You got to give it to Media Matters. These guys can catch anything. Today it was this chart on Fox News:
Notice something there?
It’s funny how on a graph 8.6% is somehow higher than 8.8%.
I know. I deal with charts and numbers all the time being a computer guy. I make charting software so websites can track visitor analytics and all kinds of nerdy, geeky type data. But this is the simplest form of charting there is – a basic line/area chart. Now Media Matters showed the actual baselines on a mockup they did, but I decided to put this in actual chart form so everyone can see what it would look like.
Notice that big dip at the end? Well so did FOX and they couldn’t have that! Instead they played with the software to make it look like the unemployment numbers have been rather stagnant.
I guess they really do understand their viewers – people who can’t read or comprehend but only look at pictures and go “ohhhh that bad”.
I know many will say “oh yeah MSNBC does the same thing”, so I do want to put this warning out right now. If you are going to make that claim, back it up with proof! There are many right wing news watch organizations out there that would have this proof, if it exists. But please don’t come here thinking you can make that claim and then not prove it. I don’t roll like that.
And if you do provide verifiable proof, I will gladly post it right here on this blog calling them out on it too.