Media Bias? Of Course!

As the 2008 primaries and presidential election approach, I anticipate the widespread concern as it relates to the media and it's in/ability to be neutral in its reporting. As a Van Tilian worldview thinker, I know that neutrality is a myth because everyone has a set of lenses through which they view the world. I suppose I can differentiate between the personal views of the journalist and whether the views actually reveal themselves in the work of the journalist, but even in the set of questions framed by a journalist there can be seen a particular lack of objectivity. And that's to be expected.

So when we think about the presuppositional framework that guides the media, we can see one particular dominant stream of thought that can best be described as secular. Wikipedia defines secular as the state of being separate from religion. I suppose that isn't a bad definition, especially as it pertains to the media because the common understanding of objectivity or neutrality (as if it were really possible) is to be void of religious notions. Secularism is deemed the safe place for the religious and nonreligious, but while the media tries to follow the rules of secularism they accomplish 2 very obvious things: they adopt a worldview as they seek to demolish another. This simply cannot be avoided because, again, secularism isn't really a place of safety or neutrality, rather it is an intentionally anti-religious perspective.

So as you continue to be frustrated by reporting in the media, noting obvious flaws in reporting, remember that the journalists are people with their own set of presuppositions about the way things are suppose to be. This isn't an excuse, but rather an explanation. As soon as we have an understanding and appreciation for what the media actually is, we can manage our expectations and react appropriately. I'm not shocked anymore. If there is one thing we can do, we should be quick to point out that we see the media bias and name it - call it what it is - then what will be most evident is that the secular thought is the overarching framework for the media and many in politics, and then it will make sense why it seems that they are working together - because they are.