Freedom of press.

[Belsnickel]

(03-03-2017, 12:38 AM)Vas Deferens Wrote: I genuinely enjoy your posts as is, but if you could incorporate p-value quips it would be a boon to these boards. Thank you in advance.

I wish I genuinely had more p-value quips. The only thing I really have about the p-value is the device used to remember when to reject a null hypothesis. "When the p is low, the H0 must go." I'll work on that, though.

(03-03-2017, 01:52 AM)Nebuchadnezzar Wrote: The problem with a poll such as this is that those on the Right believe that the majority of the press is on the Left, not just leans Left but full on Left. Those on the Right feel that the press is a propaganda arm of the Democrat Party and that the press doesn't tell the truth and has an agenda.

While true that the view of the bias causes the difference based on partisanship, you still have fewer Democrats viewing it as essential, as well. Now, we can't take this in a vacuum. Obviously the recent rhetoric by certain persons as well as some of the failings of the media has colored the views of the population. I could argue that the results for this question resulted in a bit more error because of how it was asked and those that created the question not taking events into account. But, since these are often surveys that are conducted numerous times over the course of decades using the same questions so that trends can be adequately observed, they can't really change the question.

All of that being said, criticisms of government will always be rooted in bias. Whether or not journalists are checking their bias at the door as they dig into stories, editorials will always have it. No way around it. The press just needs to root their reasoning in facts, just as we all should. Facts help us form opinions, but when those facts are of the alternative variety, whatever their source, then it is damaging to all of us.

Anyway, the original point of this post, which I seem to have lost in all of this, is that the concern for bias is a real one and explains the difference, but with it scoring lower among the left we need to look at other factors as well. Namely, how does the current perception of the press overall color this? Then we ask the question about what we need to do about it, because a free press is absolutely essential to a democracy or a democratic republic. This is why the first thing autocrats do when they gain power is try to silence them. So what do we, as the people, need to do in order to ensure that we preserve the role of the press in our society?

And I totally started to go off on a rant again, sorry about that. It's Friday, next week is spring break and even though I have to work there are very few kids on campus which makes my life easier.