New media, specifically the blogosphere, proves to be a unique news media outlet in that it does not subscribe to traditional journalistic standards of unbiased reporting. As newspaper sales continue to fall, more and more people are turning to the internet as their primary source of news. From the far left to the far right — and everywhere in between — the internet is teaming with bloggers and news junkies who are reporting the news in unprecedented ways. Today, the news media is becoming freed from its traditional emphasis on unbiased reporting, with amateur media production continues to blur the line between fact and opinion.
On the left side of the spectrum is Daily Kos, a blog that was started in 2002 by Markos “Kos” Moulitsas, when “an oppressive and war-crazed administration suppressed all dissent as unpatriotic and treasonous.” Kos, a war veteran, currently serves as a writer for the site that averages over one million hits per day and has a staff of over 20 writers and editors.
Daily Kos does not shroud its inherent political bias behind a veil of political correctness. Instead, it analyzes the news in a manner that makes its views and opinions clear and it seems as though its readers are walking the same line. According to a Daily Koss poll that asked readers about their willingness to vote for Sen. John McCain in November, 50 percent, or 6,555 voters, stated “You could not get me to vote for McCain even if you staked me out on a fire ant hill and poured honey on my privates.” Trailing behind in second place, with 23 percent of the votes, was the response “Short of torture, I would not vote for McCain.” Only one percent of voters said that they thought McCain would make a good president.
The Huffington Post exemplifies how technology has influenced the news media. HuffPost, which describes itself as “the internet newspaper,” has an obvious political slant, yet advertises itself as an outlet for news about politics, media, business and entertainment. On May 13, HuffPost ran a post entitled “Pentagon Propaganda ‘Analysts’ Made 4,500 Media Appearances,” which cited that members of the Pentagon media analyst program appeared on television news stations as retired military “media analysts” over 4,500 times. HuffPost editorializes the story most perceptibly by putting the work “propaganda” in the headline. Additionally, the post criticizes the news media, stating that The New York Times, which initially broke the story, “has done little to advance its blockbuster story since it was first reported.”
Towards the center of the spectrum is The Caucus, a blog where the political staff of The New York Times follows the 2008 presidential election campaign trail. While loyal Times readers may be inclined to say that the paper is in favor of Sen. Hillary Clinton — who received support from the paper’s editorial board — The Times’ blog generally veers away from making any outwardly editorialized statements. What differentiates The Caucus from other political blogs such as Daily Kos and HuffPost is the users who generate the sites’ content. Daily Kos and HuffPost can be classified as amateur blogs, in that content is produced by people who have no affiliation with the professional news media. On the other hand, The Caucus is written by the staff of The Times, a corporation whose reputation is dependent on their claim to report unbiased news content.
