"Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out’’ (Prov 10:9)

We’ve seen it before; it’s certainly nothing new. Bias in the mainstream media (MSM for short, but I'm particularly referring to the UK’s top TV news channels) has been with us for years. An over-reporting on certain topics, an under-reporting of others – or just as common, a deliberate burying under the carpet of significant but 'awkward' news stories.

Climate change & Covid

To give an example, we’ve long seen a one-sided policy by the MSM in regard to global warming (or ‘climate change’, as it became known when temperatures appeared to level off or even fall after 1998). As early as 2007, the BBC came to the view that ‘the science was settled’. Former BBC journalist Peter Sissons claims the BBC essentially became a propaganda machine for climate change activists. Dissenting voices from top scientists worldwide have ever since been largely ignored, treated as persona non grata.

More recently, with Covid and the lockdowns, we saw evidence of media censorship to an extent never before witnessed. The mainstream media, along with the government, the NHS and other leading authorities, adopted a strict official ‘narrative’, brooking no dissenting voice, despite thousands of doctors and scientists worldwide strongly countering such official account, and providing evidence to back their claims. Prophecy Today highlighted this shutdown of free speech on several occasions (notably here and here).

The cancelling of any voice diverging from the accepted narrative continues conspicuously today, not least regarding coverage of deaths and injuries from the Covid vaccines, a topic – widespread in scale – that remains almost totally ignored by the mainstream media.

The media, along with the government, the NHS and other leading authorities, adopted an official ‘narrative’.

Some claim that we see a similar thing taking place with the Russia/Ukraine war. A simplistic one-sided narrative being adopted from the very outbreak of hostilities, overlooking the complexities of the situation (see elsewhere in this issue of PT).

Grooming gangs & immigration

Several news stories brought to light in the past few days have once again highlighted the bias and censorship of mainstream TV media.

The first was a report published by Net Zero Watch, accusing the BBC of ‘institutional alarmism’ about climate change (see more in News and Views). Then appeared the report into child sexual exploitation by grooming gangs in Oldham (which activity many claim continues to this day). Neither the BBC, in its Six o’Clock News programme, nor Channel 4 News made the slightest reference to the significant fact that the grooming gangs consisted largely of Asian men – let alone that they were predominantly Pakistani Muslim men.

No mention, either, of the fact that one of the Oldham ringleaders, paedophile Shabir Ahmed, was actually employed as a welfare rights officer at Oldham Council. Instead, the media was at pains to point out that the report found no evidence of a cover-up by that same council.

... it's about wanting to know the facts of newsworthy stories, and of being allowed to interpret those facts for outselves.

Thirdly, the MSM has regularly been accused of playing down problems related to illegal immigrants arriving in European countries. So, the days-long period of violence in several Swedish towns over the planned public burning of the Quran in April received next to no attention.

Similarly, when a migrant mob of several hundred (some say up to 2,000), consisting mostly of young men from North Africa, terrorised several towns around Lake Garda in northern Italy earlier this month, it got ignored by the press. There were alleged assaults against residents and tourists, as well as thefts, beatings and the sexual harassment of women. Many shouted slogans such as, “We came to conquer Peschiera”, “This is our territory”, and “Africa must come here”, all the while waving North African flags. But our media pretended it never happened.

Being wise and discerning

There’s little doubt that the lack of prominent coverage of the above stories was due to them being considered the ‘wrong kind’ of news. Yet surely the media – and especially the BBC, which is publicly funded – has no right to hide significant news from us just because they are not deemed ‘politically correct’, or do not fit their own strict narrative. 

Complaints to the BBC on such failures often get the response that the story was included on their online news page – where, packed alongside hundreds of other stories, it gets no prominence and can so easily be missed entirely. Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting industry. They should be ensuring fairer, more honest reporting on our TV screens.

It's got nothing to do with being either Covid denying, or dismissive of changes in weather patterns; nor of being racist, anti-Muslim or anti-immigration - none of which values we endorse. Rather, it's about wanting to know the facts of newsworthy stories, and of being allowed to interpret those facts for ourselves.

It’s no wonder that many turn to alternative TV news channels – newcomers such as GB News or Talk TV – which are less discretionary in their coverage. It’s no wonder, either, that many look online to find out what’s been happening in the world (running the risk of obtaining info every bit as slanted as they got from the MSM).

Ofcom, the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting industry, should be ensuring fairer, more honest reporting on our TV screens.

It's all too easy, as trusting believers, to naively accept what we’re told by the media. Surely such reputable news channels wouldn’t mislead or conceal the truth, we reason. Yet, we need always to be diligent, ever wise and discerning. We need to search out news outlets we know to be reliable, check stories to see if they correspond with reality, and seek a witness in our spirit in regard to them.

“Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not become partners with them; for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord’’ (Eph 5:6-10)

Read also this illuminating article.

Top photo - Tero Vesalainen / Alamy