Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site cmu-cs-k.ARPA Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!unc!mcnc!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!rochester!cmu-cs-pt!cmu-cs-k!tim From: tim@cmu-cs-k.ARPA (Tim Maroney) Newsgroups: net.religion.christian Subject: Re: The Evil Media Message-ID: <477@cmu-cs-k.ARPA> Date: Wed, 10-Jul-85 18:46:37 EDT Article-I.D.: cmu-cs-k.477 Posted: Wed Jul 10 18:46:37 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 13-Jul-85 09:15:40 EDT References: <761@ihlpg.UUCP> Organization: Carnegie-Mellon University, Networking Lines: 30 Three comments on this whole issue of the atheistic media: First, why does everyone believe someone who says "A recent poll shows..." without naming the poll? Anyone used to political discussions has to realize that this is one of the most common modern ways to lie. Second, granting for the moment that the press is composed primarily of atheists, what would you expect? Consider for a moment the nature of the journalistic profession, that of skeptical inquiry. A journalist is not supposed to believe ANYTHING unless he can objectively substantiate it. The job of a journalist is to select among possibilities based solely on the evidence. And, resurrection proof-mongers to the contrary, there simply is not any objective evidence of God. A journalistic mindset thus demands atheism. If indeed most journalists are atheists, that shows that they have acquired the mindset they OUGHT to have, that of skepticism. Third, again granting the "poll" findings, they are not statistically valid because they do not take into account educational or economic factors. Journalists tend to be upper middle class, college educated people. Among these people, atheism is more common than in the population as a whole. I believe comparison of the percentage of atheists within journalism and the percentage of atheists in all upper middle class, college educated people would show a much smaller difference. The failure to take these factors into account implies that if the poll is real, it was probably commissioned by a partisan group which had a vested interest in the findings coming out as they did. -=- Tim Maroney, Carnegie-Mellon University, Networking ARPA: Tim.Maroney@CMU-CS-K uucp: seismo!cmu-cs-k!tim CompuServe: 74176,1360 audio: shout "Hey, Tim!"