Karen, the bias is in the focus. It's not about the millions celebrating his capture in Iraq, it's about the *small* percentage who are demonstrated against it, or about those who feel bad that he was captured.
I went back and read it again. It seems like good reporting to me. Yes, the lead in was the demonstrators. Perhaps they could have lead with the guy with the shoe. Personally, I think it's more effective to end with the shoe since it's such an uplifting story. In any case, it's typical of reporters to lead with what gives them good visuals. You know the saying "if it bleeds, it leads." That's the default. It's hard to find bias when they're following standard procedure. If they deviated from standard procedure to focus on something negative, your point would be stronger.
I gather from your response that you don't question the accuracy of what was reported. It seems to me that the story in this is not those who are protesting or those who are cheering but in how conflicted most Iraqis must be. That that's the story they are telling. I found it interesting and thoughtful. If they just reported solely that Iraqis are thrilled to be rid of this madman, yes, that would be true, but it would also be shallow and not particularly informative or insightful. They're supposed to be newsmen, not cheerleaders. And we're supposed to learn from what they report, not just be left fat, dumb, and happy.
In the context of reporting in general, I take your point, but I think that you're reaching on this particular incident.
Re your analogy, they didn't just report on the sad Dallas fans. They reported on how conflicted Redskins fans were that, while they won, the Dallas quarterback's career was ended when he was sacked by both ends simultaneously or that the Dallas quarterback, a future hall of famer, was sacked twenty times and knocked unconscious five times in what was his final game before retirement. Decent Redskins fans would have mixed feelings about either of those scenarios. And that would make a better job of reporting than the horn honking and fire crackers. |
