The Bias of the Press or a Small Comment on the Beauty of the Internet

I sometimes try to remember the world without the Net. Oh! the ignorance we lived in - the Net has provided us with access to so much information and granted an average man a hitherto unparalleled ability to make judgements and assessments. I diverge though. Whenever I got time to read the news, I always try to read a number of articles on the same item to get a better picture. However, as often as the articles themselves, the headlines used for the articles are as revealing.

Here's a small sample:

As you may or may not know, the Pakistani Parliament has passed a law, that has now been signed by Pakistan's President, instituting Shari'a in Swat Valley and surrounding areas. Here are the headlines:

BBC Online: Pakistan passes Swat Sharia deal (pretty neutral and to the point)

Arab News: Zardari approves Shariah laws for Swat (again, pretty neutral)

Guardian Unlimited: Pakistan bows to demand for sharia law in Taliban-controlled Swat Valley (wow, disaster! poor little Pakistan forced to comply with the demand of "evil" Taliban (you would not know it from the headline but the Taliban in Pakistan is not the same as in Afghanistan and, more to the point, it is the place where these people live, so it is, after all, "their" country - it's like saying British-controlled London))

Times of India: Zardari approves Sharia laws for Swat (neutral)

Washington Post: Pakistan president agrees to Islamic law in Swat (neutral)

FOXNews.com: Taliban: Officials Not Backing Swat Deal Are Abandoning Islam (off the topic completely, it focuses on a minor point in the story without conveying the main information at all)

Now, out of all of the above news sources, only Fox News claims to be "Fair & Balanced". Given their headline it is no wonder that those who feed at the Fox News' trough are the least informed consumers of the media chow.