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Question of the Day: Why is the Media Biased Against Gun Ownership?

Robert Farago - comments No comments

“But death tolls doesn’t tell the whole story,” the reporter intones. And then doesn’t say word one about defensive gun use. Why is that? Why is the mainstream media so willing to wave the bloody shirt and tug on the audience’s heartstrings about shooting victims but completely ignore stories of people who save their lives—and/or the lives of their loved ones—with a firearm? Sure, it’s nice to throw in a pro-gun sound bite but what about an emotionally balanced approach? With so many defensive gun use stories on line (click on DGU above) I can only conclude that reporters are willfully biased. So . . . what gives with these people?

 

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Robert Farago

Robert Farago is the former publisher of The Truth About Guns (TTAG). He started the site to explore the ethics, morality, business, politics, culture, technology, practice, strategy, dangers and fun of guns.

0 thoughts on “Question of the Day: Why is the Media Biased Against Gun Ownership?”

  1. Too bad the HIND didn’t strafe those Islamic scumbags. Shows how brainless and evil Syaian Islamic terrorist Obama’s supports are.

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  2. I had a Remy 870 pistol grip with Lasermax & with slugs it would punch out a nice group at 40 feet. There was no way you would miss & no way the BG was not going down, Randy

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  3. “The shotgunā€™s main tactical disadvantages of limited range and modest magazine capacity arenā€™t critical concerns in a home-defense setting”

    That depends on how many people are invading your home. I’ll stick to 30 round magazines.

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  4. Wow, what a crappy shotgun! It wasn’t even like he was riding it hard. I think this wasn’t that bad, compared to his usual fare, I think this video wasn’t too bad.

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  5. I once read an article about British gun control laws.In it ,they cited press articles from the early 1900s which eerily resemble modern day articles.The passing of pistol permits in England resulted from articles claiming blood was running in the streets from Assault Weapons.The assault weapon in question? The six shot Nagant revolver.

    We can’t lay the bias of our media at the feet of the Dems exclusively,as Englands example proves.Rather,simple self interest is why the media hates us guns owners and our tools.

    Bad News sells,period. Its not exactly sensational news when a single bad guy meets his end via an AR15.People read that,go “good riddance” and move on.

    Now,if we spin the same story to say “Assault Weapon Used to KILL MINORITY HONOR STUDENT” ,now everyone wants to weigh in on the issue.Throw in some quotes by the resident Democrat senator,toss in a fancy biased poll showing people want more gun control,and wait for the Pulitzers and public awareness speeches to roll in.Bonus points if you can influence a state or Federal government to change the law based on your hit piece!

    Write the story honestly, and none of that happens.

    So long as the media keeps being rewarded financially and socially for opposing gun rights,that’s exactly what they’ll keep doing.

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  6. First off, its not hate, hate, hate. The use of the word hate here is about as hyperbolic as the phrase ‘common sense gun laws’. I have little use for either form of extremism.
    I try to do my best to hate only hate. Ray

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  7. ā€œGranted, I just came on board a few months agoā€¦but itā€™s apparent to me there is a lot of hate here”

    Gee… why would gun enthusiasts be furious over the last few months?

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  8. I have been reading religiously for the past few months…even commenting a time or two. Sometimes I get the feeling, especially when first visiting, that this site was very anti law enforcement officer…Having said that, I am a Law enforcement officer, but there is a significant difference between myself, fellow officers i work with, and the dislike and distrust for the corruption of law enforcement read about here. I in no way consider myself part of the problem. I am smart enough to know right from wrong, abuse from duty, and to know when I am being talked about and in what context. This is a great site, both for learning about firearms, and what is really going on in our country, without the sugar coating. Keep up the good work.

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  9. I for one don’t give a crap about the video games. As for the getting butt hurt over FPS Russia getting called out, deal with it. I am in my 30’s, and I enjoy watching his videos. I consider them absurd comedy. Like the Airplane! movies. If he gets hurt,too bad. But he clearly knows what his risk are. Not everyone will like what you like. But if you have a common interest, get together and join the community. Speak the truth. Nobody likes everything the same.
    We do not need affirmative action for what you like or dislike. Don’t like it, don’t read or use it. The 2nd Amendment is a right, and it is under attack. Call your representatives and get on it if you want to complain about it. Or about the attacks on your rights. If you do not like the site, then don’t visit it. There are many other sites and forums where everyone can find their kind of content. I for one, like TTAG. And I don’t care what anyone else thinks about them. I get my information from multiple sources, and comment when I feel like it. No one forces anyone to read TTAG

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    • “I enjoy watching his videos. I consider them absurd comedy. ”

      I feel the same way. Call it stupid exuberance, whatever. Watching it is like, “I wonder what could possibly go wrong?” I may be wrong, but I see that as part of his message. “We’re screwing up bad so you don’t have to.”

