Linda Foley Rides Again

"The conservatives have got us, as a country, now believing that balance -- giving both sides -- is the same as truth, and there are some things that are just false"

- Linda Foley, Newspaper Guild President

What are the flaws in this statement and what it implies? Let me count:

1. I have never heard a conservative say anything of the sort. I believe the conservative position (such as there is one, see disclaimer below) is their side of controversial issues is often not even presented, or presented in a cursory, careless, and inaccurate fashion. They believe that if both/all sides of an argument are fairly presented, individuals can make up their own minds as to what the truth is.
   
2. In the case of a controversial issue the truth hasn't been determined yet, so presenting only one side of the argument about it denys those viewing information important to their making an informed judgement about what the truth might actually be.
   
3. If journalists are the arbiters of what information is presented they are setting themselves up as being the Guardians of Truth. If so, why don't we just submit to the Reporter's Raj?
4. Ms. Foley, it is possible that both sides in an argument are wrong. Or right, or some of both. Don't progressives/liberals believe in nuance anymore?
5. If only the favored side of an argument is presented or the other side is presented in a slanted fashion, we get more information about the bias of the journalist than we do about the story. For me at least, it increases the distrust I have for journalists in general.
   

Sure, some things are indeed false. What we need are journalists who are able to report the relevent facts in an interesting way. It's up to us to make the decisions about the truth.

See the video at the Politcal Teen. (via the Instapundit)

Disclaimer: I am not really a conservative. My political views, however, are almost certainly to the right of Ms. Foley's