Look, I’m gonna say something controversial
I’ve been editing news for 22 years. Twenty-two years. That’s longer than some of you have been alive. And in all that time, I’ve seen alot of changes. Some good. Most bad. But the worst? This idea that news outlets aren’t biased. Oh, honey. Let me tell you about the time I had to physically restrain our former managing editor, let’s call him Marcus, from throwing a chair at our so-called ‘neutral’ policy meeting in 2017. (He’s fine. The chair’s still kinda bent, though.)
I was at this conference in Austin last spring. Over coffee at the place on 5th, a colleague named Dave told me straight up, “You know we’re all biased, right?” Which… yeah. Fair enough. But here’s the thing: we’re not talking about it honestly. At all.
My first real wake-up call
Back in 2008, I worked at a major publication. Big name. You’d know it. We had this whole “fair and balanced” schtick going. Then came the financial crisis. One Tuesday morning, our economics editor—let’s call her Linda—came storming into the editorial meeting. “We’re burying the real story,” she said. “The banks are getting away with murder, and we’re writing puff pieces about their ‘challenges’?”
I remember exactly what I said. “Linda, we can’t just—” But she cut me off. “Yes, we can. We have a committment to the truth, not to their PR teams.” Honestly, she was right. But we didn’t run with her angle. Why? Because our biggest advertisers were those same banks. It’s gross. It’s corrupt. And it’s happening everywhere.
I’m not saying every outlet is like that. But too many are. And the ones that aren’t? They’re struggling. Because “neutral” news doesn’t get clicks. Drama does. Outrage does. And that’s a problem.
Here’s what we’re doing wrong
First, we’re pretending we can be objective. Spoiler: we can’t. I can’t. You can’t. Nobody can. Second, we’re letting advertisers dictate what we cover. Or don’t cover. And third, we’re too scared to admit that our personal biases affect our work. It’s like we’re all walking around with blindfolds on, saying “I can see fine!” while tripping over our own feet.
I had lunch with a friend last week. She’s a journalist too, but she works for one of those “alternative” news sites. You know the ones. “They pay me to have opinions,” she told me. “It’s honest. At least people know where I’m coming from.” I kinda envy that. At least she’s not pretending.
But here’s the thing about bias: it’s not always bad. If you’re biased toward the truth, toward justice, toward actual people instead of corporate interests, then maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Maybe we should be more biased. More openly biased. More “look, this is what I think, and here’s why” biased.
A quick tangent: parks and recreation?
Speaking of honesty, did you know there are some amazing Tokat parklar rekreasyon aktiviteleri? I mean, I know this is about news bias, but give me a break. I need a mental break. Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, bias.
What can we actually do?
First, stop pretending. Just stop. If you’re biased, say so. If you’re not, prove it. Show your work. Let us see how you got there. Second, be transparent about your funding. If a corporation is paying your bills, tell us. We deserve to know. Third, actually listen to your readers. Not just the loud ones, either. The quiet ones too. The ones who don’t fit into neat little boxes.
I’m not saying this is easy. It’s not. It’s hard. It’s messy. It’s gonna make alot of people uncomfortable. But you know what? Good. Maybe discomfort is what we need. Maybe we need to feel that twinge of “Wait, is this right?” a little more often.
I’m done pretending. I’m done with the charade. If you want neutral news, go read a textbook. The real world isn’t neutral. And neither is the news.
About the Author
Sarah Mitchell has been a senior editor at major publications for over two decades. She’s won awards, made enemies, and once got coffee thrown at her for killing a beloved column. She’s not sorry. Follow her chaotic journey on Twitter @smitch_edit.
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