Liberal Media Bias or Right Wing Conspiracy?

A story about Mark Finkelstein, an independent journalist in Ithaca going to see the war up close and personal sparked debates among independent journalists on other boards. Why? Because the story (http://news10now.com/content/top_stories/default.asp?ArID=85161) named this man as “Ithaca’s most prominent independent journalist.” Finkelstein is also described as a “conservative blogger” for Newsbusters.org, a site dedicated to the idea that there is a left-wing liberal bias in mainstream media, and he is the host of a show called “Right Angle.”

The story doesn’t say who invited and will be paying for Finkelstein’s trip to Iraq, but it does quote him as saying, “I'm not going with an agenda. I'm going to reverse all this bad coverage. I really just want to see for myself what's happening.”

This story should be of interest to independent journalists. First, if we, as independents take political positions, are we really journalists or are we columnists/pundits? Where should we draw the line? And second, do independents have a tendency to believe in this supposed media bias?

I list myself both as a columnist and a journalist because I cover mostly community news and small papers rarely have the luxury of hiring both columnists and reporters. I don’t donate to political causes or place yard signs on my property and my volunteering on campaigns ended long before I started reporting. It’s what my editor expects out of his political reporter/columnist although my political leanings can be found without much difficulty in my archived columns. Having covered at least three major races with national implications and numerous local races, I’ve also earned a reputation among candidates of all persuasions for my fairness. Should independent journalists be held to the same standard as staffers in not revealing their political biases – even if they are not covering politics?