The Media, The Marketplace Too Truth

I read amongst involvement a recent article past times Greg Mankiw almost media bias (HT Mark Thoma). It discussed enquiry past times Gentzkow in addition to Shapiro on the U.S. of A. of America paper industry. They let on that a newspaper’s political slant is governed past times the politics of its readership rather than the politics of its owner. Of course of study telly in addition to radio are dissimilar from newspapers, in addition to the U.K. paper manufacture is rather dissimilar from that inward the US. But what interested me were Mankiw’s ain closing remarks:

“These findings verbalize good of the marketplace. In the marketplace position for news, equally inward most other markets, Adam Smith’s invisible paw leads producers to cater to consumers. But the findings likewise heighten a to a greater extent than troubling inquiry almost the media’s component subdivision equally a democratic institution. How probable is it that nosotros equally citizens volition modify our minds, or accomplish compromise amongst those who convey differing views, if all of us are getting our tidings from sources that reinforce the opinions nosotros firstly with?”

Now fifty-fifty raising this inquiry sounds rather radical, in addition to potentially paternalistic. Should nosotros cease people reading what they desire to read, because nosotros mean value it would endure expert for them to read something else?

The occupation amongst political bias is that it covers a multitude of sins. At its most innocent, it tin but endure presenting facts inside a political or ideological context that matches that of the reader. In the UK, a lot of the reporting inward the Guardian, or Telegraph, is of this kind. Where it gets to a greater extent than hard is when this bias determines which facts larn reported.

Take this report inward the Daily Mail almost the U.K. nutrient banks run past times the charity the Trussell Trust. (Or, equally roughly authorities sources Here is a study inward the Daily Mail online, indicating a rush of workers taking payoff of this relaxation. As this comprehensive discussion makes clear, the study was essentially a locomote of fiction. As this observes (via Mark Thoma), if it is solely the media read past times your political opponents who volition proper name foul, politicians who exactly desire to ‘play to the base’ are tempted to likewise distort or manufacture evidence, mayhap leading to descent into a the world of fantasy.

Does this selection of facts genuinely influence people? Fewer people inward the U.S. of A. of America here.)

So this is an of import issue. But tin Mankiw endure rescued from the accuse of paternalism? (No, I never expected to write that delineate of piece of work either.) I exactly desire to heighten 2 end thoughts. First, practise nosotros know that people are happy non to endure told of import facts that they mightiness let on challenging? If they had a alternative betwixt a paper that presented all the facts from their ain ideological perspective, in addition to roughly other identical paper which solely gave them the facts they wanted to hear, would they genuinely involve the latter? Perhaps people practise non larn that choice. Second, fifty-fifty if they mightiness sometimes involve the latter option, practise they desire that option? Perhaps it is a chip similar existence on a diet. We know nosotros mightiness endure tempted never to endure confronted amongst facts that challenge our priors, but nosotros know nosotros genuinely should be. So exactly equally those on a diet would rather non endure constantly faced amongst the alternative of lots of fattening foods, then mayhap people would non object if they did non convey the alternative of exactly hearing what they wanted to hear.