Study: Many Reporters Don’t Believe In ‘Equal’ Coverage

The public expects far more than journalists are delivering when it comes to equal treatment of all sides in the news.

Less than half of journalists — 44% — say every side of an issue deserves “equal coverage,” according to a survey of the industry by the Pew Research Center.

Among the broader community, though, the vast majority — 76% — believe in equal coverage.

At a time when trust in the media is nearing all-time lows, the disconnect between what the public says it wants and what editors and reporters are delivering looms large, particularly in the minds of those in the business.

“We need to be aware of the disconnect and attempt to strengthen/maintain/improve the trust of our audience,” David Stringer, the publisher of the Lawton Constitution and a past president of the Oklahoma Press Association, told The Washington Times in an email. “But I think we need to do our best to avoid presenting false information, even if one group claims it as ‘their side.’ And if we do report information that’s later deemed to be false, to report that as well.”

Online journalists were the least likely to be interested in equal treatment. Television journalists were the most committed, with print and radio reporters in between. Those who have been in the business the longest were more committed than newcomers, who were skeptical of the equal treatment concept.

Analysts said they doubt the numbers would have looked the same a decade ago. They said there has been a shift in the industry.

“That idea of giving things equal coverage was probably a more popular concept in journalism circles back then. I think people have taken a more nuanced view of it since then,” said Richard T. Kaplar, president of the Media Institute.

Tim Graham, executive editor of NewsBusters, a right-leaning press watchdog, was more pointed: “It just seems to me that the dominant message of journalism, in J-schools, journalism conferences, is the arrival of Donald Trump should have offered a death knell to the idea that there are two sides of things.”

Polling from Pew and Gallup have found levels of trust in the media dipping, powered in particular by a drop in confidence among self-identified Republicans.

Pew’s research showed Republicans have the most interest in equal treatment, with 87% saying they want all sides covered in the news. Among Democrats, it’s 68%.

Pew found just 37% of those who worked for outlets with audiences that tilted to the left believed in equal treatment, compared with 57% of journalists who worked for right-leaning outlets.

Pew’s survey, released last month, covered 11,889 U.S.-based journalists. Of those surveyed, 42% worked in newspapers or magazines, 29% online, 17% in television, 11% in radio and 1% in podcasting.