Media displays anti-gun bias, US columnist says
In a column in the Jan. 17 Boston Globe, columnist Jeff Jacoby wrote that the media has an anti-gun bias. Jacoby cited a report by Brian Patrick, a University of Michigan researcher who compared the coverage of the National Rifle Association (NRA) in several prestigious newspapers, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, and Christian Science Monitor, to the coverage of other special interest groups like the American Association of Retired Persons, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the NAACP, and Handgun Control Inc.
The study found that the NRA is less likely to be identified by its proper name and more likely labeled with some form of "lobby" or "special interest." While the ACLU is referred to as a "civil liberties group," and Handgun Control Inc. is labeled as a "citizens' lobby," the report found that the NRA is often identified with such terms as "powerful gun lobby," "gun organization," "the classic Washington superlobby," and "semi-automatic caucus."
In his column, Jacoby pointed out that, "On no other issue is there a wider gulf between mainstream America and the media. There are more than 225 million civilian firearms in the United States. Some 45 percent of U.S. households own at least one gun. To tens of millions of Americans, guns mean safety and peace of mind; they know intuitively what statistics prove: gun ownership reduces crime. Yet in the nation's eminent newsrooms, it is axiomatic that guns are nasty, that more guns mean more crime, and that those who defend the Second Amendment are gun nuts.''
Jacoby also cited a Media Research Center study of television news that examined 653 stories dealing with gun policy. The study found that 393 went beyond straight reporting into advocacy, and nearly 91 percent pressed an anti-gun point of view.
"This bigotry against guns is irrational," said Jacoby. "It convinces millions of Americans that the media cannot be trusted. Someday the networks may figure out that in a land where almost one household in two owns a gun, demonizing gun owners makes no sense. But by then, who will be tuned in?"
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