Why news media is biased

News media play an influential part in general public’s perception cults as reported by several studies (Curran & Gurevitch, 1970). Mass media provides more information for them to make good decisions but also be able to detect it easily as biased by the readers (Baron & Goldberg 2002; Alterman, 2003). News media also play a big role and give a proper functioning to modern democratic societies (Bnirundidge, Garret, Rojas & Gil de Zuniga, 2014). News media is biased because it contributes to spreading fake news, create negative perception and encourages racism.

The news in the media is biased because it spreading fake news among the readers. At present, most of the fake news been spreading by using internet such as from mainstream news site, blogs and bulletin or boards (Johnson & Kaye 2008, Banning & Trammell 2006. Since most of the readers and viewers can easily access the internet without any obstacle, they tend to get the information or news from all this sources. According to Reuters Digital News Report (2016), it has stated that 69% of information can be obtained through social media. For instance, the politicians and governments had influence the election campaigns that cause one of the biggest concerns of outrage for the country in spreading the fake news (Kellner, 1999).

For example, use of social media to spread fake news about politics campaigns in United States of America including Twitter, Facebook and YouTube that dramatically changed the way campaigns are run and how American interact with their elected officials (Murse, 2018). Thus, the effects social media has on politics offer opportunity for candidates and elected officials during the election to interact closely with the voters (Satterfield, 2016). The rise of the internet will expands the real for democratic participation to create the new public spaces for political campaign. According to Vanessa (2018), communications from the journalists are important because it be able to construct a platform to influence over how citizens see the political events. Meanwhile, the communications of citizens are important because they are the most numerous and have the collective power over what the elected. Therefore, news media is biased because easily spreading the fake news without accurate information and sources to the readers.

Next, news media biased also influence readers in giving negative perception towards some issues. Based on Benson (2017), the journalists or newscaster can be biased based on opinion and always come to with some preconceived notions and stances to influencing the people view the information based on the way it been presented. For example, human rights issues that had become the focus of foreign media to attacks Malaysia when taking a tough stand against the Western culture that involving with the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) that really against the religion and culture in Malaysia (Mohd Zain, 2018). Besides that, the issue also causing the LGBT activist claim that Malaysia really did not promoting the “ real human rights” for all Malaysian by hosted a Twitter chat on using a hashtag to help transgender women express themselves towards the rules that against the gay and transgender community in the country (Cuen, 2015). This news had showed that the foreign media is biased towards Malaysia and purposely like to provoke Malaysia especially involving the practice of human right in Malaysia. Unfortunately the foreign media did not understand the racial sensitivity in Malaysia even though the used of internet such as social media can help to guide and have a better understanding by the journalist on today’s culture and creates value for people in spreading more beneficial information (Skoler 2009). Therefore, even there is some other Asia country that against in this issues, the foreign media seem more likely to create problem in aroused negative perception among readers towards Malaysia.

News media reinforce racism. News media reconstruct based on the corporate interest, values of the news, ideologist from the professionals and format of the news in order to transform the news event. These aspects gives benefit to the powerful elites because it favours the white, western and male. In addition, because of the specific responsibility and goals of the news media and journalist, it allow reproduction of the news event. These symbolic power of the media also explained its role of racism (Dijk, 1989). Besides that, Gilens (1996) stated that the black have become the image of poverty because the news media keep presenting the public image of the poverty and relate it more to the black even though the real case is not clearly explained. For an example, when a news media presents to the society that black man is dangerous, then people perceive that all black man are dangerous and aggressive. Leopold (2017) also mentioned that an analyses were done on articles that were published during a six month period in 2014 after Michael Browns death were retrieved from New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the St Louis Post Dispatch. Result showed news media have develop negative perceptions about Black Lives Matter movement which stimulates society to relate the blacks with crime. Therefore, news media is biased and reinforces racism through stereotyping and in selection of the news content.

In conclusion, practicing biased in news media by the journalist will influencing spreading the fake news, raise negative perception among the readers and lastly increase the racism among community. The media will always be a part of our daily lives and hardly to avoid it when it comes to an important issue. Based on Kamalanathan, (2003), the cognitive explanation for confirmation bias are based on limitation in people’s ability to handle complex tasks, and the shortcut. Hence, the suggestion to control the news media getting spreading, the government should strictly conduct the law towards the media. Lastly, the readers also must search more sources instead of lean on one source. Dig deeper when they vary wildly this is because people can change their perception become positive.