Is the news media liberal? Yes, but not the way you think.

We've heard accusations for years about the alleged bias of the "liberal news media." Professional journalists are trained to keep their own opinions out of their work, but in the broader (non-political) context of "liberal," having a liberal news media is good for everybody. 

Read to find out why.


     "Liberal" is way more than politics

In political terms, "liberal" generally means having a free and generous heart, an enlightened mind, being free from narrowness and bigotry, and advocating freedom of thought speech and action.  In public policy, that translates into support for social justice, gender and racial equality, freedom of speech and the press, and protection against state-endorsed religion.

But in the broader sense, "liberal" means open to new behaviors and ideas, willing to discarding traditional "we've always done it that way" values, and embracing broad-mindedness. Liberals are more likely than conservatives to cope with complex information, ambiguity, and novelty, and more likely to process conflicting evidence (see this link for more details).

     What is the Job of "the media"?

The job of legitimate journalists is finding the "truth" and reporting it fairly and courageously without allowing advocacy creep in (see the Society of Professional Journalists Code). Advocacy can be contained in attributed quotes, but not in the balancing journalistic narrative between the quotes.

For today's professional journalists, that means fact-checking.  Journalists are constantly checking the evidence concerning what public figures say, and also fact-checking each other. As a journalist, I used to enjoy writing stories that began "Contrary to some reports..."

This all happens in an environment in which the general public has trouble telling the difference between legitimate journalism and advocacy.  The prevalence of online sources that superficially look like journalism but are actually manipulatively slanting stories for political advantage has greatly confused the overall validation of what is dependable, evidence-based journalism.

True, not all journalists do a good job every time.  Not all politicians do a good job.  Not all police to a good job.  Not all scientists do a good job.  Not all business people do a good job. Not all parents do a good job. 

Saying "I don't trust the news because of this one bad thing I saw happen years ago" is a logical fallacy.  The proper response is "I'd better check multiple sources and see if they all say that."  And remember, don't just check your favorite advocacy sites.

     So what is a "liberal news media?"

The "liberal" media is reporters and editors who can process and explain new ideas, put complex situations in understandable terms, and make sense out of conflicting evidence. It is people who will have a broad knowledge background and ask tough, insightful questions. It is people who follow a story to find the truth, whether or not they (or the public) like where the story leads.

So that makes the professional news media the dictionary definition of "liberal" and makes the "liberal media" important to society.