News Media Bias 1

Bell-ringer A fight between two girls broke out in the hallway last period. The principal asked those who witnessed the fight to report what happened. The witnesses included: the best friend of one of the students who fought, a sister of the other student, a teacher who knows both students, a teacher who does not know either student, a student who was just walking by halfway through the fight, and a student who was in the hallway when the fight broke out. How might the witnesses’ reports differ? Why? 2 Respond in writing to the following prompt:

Definitions bias: to show a preference for a certain issue or position perspective: point of view objective: the ability to describe an issue or event without expressing an opinion or taking sides subjective: one’s personal interpretation of events propaganda: often false or misleading information used to promote a person, institution, or organization 3

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Outfoxed 5

Investigating the News Find one example of media bias in a broadcast and/or print new source. (While Outfoxed examined media bias in broadcast news, many print news organizations use similar tactics.) Pick a news source other than Fox News. Identify the news source Describe the bias technique Explain what messages might be missing 6