The purpose of this dialog is to delve into one of the most important political problems of our time.

Our U.S. Constitution provides for a free press but how free is it? Our domestic media outlets are free enterprise businesses who are for the most part, privately owned and operated. That being said, every privately owned media company in America is subjected to the bias of its editors, owners or board of directors.

So, what happens when a news story first appears in the newsroom? The editor or news director makes the important decision on whether or not to cover the story. Stories that are given approval move onto the assignment desk where they’re handed down to the writer or reporter. When the work of the writer or reporter is complete, the story makes its way back to the editor and is either approved for publication/broadcast or, marked-up for further clarification.

In a perfect world, completed news stories would be presented in full for public consumption. Non-political stories such as those covering weather or sporting events are rarely manipulated by publishers or owners prior to public consumption but, the same cannot be said for political stories or, worse yet, election coverage. Read More→