A SCOTUS Opening

[Dill]

(09-23-2020, 12:44 PM)PhilHos Wrote: This is definitely true. So, how do we change that? Me personally, I think if we could get the vast majority of media to be unbiased, or at the very least, to biased AGAINST those in power all the time, we might be able to start to get on the right track.

How is "the media" supposed to respond to the Trump actions referenced in #183 above? When MSM report what Trump is actually doing, the right wing media call them biased--especially if they say pardoning friends and punishing enemies is wrong or question the wisdom of slowing down the Post Office when states are about to use mail in ballots. 

I frankly don't see why the MSM shouldn't be biased against abuses of power, and condemn them. That is the role of a free press in a liberal democracy.

But the right wing media says the only "bad things" occurring are media bias and Trump hate. Trump is not doing bad things at all. They cannot deny what Trump is doing in plain site. They just deny that it is bad, or bad enough to concern us. They shift from what Trump does to Dem motivation, making that the real issue. Dems hate Trump. THAT's why they complain when Trump launders a pay off to a porn star through his campaign or leaves his own intel agencies on their own to fight off Russian intervention in our election. The standards were there when Hillary was running for office. Suddenly they are gone.

In the news market of a capitalist society, we cannot get "the media" to be unbiased* if there is public demand for biased media. And that type of media creates and expands its own demand.

In my view, there needs to be a separate public discussion about the principles of government and standards of conduct we expect from those elected to office--but also the sort of conduct that should be expected from voters if the country is going to work.  Integral to that should also be a discussion of the role of the free press--the history of the free press, especially the history of countries whose voters supported a popular leaders attack on the press. Perhaps a dose of critical media literacy would help as well.

*I normally don't use the term "bias," but I am using it here to signify media who uphold already existing journalistic standards.