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  10. I love how the ‘reporter’ keeps saying “gun violence” this and “gun violence” that. It’s gang violence you dumb b*tch. The tool is irrelevant.

    I guess you really can’t fix stupid…especially if it has an agenda.

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  11. I can see how a newbie might look at a few posts and get that impression from some of the comments. That said, this site is awesome for a (fairly) newbie like myself. And Robert seems to do a great job keeping things civil and informative. Thanks

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  12. This site engages in a lot of criticism, but I wouldn’t call it “hate”. Thinking critically about the issues of guns and gun rights is what will make our community stronger, as well secure a foundation for the future of those rights.

    I think TTAG does a great job pushing the community of gun owners to be self-critical, and contrary to the thinking of pseudo-pop psychology of the 20th century, self-criticism is what helps us become better people, not lying to ourselves about the uncomfortable aspects of this debate.

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  13. The 712 is one CZweet shotty. Ask the man who owns one. šŸ™‚

    However – Read this because it is important.

    When (not if) you install the mag extension on your 712 you need to get one made for a Benelli Nova/Super Nova and not the 870. The 870 extension isn’t threaded correctly for the 712 and it will only screw onto the existing magazine tube a few turns before it binds up. You can force it on and make it work and that is why the misinformation of the 870 extension is propagated. But it won’t be right and you will bugger up the threads of everything involved.

    This is the mag extension you want.

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  14. Where are the ammo companies?

    Without bullets, guns are nothing but fancy clubs.

    I won’t consider this done until every ammo company has embargoed every anti-2A city and state government.We’ll see how committed these antis are when their precious security detail cant get ammo.

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  15. I used to think it was bias. Now I think it’s not that benign. First, much of the media are herd animals. Just flip through the channels some night, and you’ll think the same toad in a basement is writing the material for each network.

    But it’s gone beyond biased reporting. Now they see themselves as active crusaders on a particular side of politics and the culture wars. They are not a free press anymore. They’ve chained themselves to a political agenda where the the truth gets in their way as often as not, and they’ve willingly reduced themselves to propaganda organs of their favored political party.

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  16. The event in Norristown (close to Philly) drew somewhere between one and two hundred people by my estimate. Not what I was hoping having come from 30 miles away, but could have been worse for a rainy, 40 degree day. We had an open carry march, which at first made me about as self-concious as having my privates hang out given Philly cops’ attitudes toward carry. However, it was all very peaceful, and some cops doing traffic control even gave us the thumbs up. Not bad at all.

    However, we didn’t seem to rate a news van, or even any reporters beyond one young woman who represented a blog (at least that I could see).

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  17. In addition to the great tips already given, storing ammo in the fireplace is another one. If you have CH/A, no one should be using it, and I’m figuring if a BG breaks in the place, it’ll be the last place he looks, right? When you run out of room there, there’s lots of room in the microwave.

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  18. ā€œGranted, I just came on board a few months agoā€¦but itā€™s apparent to me there is a lot of hate hereā€¦and not just for the gun grabbers . . . We hate Fudds, we hate cops, we hate the younger folks like FPS who are helping introduce the fun of firearms to his generation, we hate gun companies that donā€™t bend to our will . . . this sounds more like the Obama/Biden divide and conquer to me.ā€

    My Gawd…. someone needs to grow a little thicker skin. Robert Farago please keep up the good work.

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  19. “We know that suicide rates are independent of method (that is, restricting access to firearms may reduce the suicide rate with firearms, but it does not affect the overall suicide rate) so letā€™s and remove suicides from the totals.”

    No, we don’t know that. From Harvard School of Public Health: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/means-matter/means-matter/risk/

    Ecologic studies that compare states with high gun ownership levels to those with low gun ownership levels find that in the U.S., where there are more guns, there are more suicides. The higher suicide rates result from higher firearm suicides; the non-firearm suicide rate is about equal across states.

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