A recent study shows that the more radical political figures command four times as much media coverage as more moderate lawmakers. NewsNation host Dan Abrams decried the revelation and the role cable news has played in that figure.
“We understand that media is a business, and partisan voices warrant a place in the coverage,” CEO of Starts With Us — the organization that commissioned the study — Tom Fishman said after the results were released. “But when the crucial work of bipartisan problem-solving gets this dramatically overlooked, citizens despair and disengage. We’re rallying our community to let the media know there’s a hunger for the full picture, and we’re committed to amplifying those stories.”
While reacting to the study, Abrams admitted that while the content is great for cable news channels, it is less than stellar for the American public.
“It is great content for Fox. It also leads AOC to celebrate being attacked by the right-wing media. Same for Marjorie Taylor Greene,” Abrams said. “The media is incentivizing the loudest voice — the most radical ones — to say crazy stuff.
“It’s a symbiotic relationship where the radicals know their comments will get attacked by the other side, and then they can claim they’re victims of the media on the other side, and everybody wins,” the NewsNation host continued. “Except — that is — the majority of us in this country who are not radicals, who want bipartisan solutions, who want political moderation. This study shows how badly our partisan media has fueled the divide.”
