Social Media Bias
The lack of education among citizens to evaluate news is problematic and causes many people to misinterpret the information that is provided in the news. Modern day citizens and youth are entering a situation where many news sources are biased and are trying to further their own success. Therefore, as reported by the Stanford History Education Group (SHEG), citizens “need further instruction in how best to navigate social media content” and other news sources (Wineburg and McGrew 24). SHEG shows through their lesson plan how many students are unable to determine the difference between truthful news and helps to instruct students. In addition, many citizens lack the ability to compare multiple viewpoints when evaluating media. Instead of taking
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For instance, many media outlets are seeking economic gain instead of seeking the truth. Daniel Sutter illustrates this point in his research, showing how the media is focused on generating revenue (402). Consequently, the media is encouraging bias in order to attract and maintain a loyal following and source of revenue. In fact, through the use of the internet, alternative news sources are able to produce news that is usually “not fact-checked or is simply false” (The President and the Press 21). In order to stay competitive many mainstream sources are then forced to publish more biased articles. This increase in the publication of biased articles among mainstream sources is now allowing the media to clarify the facts and then formulate the facts into opinions. All in all, this is greatly affecting politics by forcing citizens to rely on the media to form their opinions (Perse 82). For example, Gregory Martin and Ali Yurukoglu reveal how the increase of bias in the media creates a polarization in the political parties (37). As noted by Martin and Yurukoglu, “the increase in polarization depends critically on the existence of both a persuasive effect and a taste for like-minded news” (4). They also observed that by watching certain news sources like “FNC increases the probability of voting Republican in presidential elections” (Martin and Yurukoglu 37). Beyond that there are several examples of the media affecting political decisions. In particular the birther issue of Obama’s 2008 election showed how a blatant lie spread by the press caused many voters to reconsider their decision (Lewandowsky 118). In brief, the media is seeking greater success and therefore misinforming many
For instance, many media outlets are seeking economic gain instead of seeking the truth. Daniel Sutter illustrates this point in his research, showing how the media is focused on generating revenue (402). Consequently, the media is encouraging bias in order to attract and maintain a loyal following and source of revenue. In fact, through the use of the internet, alternative news sources are able to produce news that is usually “not fact-checked or is simply false” (The President and the Press 21). In order to stay competitive many mainstream sources are then forced to publish more biased articles. This increase in the publication of biased articles among mainstream sources is now allowing the media to clarify the facts and then formulate the facts into opinions. All in all, this is greatly affecting politics by forcing citizens to rely on the media to form their opinions (Perse 82). For example, Gregory Martin and Ali Yurukoglu reveal how the increase of bias in the media creates a polarization in the political parties (37). As noted by Martin and Yurukoglu, “the increase in polarization depends critically on the existence of both a persuasive effect and a taste for like-minded news” (4). They also observed that by watching certain news sources like “FNC increases the probability of voting Republican in presidential elections” (Martin and Yurukoglu 37). Beyond that there are several examples of the media affecting political decisions. In particular the birther issue of Obama’s 2008 election showed how a blatant lie spread by the press caused many voters to reconsider their decision (Lewandowsky 118). In brief, the media is seeking greater success and therefore misinforming many