Hidden Agendas
How Journalists Influence the News
“[The media] seem to be nothing in themselves, and often say that they merely report what goes on. In truth, they do nothing on their own; they act in the manner of a compassionate passerby who sees an accident in the street and rushes to see if someone else can be of any assistance. But the media greatly affect how we regard government. ” – Harvey Mansfield, Jr.
Description
In our news-hungry society, where CNN is considered a staple of primetime viewing, journalists have become celebrities and often, political proxies. To a large degree, our world is shaped by their commentaries on everything from war to health care to trade. Hidden Agendas: How Journalists Influence the News is a no-holds-barred exposé of how the opinions of reporters decidedly shape the information we consider news.
Awards
- Short-listed, Donner Prize, Donner Foundation 2004
Reviews
Hidden Agendas lays out the pervasive liberal-left bias in most big-city newsrooms. It should be a wake-up call for reporters and editors who believe themselves to be objective, but aren’t.
- Lorne Gunter
With care and skill, Miljan and Cooper subject the poisonous debate over media bias to a healthy dose of scientific analysis. All future debate over the media will have to take their research into account. This book shows that bias isn’t just in the eye of the beholder. It’s also in the eyes of journalists, to whom we’re all beholden for our image of reality.
- Bob Lichter, president, Center for Media and Public Affairs, Washington, DC, and author of <EM>The Media Elite: America’s New Powerbrokers</EM>
Hidden Agendas breaks new ground and expands our understanding of Canada’s media. But be forewarned: Whatever your preconceptions about who’s right, who’s left and who’s wrong, this little book is full of surprises.
- Terence Corcoran, editor-in-chief