Media Bias: Examining the Facts

Gr 7 Up–Framed around 31 questions, this title addresses the evergreen topic of media bias in the United States. With broad categories like “the nature of bias,” “opinions and editorialization,” “liberal bias,” “conservative bias,” and others, the book is designed for easy navigation, allowing students to easily find the topic they are interested in. Each question is accompanied by narrative ­sections that answer and offer more facts. The further reading section at the end of each question offers a short bibliography, but without annotations or commentary to guide readers in their inquiry. While there is a lot to like about this text—the way the author emphasizes that bias is simply human preference, and that it is impossible for any human to be without bias—some of the information already feels dated and incomplete. For example, one question asks if sites like ­Facebook, ­Twitter, and Google Search are built on liberal-leaning algorithms, without any discussion of major contemporary changes in these sites, or the roles of the individuals behind them. Elon Musk is mentioned once, in answer to a different question: The vision behind Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter is essentially explained as “to eliminate the bias and make the forum a true public square where everyone can fairly have their points be shared (of course excluding—in theory—any kind of hateful or inciteful speech).” Although the series that includes this book exists to “clear the air surrounding some of the most contentious and misunderstood issues of our time—not just add another layer of obfuscation and uncertainty to the debate”—the academic narrative voice will likely add confusion for the intended high school audience. With guidance from expert ­research librarians, this text may prove useful as a starting point for inquiry, and sections from the text may aid in preparing students for large debates. ­