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Directions

-Read the media bias example below (from an April 9 post at AIM.org).
-Read "Types of Media Bias" here or in the right column. Then answer the questions.

From an AIM.org post (original post date 4/9/13):
Former British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, passed away at the age of 87 due to complications from a stroke. Thatcher, whose nickname was the “Iron Lady,” was an icon in conservative circles during the Cold War.

Thatcher served as the country’s prime minister for 11 years, from 1979 to 1990, and led the British Conservative Party to effectively govern the country through the end of the Cold War. This distinguishes her term as the longest consecutive and continuous term served by a single prime minister and was the first female prime minister in British history.

She oversaw the victorious Falklands War with Argentina in 1982 and the rise of British power and influence into the 1980s. Her close relationship with U.S. president and conservative hero Ronald Reagan has been well-documented, and it led to united British-American partnership and front against Soviet aggression. [She helped bring] the Cold War to a close.

Conservatives in the United Kingdom and in the U.S. mourn her passing and the passing of a great era in American and British exceptionalism and prosperity. Liberals celebrate and take great pleasure in her death. Liberal Britons are communicating via social media to hold a party to celebrate her death, and several liberal American media pundits are disparaging her legacy. … 

Watch a CNN Breaking News video on the death of Mrs. Thatcher:

Identifying Media Bias

To accurately identify different types of bias, you should be aware of the issues of the day, and the liberal and conservative perspectives on each issue.

Types of Media Bias:

Questions

Supporters and fellow Conservative Party members said Margaret Thatcher transformed Britain into a free-market economy and restored a sense of British pride.
Critics say Thatcher destroyed the British coal mining industry and its union, and paved the way for some of the U.K.’s current economic problems, including reducing Britain’s manufacturing base.

1.  What do you learn about Mrs. Thatcher’s legacy as Prime Minister from CNN’s report of her death?

2.  Do you think the CNN report on Prime Minister Thatcher is biased?  If so, how?  If not, why?


Scroll down to the bottom of the page for the answers.

Answers

1.  Answers vary.

2.  Bias by selection of sources, spin, omission.