From: jswitzer@afit.af.mil (Chip Switzer)
Subject: Re: Bias? What Bias?
Organization: Air Force Institute of Technology
Date: Sat, 22 Aug 1992 15:24:20 GMT

Steve.Withers@bbs.actrix.gen.nz writes:

>Look at it this way. The Republicans are almost never the majority in the
>House of Representatives. The Democrats usually own it. That means most people
>who vote, vote Democrat. Now.....less than 50% of Americans vote. So lets say
>that on a nation-wide basis - with obvious regional exceptions or not one
>Republican would ever be elected - that 60% of voters vote for Democrats. Add
>that figure to the 50-60% who don't vote at all - certainly not for the
>Republicans, anyway. That gives you about 80% of all Americans. 
> 
>What you end up with a demographic profile that says that 80% of Americans
>don't support the Republican/Right Wing view. They either vote Democrat - or
>not at all.
> 
>That simple - rough cut - analysis is the best way of seeing *why* 80% - or
>some similarly high percentage - do not support right wing views. Most
>Americans don't, so this is simply reflected in the journalism profession.
> 
>What confuses the issue is that the Republicans have support in the Congress
>and the Senate completely out of proportion with the *real* support they have
>in the country as a whole - including non-voters. A more democratic voting
>system would give voters more choice. Look how desperate people were to back
>Ross Perot! All they want is more choice - but the present US system denies
>this choice to voters and preserves power for the two blocs who currently swap
>it periodically.

This is astounding logic (especially considering your statement below).
So, since the House is by far Democratic, that proves that the country
is the same.  But the Senate and (and the Presidency you seem to have
forgotten) don't prove more of a balance--they are completely out of
proportion with the *real* support.  How's this for a comparable
counter-argument: Since the majority of votes have gone for Republican
Presidents for the last three elections, that proves most of the country
is really Republican and the Legislative branch is way out of proportion
to the *real* support.  That last part is the confusing part...

>> All we ask is that the general public be aware of the fact that most
>> reporters and editors in the mainstream and quality media are clearly
>> to the left of most of their readers
>                 ^^^^
>This is an amazing assertion. How do you know this? I would think this would
>be a very difficult thing to determine. I wouldn't base my argument on this
>point if i were you. The evidence suggests otherwise, as I have out lined
>above. 

How do we know anything here in the U.S.?  We take a poll!  There have
been many polls of the media and with no exception (I've seen) the
national media leans heavily to the left.  For all the screaming about
how this isn't possible, nobody in the media really refutes it.  They
will tell you that it doesn't matter--they are professionals who have
been trained to be objective.

Of course if we're using your method for figuring out how the U.S.
*really* feels, I'll have to back down...

>The most you can do is ask people to honestly and with integrity report the
>way they saw it. Attempts to deliberately manipulate are not to be tolerated.

>But you can't fault someone for saying what they really think. 

Yeah, you can. Especially if they are telling you at the same time that
this *isn't* what they think (opinion), it's the facts.


Chip Switzer                            "A witty saying proves nothing." 
jswitzer@afit.af.mil                              -- Voltaire 
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