There is plenty of bias in the news. Our own bias may twist the meaning of words expressed to prove our own opinions. The articles I chose for this assignment are on whether or not red meat should be consumed. The two articles I chose are: “10 Reasons to Stop Eating Red Meat,” published by Prevention, and “Why cutting out red meat is bad for you,” published by Men’s Health. One of the reasons I chose these articles is that I found it so interesting that both companies are owned by the same corporation Rodale. I believe that the differences in content is due to the target audience. When it comes to these companies, they rely on the views of their articles to gain money so they produce content that they know will appeal to their readers. Men’s Health is primarily read by men, and men are also the primary consumers of red meat. On the other hand, Prevention primary readers are vegetarians and vegans. Despite their different stances both articles had such vague sources, such as “A study in European Journal of Epidemiology linked higher red meat intake to enhanced neurological development,” in the Men’s Health article, and “Meat can… raise levels of iron in the brain and may increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, according to a recent study from UCLA,” in the Prevention article. Both of theses articles mention the link between red meat and brain development, yet the mention of the studies are vague and shady at best. The same is true when they mention the connection between the consumption of red meat and cancer. The Prevention article mentions that women who ate red meat daily doubled their risk for breast cancer when compared to women who ate red meat fewer than 3 times per week. This study left out the fact that red meat did not cause the increased risk, rather it was the HCAs and PAHs, resulting from frying and burning meat, that cause an increase in carcinogens. The fact that this was not included in the article shows that there was some bias present. In fact both articles look like they were written with a specific point of view in mind while researching and that both articles were written keeping just that predetermined judgement in mind.
Citations:
Bailey, Mark. “Why cutting out red meat is bad for you,” Men’s Health. Rodale Inc. May 2017. Accessed September 2017.
Melone, Linda. “10 Reasons to Stop Eating Red Meat.” Prevention. Rodale Inc. January 2017. Accessed September 2017.
