Mainstream Media Bias Is Bad, But Will Only Get Worse From This Point On

By Finance News On Jul 16, 2024

I logged back on to social media after a week offline in the countryside, only to see my timeline filled with news of an assassination attempt on Trump.

My first thought, after noting my impeccable timing, was: “Let me see how CNN frames this.”

And lo and behold: The first thing they wrote was that “Trump was rushed off stage after falling at his rally”.

You may have had a similar thought process like mine, and if you did, you’ll probably agree that the media landscape has changed.

A lot.

Influenced by the political leanings of its workforce, the rise of cancel culture, and the need to make money, this shift has majorly impacted how tech and Bitcoin (and pretty much everything else) are viewed.

So what’s going on here?

Let’s dive into what’s shaping today’s media.

No Monolithic Media Elite

First off, let’s make one thing clear: There’s no secret group of media elites calling the shots.

The idea of a capital “M” Media controlling everything is simply not true.

It’s a myth.

What’s really happening is that many journalists come from elite schools like Columbia, Harvard, or Penn. This trend has brought a liberal bias to the media, not because of a grand conspiracy, but because of the backgrounds and views of those creating the news.

This liberal slant has particularly affected coverage of tech and Bitcoin, making left-leaning media outlets essentially anti-tech.

Generally, liberals have been wary of rapid tech advancements and the decentralized nature of Bitcoin, seeing them as threats to regulations and traditional financial systems.

The Rise of Cancel Culture

Another factor is that the last decade has seen cancel culture take off, where people or companies face public shaming for controversial opinions or actions.

This has also influenced media companies in a major way, making journalists feel they need to align their reporting with prevailing attitudes to avoid backlash.

As a result, media companies have let their employees’ political biases shape the content more than they used to.

Now, you may think this is different from the MSM of previous decades, thinking they aimed to be more balanced and less politically charged.

Sure, political bias has often overshadowed factual reporting, especially in hot-button areas like tech and Bitcoin, but this is nothing new.

Chasing Truth vs. Making Money

At the core of media operations is the struggle between finding the truth and making money.

These companies make money in two ways: advertising, which connects potential buyers with sellers, and subscriptions, which include consumer subscriptions (like your $10/month news subscription) and enterprise subscriptions (like buying a Bloomberg terminal).

If you look back over the last 15 years, the era of mass consumer publications is over. Today, the media is thriving at two ends of the spectrum.

The New York Times, for example, is doing phenomenally well. People might not realize that the New York Times is really a product company at this point, with 30-40% of…