Letter: Columns are supposed to be biased

04/21/09 - To the Cigar,I'd just like to respond to the two letters criticizing the column regarding the Tea Party Protests and say that of course it was biased!

There is a reason we call it an opinion column - it is the author's opinion. That would be the same as a bias.

If you don't agree with the bias, that's your prerogative. But, the fact still remains that writing in and complaining about an opinion column being biased is truly a waste of time. How do you miss the giant heading on top of the page that reads Editorial & Opinion?

I can't think of any other way to say this, and get the point across that bias is the point of an opinion article.

The line in Ms. Miceli's letter about how Oswald's message is "a cheap shot at Americans who disagree with his ideology," is truly something that makes me personally laugh. Half of the airtime on the Fox News channel is taking cheap shots at left-leaning Americans and the liberal media by calling them unpatriotic and manipulative. No matter what the news source is, there will be bias. But, in opinion columns, such as Oswald's on Thursday, it is announced at the top of the page that the following articles will have a bias. It is wonderful that people disagree with him, and that people agree with him, but to get up and say that free speech is our right, then complain about someone expressing their opinion, is the ultimate hypocrisy.

I don't know, maybe Ms. Miceli and Mr. Smith are simply jealous of Mr. Oswald's position on a newspaper and wish they had a more readily available forum to express their dislike for anyone who disagrees with them.

And one final point: if the protest was so bipartisan then why was only Fox News putting their name on it, and not CNN or MSNBC? Better yet, why was such a right-leaning news outlet putting its name on a rally protesting the current administration?

Maybe it's because the current administration is not Republican and, let's face it, Fox News isn't happy about what is happening simply because it isn't the one doing it. It's almost juvenile at points. So let's keep up the debates on policy and spending, but let's not get upset that someone wants to express their opinion. After all, that is our constitutional right. Whether it is in print or speech, we are allowed our bias in our opinions.



Colin Giblin