Headline Bias

Published on 29 May 2012

I ran across this email from Reuters in my inbox today. Romney opens new front vs Obama: schools are failing

What shall I think of this? My first thought was Good, I’m glad that is being talked about. This was followed almost immediately by Romney must be an OK guy to bring this up, as it is important. Maybe I should reconsider calling him an asshole before I actually look at his issues, just based on his party and what I remember of his assinine comments in the primaries.

Of course, I then realised that this, too, is wrong. There are two biases playing out here: one being a cognitive bias, and the other being the bias of the news team. To understand, consider these questions:

How do we know that Romney actually cares?
Are failing schools in any way connected to Romney?
Has Obama not being doing enough for schools?
If he has been doing stuff, then why is this a new front?
Why is Romney seemingly on the offensive here? Even the language suggests it.
How, on earth, is this a new front? Surely schools have been failing America for decades?

Basic point: Be very careful what you think after reading a headline. You’re probably wrong, at first.

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