Writers Blog #5
One of the topics that we discussed this week in class was the importance of biased and unbiased work. I chose this topic because this is something that I can relate to in my life as well.
There are a few reasons why producing unbiased work is more important than picking a side since it appears as neutral, and everyone who reads it can connect to it. Not everyone cares to hear a writer’s thoughts on a topic, especially when they are just looking for the facts of a story and nothing more than that.
Producing unbiased work can show as an act of professionalism too. I am sure every writer has an opinion on the topic they choose to write about, but being strong enough to show both sides of the story instead of prioritizing your opinion is smart.
I am not saying there is nothing great when producing biased work as well, there are many topics where the audience only wants to read what they agree with. This can be a strong lead to finding a community of people who will always be interested in what the biased reporter has to say just because it is something they relate to.
In my life, I am a NASCAR journalist. I also run an Instagram page that over 50,000 people follow, therefore I feel it is very important to keep each post unbiased. Every NASCAR fan has a favorite driver, I do not want to put out a piece of content where it would drive a certain person away due to it being biased.
As a reporter as a whole, I feel that it is important to remain unbiased as I am covering the entire sport of NASCAR, not just a certain driver or team.
Also throughout the week, we learned of a website that helps a reader find out what media outlets are producing biased and unbiased work. This can be extremely helpful for people trying to find what news outlets they should follow along.
Of course, when choosing where you want to get your news from, it might not be a bad idea to read from both a biased and unbiased outlet. This can help a reader stay fresh on what they agree with, and hear both sides to a story.
A second topic we learned in class was the use of Wikipedia. I’m sure I am not the only one who was told that they can’t use the website as they grew up through elementary school up to high school.
There have been times when I used Wikipedia to gain knowledge about a topic, however, I never used it when I had to write a report for school as I was told it was untrustworthy.
I knew that almost anyone was able to edit a Wikipedia article and that drew me away. Now, I am aware that it is safe to use. I feel that many people have been drawn away from Wikipedia after being told not to use it. After many years of using it, I don’t remember there being a problem with any information I learned and checked.
Wikipedia is usually the first page that pops up when anyone searches for anything, therefore, it is important to keep in mind that you should fact-check the information found on the website. You never know who is writing or editing each article.
