Essay on How to Detect Media Bias and Propaganda

There is a simple logic behind bias and propaganda in the news media today. Every society and culture has their world view and interpretations. This influences what they see and the manner in which they perceive it. News media portrays the world view of different cultures. However, the truth about the happenings around the world is more sophisticated than what seems to be right in any culture in the world. In any society, for one to be a critical reader, it is important to come to terms with this fact and read thoroughly any reading material. This paper seeks to establish that critical thinking comprises a complex set of skills which alter what is considered natural in human thought.

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Passed in March 2016 in North Carolina, the Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act has triggered heated debates in the United States of America. The act is termed An Act to Provide for Single-sex Multiple Occupancy Bathroom and Changing Facilities in Schools and Public Agencies and to Create Statewide Consistency in Regulation of Employment and Public Accommodations. Opponents maintain that it is against LGBT legislation in the US. On the other hand, proponents believe that it is a common sense law. However, the way in which the media has carried this story reflects a bias that would make it difficult for the reader to make his judgment.

A conservative tone is presented in the article North Carolina Bathroom Battle Brings out the Big Guns. There is a notion that this issue does not warrant the undue attention that it is receiving: whod have thought transgender rights would be the issue that finally moved this administration past campaign rhetoric and into the field of actual action. The focus is on ensuring that restrooms and changing facilities are not opened to those of both genders because it is commons sense. However, the article fails to go into detail about the 10th Amendment and its impact on this law thus providing incomplete information to the readers. The article commits bias by selection of sources due to the fact that the 10th Amendment has been left in discussing this controversial subject.

On the other hand, a liberal tone is set in the article North Carolina Republicans Vow to Defy Feds on Bathroom Law. Republican leaders from North Carolina emphasized their continued support for the law which regulated or controlled the restrooms and changing facilities that the transgender people could use. This followed an order to the state from the federal government holding that the law was in violation of United States Civil Rights Act. For instance, one of the lawmakers maintained that they would not be bullied into meeting Justice Department to have the law changed. The article creates a bias in the sense that the reader is made to believe that the federal government is at fault when in essence the law says otherwise. The article commits bias by spin because the media has only presented one interpretation of the law, leaving out the other.

In conclusion, the two news media report about the same story. However, the reader could believe that battle lines have been drawn based on how the stories are presented. However, this is not the case save for a difference of opinion which is common. This bias is appalling. It is clear that the news is no longer providing information about facts or truths, rather is focusing on telling people what their opinions ought to be.

Works Cited

Cheryl Chumley. North Carolina Bathroom Battle Brings Out the Big Guns.2016. Web.

<http://www.allsides.com/news/2016-07-19-1032/north-carolina-bathroom-battle-brings-out-big-guns>

Colleen Jenkins. North Carolina Republicans Vow To Defy Feds On Bathroom Law.2016. Web.

<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/north-carolina-bathroom-law-deadline_us_572c5f64e4b096e9f090ecd6>