Editorial

Inside The Monument: How to detect bias
By Elizabeth Prata

I got a phone message from a person who was upset with The Monument's article last week, "Council calls for Library Expansion." The caller said that The Monument was biased and that we slanted the story.

I'm glad they called. I much prefer open discussion between two reasonable people rather than a person stewing without giving us an opportunity to have a dialog and either resolve the issue or offer us chance to improve. I also appreciate that though the caller was livid, the call remained respectful in tone and word.

Meanwhile, I thought this was a good opportunity to present information to readers as to what bias is.

How to detect bias in news reports

There are two kinds of actions that contribute to bias, one is bias in the way the news is gathered and the other is bias in the way the news is presented.

As the LA Times states in their code of ethics, "A fair-minded reader of Times news coverage should not be able to discern the private opinions of those who contributed to that coverage, or to infer that the newspaper is promoting any agenda." If you can, there's bias.

Gathering the news

Attend the meeting- The first rule of thumb for reporters to maintain objectivity is to actually attend the meeting. It sounds like a given, but writers associated with the Gray News often do not attend the meeting on which they report. In that case, news that is gathered is either conjecture, which results in a 100% biased piece, or gathered from the newsmakers, who present the meeting's contents from one point of view, again a total loss of objectivity. Articles like that are also the worst kind of lie to readers, who rightly assume that the reporter was actually there.

Here's an example from this past October from The Gray News:

"The Council has told Town department heads to present two budgets: one with no increase over last year, except for actual energy costs; and one "bare-bones" budget, defined as the minimum budget necessary to provide the Town with services."

The Council did not want two budgets prepared. Second, the Council did not tell the Town Departments anything, doing so would violate the Charter. They had instructed the Manager.

Chair Gary Foster said in an interview with The Monument, "The October 21 [Gray News] article is absolutely not true. Council did not, does not, and cannot instruct the Department heads. We instruct the Town Manager, and he alone deals directly with Department heads. Furthermore we did not instruct anyone to prepare a flat budget and bare bones budget. Our instructions to the Town Manager were to have his Department heads develop a zero based budget."

The information in the Gray News's reporting was obtained second hand, and it illustrates what happens-- they end up presenting inaccurate and biased information as news. The chance of getting the facts right are much greater when the reporter goes to the meeting.

Refrain from associations- A second rule of thumb in maintaining objectivity is to refrain from associations. Receiving remuneration from, or serving on committees, leads to a loss of objectivity.

The LA Times again: "Outside affiliations and community work: Editorial employees may not use their positions at the paper to promote personal agendas or causes. Nor should they allow their outside activities to undermine the impartiality of Times coverage, in fact or appearance."

Here is another example from the Gray News: A few months ago at a meeting, the Council discussed the Fire Department Celebration. Nathan was on hand to report but is also a member of the Fire Department. As the Council's discussion progressed, he became more and more agitated. As a Fire Department member, he had a stake in the how the discussion turned out, and his agitation betrayed his emotional involvement.

When the meeting ended, Nathan approached Vice-Chair Upham, and asked him directly, "Are you opposed to the Celebration?" Mr. Upham said, "No I am not." Nathan's headline the next day was "Upham opposes Celebration." When writers lose objectivity they sometimes end up deliberately deviating from the truth.

Few journalists would claim total neutrality or impartiality, but they must strive toward detachment from their own personal biases in their news work, and at The Monument, we do.

Listen honestly- The third news gathering practice to avoid bias is to listen honestly. The reporter must write down as much of the meeting as is possible, not selectively write only those statements that appeal to him or her, or that he or she agrees with. The Monument writes down as much of what was said as we can, so that we have a substantive body of events from which to choose to include in the article and can represent it accurately. When reporters listen openly, it leads to a more balanced news article.

Presenting the news

When writing the article there are lots of ways that reporters betray their biases.

Language- Use of a word with positive or negative connotations rather than a more neutral synonym can form in the audience's mind a biased picture. Read and decide which is less biased: "Upham complained that the Council was not addressing its priorities" [from the Gray News on 11-18] or "Upham said that the Council was not addressing its priorities."

The word 'complain' should not be used unless the newsmaker actually stated that he was complaining, it is an accusatory word. Good reporters avoid using those.

Weasel words- adjectives and words that cast doubt or blame. Using 'appears to be' or 'seems to' are ways that biased reporters denigrate the newsmaker or citizen. It's bad reporting, too. News should be clear, with definitive words. Here's an example from an October issue of The Gray News: "The Gray Town Council's thirst for information appears to be insatiable." Well? Is it, or isn't it? Weasel words are bias words designed to keep the paper just this side of libel.

Quoting- A biased report will include only segments or parts of quotes, rather than the full sentence or even better, a proper context for the quote. One signal that an article is biased is to use what is called the journalistic sneer, or the sarcastic quotation.

This involves putting quotes around a word or two rather than the entire sentence. Here's an example from the Gray News: "As the meeting wound down, Upham said he wants to see how Pennell fits into the Town's Capital Improvement Plan, and asked Town Manager Mitch Berkowitz to provide him with information so that Upham could get "up to speed" on it."

The quote should start from just after the word 'said.' The smaller the part of the sentence quoted, the higher the disregard for full quotation, hence, the sneer.

Language that includes weasel words, adjectives, judgment words and improper quoting all indicate bias. Reliance on the newsmakers to supply reporters with the news, being part of the news or having too many associations with government or organizations, and failing to listen openly are indicators of bias.

Foundation of democracy

Wikipedia says that "one of the leading voices in the U.S. on the subject of Journalistic Standards and Ethics is the Society of Professional Journalists," of which The Monument are members. The Preamble to its Code of Ethics states:

"...public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy. The duty of the journalist is to further those ends by seeking truth and providing a fair and comprehensive account of events and issues. Conscientious journalists from all media and specialties strive to serve the public with thoroughness and honesty. Professional integrity is the cornerstone of a journalist's credibility."

The Monument takes care to avoid bad practices. We're not perfect, so if you ever read an article that shows any of the bias indicators, let us know and we will fix it. As always, thank you for reading.