Barack Obama vs. Fox News

In a perfect world, the media would be 100% unbiased. They would cover every important story appropriately without prejudice and never bury some stories and over-emphasize others. They would approach each topic with indifference, in order to let readers come to their own conclusions. They would exist solely to gather and distribute information without any agenda other than the desire to have an informed citizenry. That should be the goal, but it is far from the reality.

I enjoy watching Fox News, but it certainly isn’t “fair and balanced,” as the network claims. There is certainly a conservative slant that cannot be denied. I hear this mentioned frequently, but what I don’t hear mentioned often is the liberal bias demonstrated by MSNBC. They behave exactly like Fox News. They just do so at the opposite end of the political spectrum. I use these two networks as examples, but there are certainly others…too many others.

Media biases have been discussed for quite some time, but they have gained more attention since Barack Obama was elected President. Barack Obama spent a recent Sunday morning discussing health-care on all the major networks, CNN, and Univision, but he conveniently skipped Fox News. It also isn’t unusual to see Fox reporters skipped at press conferences. My guess is that this is done for both punitive reasons and to prevent a “gotcha” moment where they attempt to put him on the spot. Things recently escalated further when criticism of Fox News made its way to the White House blog.

For just a moment, forget your political affiliations and your feelings about Barack Obama, and think in general terms. Is it appropriate for a sitting President to intentionally exclude one network, and to use a government blog to level criticism? It seems beneath the level of dignity and professionalism expected of the office. If you disagree, then think about this: Isn’t he playing into the hands of the conservative media? By intentionally ignoring them and casting them aside, he makes it look like he is afraid to answer the tough questions.

In times of disagreement, it’s usually best to address the other party and stand your ground. Barack Obama is simply avoiding those who disagree with him, rather than looking at these situations as opportunities to address criticisms. This closed-minded approach will come back to haunt him and end up further motivating his critics.