Bias in the News Media: The Media's Portrayal of the India and Pakistan Crisis
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Authors
Kiechle, Elizabeth H. (Liz)
Issue Date
2002
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
"In America the President reigns for four years, and journalists govern for ever
and ever,"1 wrote Oscar Wilde, an Anglo-Irish playwright. Journalists have an
unmistakable influence on the general population that involves themselves with the news.
With the aid of reporters, Americans across the nation are able to know not only what is
going on in other parts of the country, but events all over the world as well. Americans
rely on journalists to inform them about important issues going on in the world.
Undeniably this places a large responsibility on reporters, for as will be seen, it is a
difficult task to present an accurate and unbiased report of everything deemed to be
newsworthy.
In the following sections, characteristics· of the news and the journalists involved
in providing the news will be examined. From this basis, hypotheses will be made
concerning possible biases ·in the media and the reason for their existence. Also,
domestic news and international news will be analyzed, and contrasts between the two
will be noted. Finally, the basis from the aforementioned sections will be taken and
applied to a study of articles from four different newspapers concerning the India and
Pakistan crisis. The possibility of bias in the news media will b~ studied in relation to the coverage of this ongoing dilemma.
Bias in the news media is common topic at this point in time, and although this
paper will point out criticisms of the media, it is in no way meant to undermine the
importance of the existence of a news source. The media is comprised of both positive
and negative aspects, as the researchers quoted in this paper have noted. Occasionally,
however, the faulty characteristics leave a lasting impression on the consumers of the
news media. Consequently, studies, such as this one, of the media are meant to inform
and prepare the consumer to allow them to appreciate and discriminate between both
admirable and inadequate reporting.
Description
51 p.
Citation
Publisher
Kalamazoo, Mich. : Kalamazoo College.
License
U.S. copyright laws protect this material. Commercial use or distribution of this material is not permitted without prior written permission of the copyright holder. All rights reserved.