Liberal media bias? You bet. Here's some real news the mainstream media largely ignored in the past year.
If you're looking for more proof of liberal bias in the way news is presented in this country, look no further than The Associated Press' report of the Top 10 news stories of 2006 as selected by U.S. newspaper editors and television news directors.
It wasn't so much the list of the top stories that showed bias, although there is no other explanation for placing "Disaster in Darfur" as the No. 10 story of the year. This is an issue that only left-wing elitists and Hollywood types (George Clooney) care about. Ask the average American to tell you where Darfur is and they'll probably say it's a small town in Indiana. People starving is Africa has been going on for the past 100 years. There's nothing new here other than the liberal tail wagging the dog.
The tip-off that most of the people voting were liberals was the end of the final recap story, where the AP said, "Just missing out on the Top 10 was mounting concern over climate change and global warming, highlighted by the release of Al Gore's movie, 'An Inconvenient Truth,' and alarming new warnings from many scientists."
Global warming is another of those phony stories that the far left perpetuates so it can scare people into voting for Democrats and funding "tree hugger" causes. The movie itself barely made a blip at the box office, finishing behind such other fairy tales as "Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties" and "Snakes on a Plane."
Here are some significant stories that did not make AP's list. In fact, none of these were listed on The Associated Press' original ballot of 40 suggested stories for the Top 10, which shows the bias of the people conducting the poll.
The most underreported story of 2006 was the new wave of philanthropy among some of the world's richest people. Warren Buffett, the second richest man in the world, announced he was giving $30 billion of his fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Bill Gates, the word's richest man, also announced he was retiring from Microsoft to devote all his time to charitable causes. That was a big story, but the left doesn't like to promote private philanthropy. The far left believes government exists to support everyone in the world and the middle class should pay more in taxes to fund liberal causes.
There was also an interesting book released in 2006 called "Who Really Cares" by Arthur Brooks that shows that liberal are stingy when it comes to helping the needy. It's mainly conservatives and people of faith who are generous with their money. Again, the book got little play in the liberal media.
Another story largely ignored by the mainstream media was the demise of the liberal talk radio network, Air America. Two years ago, when a group of well-funded liberals launched the so-called "alternative to conservative talk radio," every major newspaper in the country ran a front page story promoting Air America. The network has been rocked by financial scandals and declining ratings, leading to the filing of bankruptcy in 2006. Why wasn't this story on the front page of the very same liberal newspapers?
The failure of Katie Couric to lift CBS out of third-place in the network news ratings is another major story ignored by the media. Couric, a darling of the left, has tanked in the ratings, drawing fewer viewers than Dan Rather.
The far left has also developed collective amnesia when it comes to reporting on the massive corruption and mismanagement of the Katrina cleanup. No, not by the Bush administration. The liberal news media is all over that. Billions of dollars have been squandered by the Democratic governor of Louisiana and the Democratic mayor of New Orleans and their assorted cronies.
There's a reason why Time magazine has chosen "bloggers" as its Person of the Year. There is very little trust left in the mainstream media (the big city newspapers, the three networks, CNN) and people are turning to alternative sources for the truth.
Perhaps the decline of the mainstream media should also be added to the list of underreported stories for 2006.
Tony Phyrillas is a leading conservative political columnist and blogger based in Pennsylvania. He is a veteran journalist with 25 years experience as a reporter, editor and columnist for several newspapers. Phyrillas received recognition for column writing in 2010 from the Associated Press Managing Editors, in 2007 from Suburban Newspapers of America and in 2006 from the Society of Professional Journalists, Keystone Chapter. A graduate of Penn State University, Phyrillas is the city editor and political columnist for The Mercury, a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning daily newspaper in Pottstown, Pa. In addition to The Mercury website (www.pottsmerc.com), his columns are featured on more than a dozen political websites and blogs. Phyrillas is a frequent guest (and occasional host) on talk radio and has been a panelist on the "Journalists Roundtable" public affairs TV program on the Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN). Phyrillas was named one of the '10 Leading Greek-American Bloggers in the World' in 2007 by Odyssey: The World of Greece magazine. BlogNetNews.com ranked Phyrillas the Most Influential Political Blogger in Pennsylvania for three consecutive years (2007-2010). You can follow Phyrillas on Twitter @TonyPhyrillas
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