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Unbiased
News: The Impossible Dream
By
Jack Fries
Guest Columnist
Is “Unbiased News” an impossible dream? I think so! To be
completely unbiased is truly impossible.
For years, I attempted to steer a middle course in my television news career.
I grew steadily more frustrated as the tendency to accept the negative and eliminate
the positive became more and more prevalent. It’s not that there isn’t
enough “bad news” to report, it’s the way news is being reported.
Over and over and over again, 24/7, more times than not the news is broadcast
with a negative, pessimistic “spin.”
I began to speak on “Unbiased News: The Impossible Dream” while working
for a network-owned station in Los Angeles in the 1960s. I finally left the news
business when my desire to be objective became a definite conflict of interest.
I just couldn’t get it out of my head that our job was to report the “facts” and
let people arrive at their own conclusions. A real no-no, even then!
We all have built-in biases as a result of our upbringing, education and experience.
The important thing is to be as fair as possible — to stick to the facts
and try to not interpret the news when the job is to report it.
Most of us living in this day and age of the mass media — radio, television,
newspapers, magazines, inexpensive and sometimes tasteless books —face
a common challenge: “How can I maintain my peace of mind, be happy and
fulfilled, while being constantly bombarded from without by negation?”
In addition to the ongoing worldwide threat of terrorism, we move and have our
being in the eye of a political and economic hurricane that is producing fundamental
and dramatic changes at every level of society — and will continue to do
so for decades to come.
Communications satellites today are making our homes receiving stations for every
kind of information and entertainment programming imaginable — some of
it actually worthwhile. Telecommunications technologies are having as profound
an effect on our lives today as Gutenberg did with the printing press and the
education of the common man hundreds of years ago.
Television in the early ‘50s promised even greater opportunities for personal
growth — exposure to the world’s best music, plays and performances,
and re-enactments of great literary works. Today, alas, we suffer such great
classics as “Fear Factor,” “The Weakest Link,” “The
Apprentice,” “The Jerry Springer Show,” “Average Joe” and,
of course, that masterpiece of vulgarity, “Survivor” and other so-called
reality shows.
It’s true that we no longer are completely at the mercy of the original
broadcasting networks — but has the addition of hundreds of cable channels
really improved our viewing pleasure?
In many ways, yes! The Discovery Channel, the History Channel and many other
cable channels are performing a great service by offering informative and alternative
programming.
But what about the effect on one’s mental state after hours upon hours
of negative news reporting, docudramas written to make a particular point rather
than to reflect history, and political hypocrisy — legions of “talking
heads” with little to say?
Is commercial television today in danger of becoming a literal vast wasteland?
In spite of many solid triumphs — the magnificent coverage of outer space,
heartwarming stories of ordinary people accomplishing heroic endeavors, scientific
discoveries of great magnitude, etc. — the answer is yes! Most of the truly
meaningful programming has come from public or private grants. Most news divisions
are now controlled by corporations primarily interested in their financial “bottom
line.”
So why does “Unbiased News” remain such an impossible dream? The
answer: The pursuit of power, profit and corporate greed. A constant diet of
bad news means big bucks for the networks, cable and satellite operators and
production studios, as well as for local affiliates, newspapers and magazines.
Bad news sells! The media plays up the negative because it’s unusual.
Isn’t it wonderful that the good in life is so commonplace that not only
is it not considered newsworthy, but not one commentator or politician has come
out against it? The good news is that the bad news is the exception! That’s
why bad news leads the news shows ands gets such good reviews at corporate headquarters.
Just as detrimental as so much preoccupation with the negative, violent side
of life is the media sin of omission — its inability or unwillingness to
give the other side of a story not compatible with pre-conceived editorial policy.
The media, in general, has fashioned itself a distorted vision, viewing itself
almost as a Fourth House of Government charged with formulating policy through
the manipulation of public opinion as it sees fit. Under the guise of serving “the
people’s right to know,” a great deal of bitterness is created as
lives are destroyed by broadcasting innuendo and unproven allegations. There
are too many “talking head experts” spinning out of control on the “air.” Wouldn’t
it be better to prosecute people inside a court of law rather than in the media?
It’s vitally important for all of us to get the right perspective! When
Goliath challenged the Israelites, the soldiers all thought, “He’s
so big, we’ll never defeat him.” David looked at the same giant from
a different perspective and thought, “He’s so big, I can’t
miss!”
By taking a fresh look and seeing things differently, we all benefit. David saved
his people and changed the course of history. It’s time for us to do the
same today! America will survive her present challenges in spite of undue influence
from Big Media. New ideas from uncommon common Americans will bring forth new
sources of energy; new insight into life will bring a restored sense of morality,
a new perspective on what life is all about. A new David will come forth and
lead us to victory in spite of any prophet of doom on the boob-tube spewing negativity.
“Unbiased News: An Impossible Dream?” Not necessarily! The choice
is ours — not just Big Media’s.
“For God gave us not the spirit of fearfulness, but of power and of love
and of a sound mind”
• • •
Jack Fries is a businessman, ordained minister and former television and radio journalist and talk-show host. The Sacramento native and his wife, former child actress and TV personality Jackie Lynn Taylor, teach speaking and voice techniques in Sacramento and Rocklin. They can be contacted at (916) 722-2253 or by e-mail at jhfries@lanset.com.
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