenda") that are designed or tend to evoke an emotional reaction without giving you any real information. Investigate the article for undefined terms, especially when you come across a word that gives you a very strong feeling
- 7. By asking the reader to identify Look for labels and identifications with a group mentality, the writer may be expecting the reader to forget to think for him/herself. "regular guys" "working class" "concerned citizens" "mothers" "Christians" "teens" "intelligent people"
- 8. A good reporter will allocate Look for multiple sides to the story adequate space in the story to present facts and figures supporting all sides of an issue. Ask yourself if all sides of this argument or dispute would agree that their views were represented fairly? If not, the story may show bias.
- 9. Where did those statistics and studies come from? Who collected or conducted Dig deeper into the statistics them? Who funded the research? The best articles will reveal this information.
- 10. If headlines or charts claim "the worst/best/highest/lowest in X years”, do some research. Keep digging More data might show that if you go back 2 or 3 times "X" years ago, "X years ago" things really weren't so good or bad as the headlines would lead you to believe.
- 11. If headlines or charts claim "the worst/best/highest/lowest in X years”, do some research. Keep digging More data might show that if you go back 2 or 3 times "X" years ago, "X years ago" things really weren't so good or bad as the headlines would lead you to believe.