Media outlets, educational facilities, and religious institutions often present their audience with only one side of a problem or situation. Popular news agencies and online platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram make it possible for political organizations and influential public figures to integrate their propaganda into the posts viewed by millions of people worldwide. The reason for biased information in media is an attempt of its authors to promote particular agendas and attract supporters. Many modern reporters fail to provide an unbiased view of the event and include their journalistic or expert opinion on the topic. Thus, it is important to be able to distinguish between the sources of biased/fake news and real news.
In order to review the problem from both sides, I will compare the reports on the recent riots at the Capitol by CNN and Reuters. CNN begins its article with an emotionally-charged headline containing the phrase “kill him with his own gun” (Morales, 2021). While CNN does not contain explicitly misleading information or fake news, it is left-biased and omits the information that may undermine liberal propaganda. The reporter describes the event as “a brutal battle” and refers to the rioting Trump supporters as “extremists” attacking and injuring law enforcement officers (Morales, 2021). In contrast, the British news outlet Reuters avoids subjectivity and follows the Trust Principles to preserve its independence and freedom from bias. Reuters covers the event by presenting different views of its participants and the people involved, including the Justice Departments’ lawyers and the Acting U.S. Attorney (Heath & Lynch, 2021). The news source might be considered minimally biased, as it reports factual information, avoids reporters’ personal opinions, and does not distribute articles filled with leftist or rightist political propaganda. Therefore, I can define Reuters as the source of real news and CNN as the biased platform promoting left-wing propaganda.
References
Heath, B. & Lynch, S. N. (2021). U.S. says Capitol rioters meant to ‘capture and assassinate’ officials – filing. Reuters. Web.
Morales, M. (2021). ‘Kill him with his own gun’: Police describe facing the mob at the Capitol. CNN Politics. Web.