Everyone has a bias towards at least everything in their life. It is natural and only human to do so. However, bias is not needed in the news because it does not reflect different opinions fairly for the public. Every story has multiple sides and it is only right that all sides be heard. My discipline is accounting and finance, which receives little to no media attention whatsoever. Accountants lay back and do the financial work for businesses that tend to receive most of the publicity. Once in a while, accountants get their chance to be recognized on the news or in the paper. Most times it happens when a business is going under or a business has had a bad month of sales. I believe that commercial bias and bad news bias both play a part that is harmful to accountants.

News sources always need to find out what is going on in the world at a constant rate. They need to have the next best story, or their news company will suffer. When word gets around that a business or company might go bankrupt, they are the first ones to report on it. They use information from multiple sources, and accounting financial sheets are one way. They get all of their data and information about the financial well-being of a business through accountants. I feel that this is harmful to my discipline because they look right over all of the hard work done to record the information, and just report on what they’ve found. No credit is given to the accountants for analyzing the data and reporting it so the business can find ways to do better. Reporters just want to tell the public the news of a business closing because it is more catching and interesting. No one wants to hear about the dedicated accountants that figured out the business is not doing too well.

I also believe that the bad news bias is harmful to my discipline. This goes hand-in-hand with commercial bias. The media will always want to report on the bad things happening in the world because it is genuinely more interesting to the public. For example, when tax season comes around accountants are in full-gear. They work multiple hours of overtime and stress themselves out to the max. Reporters do not focus on how hard they are working, and rather why they do not get the work done fast enough. In the news, the media tends to pose the question: “Why are accountants taking longer than usual?” They do not take the time to explain that accountants are being worked to the max, and are trying their best. This is why this bias is harmful to my discipline because they never take the time to report on how much hard work accountants put in.

My chosen field of study is accounting and finance, which requires much writing and analyzing. Some types of writing done in my classes are composing financial statements, analyzing case studies, and responding in group discussions. I think I am assigned these genres because they help train me to perform well in my chosen field. In my major classes, I need to be able to communicate with others, analyze different company’s financial situations, and help gather data. All of which will be applied to my job once I graduate college. Once I have a job as an accountant, I will be writing in some way every day. I will need to compose financial statements, memos, and letters for clients. These genres are useful in this profession because they help accountants assess their clients’ financial well-being. Based on financial statements, accountants can assess if their client is stable, or needs to cut back costs. Memos and letters help accountants remind clients of specific deadlines and fees. Different genres allow accountants to keep in touch with clients and inform them of their own financial situations.

Typically, being an accountant is viewed as a boring and tedious job. An example of how this is portrayed is in the TV show, “The Office.” Kevin Malone is a character in the show who has the occupation of an accountant. He is slow, boring, unenthused, and lazy. He is also shown never doing his job right and is a dull person. He is always shown day-dreaming, making crude comments, and slacking on the job. I feel this is a misrepresentation of what it takes to be an accountant. Accountants need to be focused in order to track fiscal spending for clients correctly. They cannot be lazy, or else their work would never get done, especially during tax season. The job of an accountant can get boring at times, but the way it is represented in this show is incorrect. Accountants are vital for companies because it lets them know how well they are doing. Accountants make sure clients are financially stable, and help clients if they are not. I think the misrepresentation is for comical purposes only, but it is still wrong. People who view this show could get a negative connotation about the profession of accounting. I do not believe it is necessarily harmful to the field of accounting. If people looked into the job and how much effort goes into it, they would find out it is very involved. Accountants are loyal, dedicated, and hardworking employees who help people manage their money.

Many media sources today are bias with the news they are reporting. News broadcasting companies will definitely sway their views in one way or another, and most being discrete in doing so. I personally do not watch the news because I see it is a source of negativity and constant critiquing of other people in the world. I only really trust reporting on actual live events that are happening in the world. For example, all of the reports on the wildfires in Australia. It was a real time event that could only have facts spoken about it, instead of reporters opinion based speaking.

Most reporters rely on quantitative research when they are reporting on a certain topic. They look for statistics, evidence, or factual claims to back up their arguments. The only problem with this type of evidence is that it can be easily swayed. A reporter who is uses quantitative research will most likely only search for things that back up what they want to say to the public. A reporter might ignore other research if it does not back up or pertain to the argument that they are trying to make. So, I feel as if quantitative research is more convincing in that sense because reporters can use it to support their own claims.

I usually do not interact with news media unless there is an something happening that is interesting to me. I find that when I do look up stories or watch videos, the reporters are usually aimed towards the same viewpoint I am if a large event has happened. In Gladstone’s reading, she refers to the Hurricane Katrina news reporting. Many reporters stood up against the government claiming there was no help and nothing was done to prepare for the tragedy. In instances like this, I feel like most reporters will side with the public to gain their trust, and most importantly more views.

I feel that when students are reading over an essay study, they are looking for the cold hard facts. Being able to see actual evidence and numbers on paper shows proof of what someone is trying convey. Students like to hear of real life situations and encounters that encourage information written down. I think that is why Kahn’s classes wanted more anecdotes from actual classes, actual interview transcripts, and parts of the syllabus. Students also wanted actual coursework that was done because it is relevant and pertains to the case. Nowadays, students prefer anecdotal data compared to traditional data.

Ethnographic research can help college students complete many of the tasks they are assigned to do. Conducting one’s own ethnographic research can help students academically or in their social lives. Academically, observing and collecting data will help students gather information to help them with their assignments. Ethnographic research can also help when dealing with social media and how to present oneself online as well.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus you own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.