Bias In the Media: Bias Becomes Scandal, Scandal Sells

After reading Mark Bowden's The Story Behind the Story, I was not entirely convinced of his point. As a case-study, it was very interesting to read, and I liked that he found the source of the Sotomayer videos, but his ultimate argument was unclear. Okay, so, reporting has become more about presenting propaganda than find the truth, but to blame that transformation on the rise of ambitious bloggers is inaccurate. If he meant to blame it on the rise of the Internet, I might buy his argument; however, even then, I think that this change in reporting has to do with what the public wants. Whereas in the past, the public wanted to the truth and all of the scandal that its unveiling brought with it. Nothing has changed except that the media has lowered its standards in order to bring the public what it wants: that scandal, that biased, scathing remark. There is a reason why some news makes headlines. The Internet does contribute to the spreading of inaccurate reporting, but it is still the reputation of the news organizations that is on the line when they publish a story regardless of context.