By Kaitlyn Gray, Gavin Fish
Staff Writers
The Caledonian has wanted to run a story on the recent Israel-Gaza war in the Middle East. While researching information, it led down a path that sparked a lightbulb. What information is good information? How can we identify (differentiate?) biased news and unbiased news? And what impact does it have on the way we see the world? Often, people turn to news, blogs, or social media for information. Because we have limitless sources and often only search engines to guide us, it is very easy to fall into news bias, as our personal beliefs and opinions can often influence the way we find, interpret, and perceive information.
Additionally, the media itself may have biases and agendas that can sway how it reports news. While trying to write an unbiased story, we realized how difficult and how important it is to analyze and fact-check the news we consume in order to avoid being influenced by news sources that may not present the best information.
Think of it like this: the world of journalism is just like a school. When it comes to how we get information, news sites are much like students you may see in a high school coming-of-age film. You have some “clique groups” that like to stir drama to grow their popularity. In this case, these popular news websites are just like those popular kids in the movies, who like to gossip their way to the top. However, other news websites are like reliable friends who only want the best for us. Thinking of it like this can help, because though it may be difficult to check facts if we don’t already know what is going on, it is easier to figure out if we trust the source: do you trust the friend, or not?
With friends and news alike, choosing who you get your information from is critical. First, pay attention to the wording: if you see language with either extremely positive or extremely negative connotations instead of a neutral synonym, it is best to stay away from those articles.
Often, articles that have loaded language are trying to spark up your emotions and form a biased opinion in your mind.
For example, think about this New York Post headline: “Rioting for Palestine? The left keeps displaying its utter ignorance.” There is so much in just a simple headline! Pay attention to provocative language and sweeping generalizations.
The use of the word “rioting” instead of a more neutral term like “protesting” is a subtle way to discredit some people; the use of “the left” to describe a diverse group of humans is a way to minimize their humanity and turn people into a faceless stereotype; and the use of the phrase “utter ignorance” labels people with a different opinion as unintelligent for supporting Palestine and discredits their beliefs. This type of biased language can influence readers and affect how they look at this article.
It’s not only right-leaning sources that we need to watch out for. Look at this example from : The Daily Beast: “Israel Gets Into Spat With WHO Over Medical Supplies in Gaza.” Once again, the headline uses biased language to make one side seem petty and unintelligent. The use of the word “spat” makes a complicated international situation seem personal and trivial. In addition, WHO (the World Health Organization) is a trusted international organization, and by saying Israel is in a “spat…over medical supplies,” the headline makes it seem like Israel doesn’t want international help with medical care. The headline is written in a way that tries to make us angry, but really, we should be more curious about what is actually happening, and why. Pay attention to the tone of the headline you’re looking at and look for a neutral connotation instead of charged or loaded language. Looking for how an article presents information is critical as well: if it applies to only one particular side, it is best to avoid that article.
Luckily, there are many news organizations that strive to report neutrally, including The Associated Press, Reuters, NPR, and BBC, among many others.An example of a neutral headline comes from the BBC: “Israel Gaza war: History of the conflict explained” does not take a side in the Israel-Gaza conflict or use extreme language to describe a group of people. It simply tells the readers that the article will focus on explaining the history of the conflict.
Just like in that high school movie, this is the friend that wants the best for everyone involved.
The Caledonian is dedicated to providing information that is reliable and interesting, without pitting people against each other, either in our school or out in the wider world. In our next issue, we will continue this series on finding reliable information in an often unreliable world of online information.
In the meantime, we want to hear from you! Give us your ideas on how you make sure you’re not falling for bad information by emailing the Caledonian team at nehs.caledonian@gmail.com.
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