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Resources
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Editorials and Op Eds Evaluating opinion writing • Editorials on Bush and Kerry • Links to opinion pages • Progressive columnists • Conservative columnists • Advocacy groups on issues What constitutes "bias" in a column or editorial? Don't confuse "bias" with simply having a position, or the only people without bias will be people who are indecisive or ignorant. "Bias" is a useful term when you understand it to mean a prejudice that prevents someone from arriving at a position based upon a fair evaluation of evidence. Someone who is passionate about his position can also be free from prejudice, if he came to his position as a result of rational investigation and consideration of the evidence. Some common fallacies What are some tests for bias in editorials and op ed articles? Is the writer giving opinions without supporting them?
Does the writer consider the more important positions and arguments of his opponents? Or does the writer focus on less important or germane issues? Does the argument have a sound factual basis? Are the facts accurate? Have you checked the writer’s facts? Sometimes a quick web search will either give you the writer’s sources, better sources that contradict the writer, or an article opposing the writer’s views with different arguments and sources. What are the sources? Are they reliable? For example, is the writer merely appealing to authority, or also to research and data? If there is an appeal to statistics, do the statistics make sense? Check the writer's references—sometimes writers do not report their sources accurately. Does the source cited have a vested interest (such as corporate or some—not all—government sources)? Is the source a public relations firm, lobbying or advocacy organization, or independent scholar? What is excluded? For example, is there a double standard in the argument, with an appeal to a principle that could not be consistently applied or has not been consistently applied? (For example, arguments advocating war which accuse enemies of the U.S. of human rights violations but remain silent about US human rights violations or violations by US allies.) You can compare some editorials for and against the 2004 presidential candidates here Opinion-pages.org http://www.opinion-pages.org/ News i world.com http://newsiworld.com/NA/CL/ Yahoo columns and columnists. http://dir.yahoo.com/News_and_Media/Columns_and_Columnists/ Blue Eagle commentary. http://www.blueagle.com/ Headlinespot.com http://www.headlinespot.com/opinion/columnists/ Wikipedia. List of columnists with links to short bios and their websites. Recent editorials List of Washington Post columnists New York Times The Boston Globe http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/ The Washington Times http://www.washingtontimes.com/op-ed/ Weeklies The New Republic www.tnr.com The National Review www.nationalreview.com/ The Weekly Standard www.weeklystandard.com/ Common Dreams http://www.commondreams.org/ Liberal links from the website of The American Prospect magazine: Town Hall.com Conservative News and Information. http://www.townhall.com/columnists/ Conservative Chronicle http://conservativechronicle.com/columnists/ British columnists Excite.com http://www.excite.co.uk/directory/News/Analysis_and_Opinion/Columnists/World_Issues Guardian and Observer columnists Financial Times columnists Govspot http://govspot.com/issues/ |