Institutional Racism

political parties. In such cases in the United States, the media outlet is required to
disclose the conflict of interest.
However, the decisions of the editorial department of a newspaper and the corporate
parent frequently are not connected, as the editorial staff retains freedom to decide what
is covered as well as what is not. Biases, real or implied, frequently arise when it comes
to deciding what stories will be covered and who will be called for those stories.
Accusations that a source is biased, if accepted, may cause media consumers to
distrust certain kinds of statements, and place added confidence on others.
How People View The Media: In 1997, two-thirds (67%) said agreed with the statement:
"In dealing with political and social issues, news organizations tend to favor one side."
That was up 14 points from 53 percent who gave that answer in 1985. Those who
believed the media "deal fairly with all sides" fell from 34 percent to 27 percent. "In one
of the most telling complaints, a majority (54%) of Americans believe the news media
gets in the way of society solving its problems," Pew reported. Republicans "are more
likely to say news organizations favor one side than are Democrats or independents (77
percent vs. 58 percent and 69 percent, respectively)." The percentage who felt "news
organizations get the facts straight" fell from 55 percent to 37 percent.
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