COLUMN: MEDIA LITERACY: Plain language

When it comes to the news, a reporter should not be telling you how to feel. You know that. Journalists know that. In today’s world though, what we know and what happens — especially regarding national politics — aren’t as synonymous as we’d all like.  

I was sitting in a restaurant recently, and the placard at the bottom of the screen — the effective headline of the piece the reporter was delivering — used some rather creative adjectives for President Joe Biden. Watching another channel, there was the same inanity being thrown at President-Elect Donald Trump.  

Frankly, that’s not how it’s supposed to be. No headline, lede in a news story or adjective should be in a newspaper or on broadcast news outside of a clearly indicated opinion content. Columnists aren’t journalists, nor are commentators. Editorializing is wrong in something presented as a news story, plain and simple.  

Looking for bias in a news organization? Seeing where the adjectives and adverbs are and thinking about what those descriptors imply is the biggest part of that search. If you’re reading or watching a news outlet that you always agree with or that always makes you mad at the folks you don’t agree with, and they do it by leading you along with descriptive words that may be a matter of opinion, well, that’s where the bias is. You’re not being informed. You’re being manipulated. Whether it’s a left lean or a right lean — or a crazy lean in some instances — it's still manipulation.  

A journalist’s job is, and should be, to provide you with unbiased information that you get to decide what your opinion is on it. Every reporter has their own opinions, but if you can tell what they are, either you’re reading or watching an opinion piece, or you’re not consuming the news.  

If, as a hypothetical example, you read a headline that says, “(Republican/Democrat official) makes shady weapons deal,” then you’ve already had someone try to steal your right to make an informed decision. Why is it shady? Who says it’s shady? Indicate those things, and it gives the reader some context to start determining if they agree. It may be better to say, “Public official benefits from weapons deal he oversaw.” Simple. Factual. Attention-getting. More importantly, it doesn’t color readers’ views as they move into reading the article.  

Adverbs and adjectives matter. They’re the flavoring for a body of text or speech. The news should be savory, with enough flavoring to be engaging but not so spicy or sweet that it becomes overbearing. If something is designed to agree with your opinions, it’s too sweet. If it’s designed to get you fired up, maybe the writer should back off of the proverbial jalapeños.  

There’s a simple exercise you can do with print materials. It involves one of my favorite tools, a red pen. Pick up the paper or magazine, the pen and go through and cross out all of the adjectives and adverbs in the articles that feel like they’re leading you somewhere. Then, read the article again. If you’re looking at a digital publication, copy the article into a document and delete the leading descriptors. It’ll pull out the sugar and spice and leave you with a factual article. 

Alternately, just remember to sample a variety of news options – even from the stations and publications that may make your vision blur from anger.  

You can also check out the Ad Fontes Media Interactive Media Bias Chart. You can google it or just go to this link: https://bit.ly/MEDIABIAS1. Ad Fontes has its finger on the pulse of manipulative media and provides tools to help people understand bias in media. The chart is based on research for leading language, correction practices when errors are made and other factors.  

If you ever feel that the Columbia Basin Herald may be leaning one way or another, please let me know. Email me at editor@columbiabasinherald.com and tell me what your concerns are. I need that feedback to ensure I’m doing everything I can to give you the unbiased, relevant news that you deserve.  

With appreciation, 

R. Hans “Rob” Miller
Managing Editor
Columbia Basin Herald
Basin Business Journal