Letter: Media passes misinformation without skepticism

Recently read your excellent editorial, “We all play a role in filtering fake news,” (TCH, Nov. 30). Very good. Only one problem: I would suggest that editorial staff remove the beam from their own eyes before trying to remove the splinter from Facebook and Google.

I have noticed that many, many articles, especially those from the Associated Press, give biases and opinions as if they were facts. AP and you are responsible for much discredited information and misinformation being passed on without skepticism. Apparently you assume that if it comes from AP, then it’s correct. Not so, by a long shot!

One example is the bias that the mainstream media has against guns. Many anti-gun studies have repeatedly been discredited, often due to intentional bias. Pro-gun studies that have never been successfully disputed go unreported. Things that have been proven to be outright lies are constantly reprinted as facts. Many such lies and discredited data is deliberate outright propaganda. This is why the NRA has the most successful lobbyists in history: They show legislators the verifiable facts, and legislators then act on the facts.

I suggest that all editors also clean up their own houses. The Tri-City Herald, fortunately, is much better than most.

This story was originally published December 8, 2016 at 4:38 AM with the headline "Letter: Media passes misinformation without skepticism."