Media Literacy in the News Cycle

By Pierce K. Kozlowski

What is Media Literacy?

In the age of information accessibility, where clicks translate into profits, the practice of click-baiting people into headlines that can sway votes, among other things, presents the newfound demand for literacy in media bias. Literacy, in this context, means understanding bias and its causes in publicly accessible information, no matter how obscured or unassuming, specifically in media and news. Let’s take an example and use CNN. Their bias is predominantly left-wing and the cause for this bias is that they’re backed by left-wing donors, like Democrats and other activist groups. For most people, this is an obvious example. But what constitutes high-level literacy when it comes to bias in lesser-known or quasi-neutral sources? To answer this, we must acknowledge that there are two rules of thumb for media literacy, and we shall discuss each in their order.

Two Rules of Thumb

First, once you’ve read something from the news, ascertain the perspective of other sources. If an outlet like the New York Times or Washington Post reported on Republican policy, what did the New York Post or The Washington Examiner say – did they even cover the issue? Now, we know the latter two to be conservative and the former two to be liberal. But if one of the four made a political claim of any kind, see what other outlets are saying, whether they’re politically similar or opposed. “Fact-checking” advice from places like Olympic College has given this process a name: “triangulate,” or triangulating where your information sits relative to everyone else (Newcomer). The reason for this is that you can begin to understand if what you’re reading deviates from media consensus, if it’s a new story or has been widely covered, and which outlets are covering it. The fool hastily assumes that one opinion is sufficient, but the wise hears many before proceeding. For this reason, ascertain the position of your media to begin forming an understanding of the bias. This sharpens literacy, both literally and figuratively.  

Second, once many opinions have been assumed, determine the actual bias of what you read if it wasn’t already apparent. To explain this, let’s call the bias the “effect,” and the reason for the bias the “cause.” Sometimes, a “cause” may be deduced from an “effect.” Other times, an “effect” must be induced from the “cause,” wherein the cause is actually demonstrated first. In this respect, if we do not understand the bias (or effect) of a source, we must assume it has one and investigate for any factors (or causes) that would permit such bias. Let’s clarify this abstraction by example. We used CNN in the introduction, but what about unsuspecting sources, like Brookings Institute? Upon one look at their donor list, we see their top contributors are charity foundations that specialize in global development, such as improving housing, reducing poverty, and expanding healthcare (Brookings). These are more progressive initiatives, considering the Gates Foundation is one of their six biggest contributors. Here is the cause of the bias we spoke of earlier. But what of the bias itself, is the effect of the bias there? Well, Brookings often focuses on progressive, left-adjacent research that’s quite divorced from the right, and this is proven by their many research findings on housing, healthcare, and global development, all of which lean towards central planning solutions championed by progressive advocates. Even Brookings, in all her prestige in Washington, has her biases – but that doesn’t take away from the findings. The Lehman College, which inspired this section of my writing, also speaks of this skill in a much briefer fashion, where they outline how to find media bias, and their first point is understanding bias by understanding where the information came from (Librarian).

Additionally, a great way to ascertain where a news company stands politically is by consulting a research-based, ranked system that categorizes where mainstream or legacy media sit. Below is a depiction of an interactive graphic doing just that, courtesy of the Adfontes Media group, highlighting where certain outlets fall on the political spectrum in live time:  

Work Cited

1. Brandon Muller. “Interactive Media Bias Chart Public.” Ad Fontes Media, adfontesmedia.com/interactive-media-bias-chart/?v=402f03a963ba.

2. Brookings. The Brookings Institution’s Contributors List. The Brookings Institute, 31 Dec. 2019, www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/The-Brookings-Institutions-Contributors-List-Fiscal-Year-2020.pdf. 

3. Librarian, Lehman. “Research Guides: English 111: Detecting Bias.” Libguides.lehman.edu, 27 Mar. 2023, libguides.lehman.edu/c.php?g=733610&p=5241445.

4. Newcomer, Heather. “Research Guides: Media Literacy: Fact Checking Rules of Thumb.” Libguides.olympic.edu, Olympic College, 6 Nov. 2016, libguides.olympic.edu/c.php?g=439820&p=8066575. Accessed 25 Sept. 2023.