Media bias: Just another business rooted in profits

Photo by Jorge Maya via Unsplash

Media bias is alive and well, and it’s being fueled by MSNBC and Fox News. Two of the biggest broadcasting stations are putting obvious spins on real-life issues with the intention of increasing profits, only to leave their viewers with distorted outlooks on issues that are not inherently political. In the early 1900s, before the invention of the radio, paperboys would stand in the street yelling provocative news titles to increase sales.

In 2022, much of the same is being done by big media companies – bigger stories that align with political parties gather more streams, clicks and traffic. As a result, the companies profit from advertisements and funding from organizations aligned with particular parties.

News stations have a specific way of delivering stories that do not make it blatantly obvious that they are presenting them with bias. The stations’ viewers alone show the direct impact that this essentially subliminal bias has on us. According to researchers from Florida Atlantic University, Fox’s recurring viewers are around 93% Republican-affiliated, while MSNBC’s are 95% Democrat-affiliated.

If you were to put MSNBC and Fox News on simultaneously, you would immediately pick up on the fact that they run the same stories at the same time with completely different headlines that serve their political agendas accordingly. 

Search “Joe Biden” on both MSNBC and Fox News’ websites, and the first headlines are drastically different. One of MSNBC’s is “Joe Biden: This is an open book, there is nothing for me to hide” and one of Fox’s is “Biden’s Bizarre ‘Where’s Jackie?’ episode cause for alarm, Republicans say ‘Diminished capacity.’” 

Without knowing each station’s political affiliations, which party would you put them in based on the headlines? These stations know exactly what their specific audiences want to read and cater to their general opinions solely with the intention of increasing profits, not just spreading information.

Fox viewers will keep going back to Fox, and MSNBC viewers will keep going back to MSNBC. If you are only looking at issues through one lens, you are essentially living in an echo chamber that doesn’t allow you to hear other opinions and facts.

There are three sides to every story: side one, side two and the truth. Am I saying that you completely stop watching and reading everything that comes from Fox or MSNBC? Absolutely not. In fact, it can be beneficial to view them – along with other networks. However, taking one side as the truth and running with it causes problems for healthy, productive discussions. 

The current political division and outright animosity toward those who identify themselves in different parties are a result of media bias. Not to mention, Americans continuing to fight about politics is only providing these stations with even more to profit off of, making us a means to an end and treating the population’s political feud as nothing more than a commodity. 

If you’re a pessimist, you might be thinking, “Well, I can’t trust any news stations.” I’ve been there. However, there are some great alternatives if you want largely unbiased news. 

The Associated Press has been ranked the number one unbiased news network on numerous lists, with NPR being a close second. I, and some Hofstra professors that I’ve spoken with, use Democracy Now!, an independent news organization that doesn’t rely on advertisements or government funding as they are a non-profit. This casts them apart from MSNBC and Fox News, who, in comparison, obviously have some skin in the game.