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AnthonyMouse · 2019-11-21 19:12:59+00:00

The point isn't that they never publish an opinion piece, it's that they do publish investigative reporting, like this:

https://www.cato.org/blog/why-nsa-deleting-call-records

You also get pieces like this, which are full of factual information whether or not you agree with their policy position:

https://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/new-nation...

And it's hard to see which "corporatist agenda" pieces like this are pushing:

https://reason.com/2019/11/21/with-this-forfeiture-trick-inn...

Which isn't to say that they're unbiased. Everybody has an opinion. But everybody has an opinion; that's why you need more than one news source.

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creaghpatr | karma 3096 | avg karma 2.52 · | 2019-08-02 10:29:43

It absolutely is an opinion piece which is why the disclosure is not required. Why would someone write an op-ed that's not to their benefit?

cowvin | karma 148 | avg karma 1.22 · | 2021-07-29 12:47:47

You mean because they publish opinion pieces written by random people?

CamperBob2 | karma 11341 | avg karma 1.16 · | 2017-08-13 22:47:05+00:00

No, all that shows is that they're not concerned with who provides the opinion piece. (And they shouldn't be.)

It doesn't make any sense to publish something under your name and then complain when people think you're endorsing it. If I paste a pro-Nazi editorial into my blog, should I resent being held to account for it?

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seizethecheese | karma 2962 | avg karma 3.61 · | 2017-05-19 19:14:33+00:00

My point is that a political opinion piece has very little informational value.

TrispusAttucks | karma 2491 | avg karma 4.13 · | 2021-10-03 14:55:49

Yep, and the opinion pieces are just advertisements in disguise. So who are the advertisers paying for the content. They don't care about truth. It's just about profit or control.

enterprise_cog | karma 180 | avg karma 0.62 · | 2024-02-23 22:07:32

An opinion piece isn’t a source.

colejohnson66 | karma 9319 | avg karma 1.93 · | 2019-05-20 19:47:01+00:00

It’s also an opinion piece so they can claim “it was just an opinion, not a statement of fact”

DanielBMarkham | karma 44322 | avg karma 5.48 · | 2016-08-30 11:06:26

I hate it when people would rather impeach sources than talk issues. At the same time, a casual look at the site you linked shows quite a few advocacy groups who obviously have an agenda to push. http://higherednotdebt.org/about/

So I would check those stats with a careful eye looking for bias.

Meta: I actually prefer opinion pieces to news articles. In an opinion piece, the author has to state a thesis, then defend it with facts and an argument. Makes for honest reading. What I don't like is the proliferation of persuasion pieces masquerading as news items -- and it is by no way limited to political action groups. Even the MSM gets in on the action.

So as far as I know these guys may have a point. But they also carefully choose what to present with an eye on influencing public opinion. This is not the site that would ever have an article saying "Ooops! Turns out ITT Tech wasn't so bad after all!"

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A4ET8a8uTh0 | karma 5530 | avg karma 1.66 · | 2020-05-08 14:02:07+00:00

There is an argument to be made that the opinion pieces are just there to spark sufficient amount of outrage to direct clicks to your website. WSJ, Marketwatch and multiple others follow that principle.

Regular reporting still appears to happen.

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grandmczeb | karma 1716 | avg karma 3.27 · | 2018-11-06 16:16:29

This is an opinion piece disguised as news.

monetus | karma 1159 | avg karma 1.47 · | 2022-07-31 14:41:01

These are both opinion pieces and not the editorial boards thankfully, but they don't exactly have spotless records their either.

SolaceQuantum | karma 6089 | avg karma 3.81 · | 2020-02-24 14:28:10+00:00

I suspect because its an opinion piece, not actual news.

jasonlotito | karma 7861 | avg karma 1.69 · | 2012-05-27 12:29:04+00:00

And, has been noted elsewhere as well, where on the page does it say the piece is just an opinion piece?

I'll save you the trouble: it doesn't.

So, while you maybe right, CNN doesn't indicate in any way that this is the case.

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idlewords | karma 28364 | avg karma 6.34 · | 2017-04-02 01:46:53+00:00

It's an opinion piece, not journalism.

EduardoBautista | karma 2869 | avg karma 4.29 · | 2018-12-08 19:15:01+00:00

They usually say that the piece is an opinion piece.

zo1 | karma 3241 | avg karma 0.82 · | 2017-06-29 00:06:07+00:00

They're giving that opinion a "platform". And a very public one at that, as it comes with the reputability and prestige of the Washington Post.

Calling it an "opinion" piece is just an excuse. Letting both promote their agenda and claim to be impartial at the same time.

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Rapzid | karma 5572 | avg karma 1.75 · | 2020-07-06 07:33:40+00:00

It's just as likely they run op-eds from authors willing to have whatever opinion is necessary.

The business of op-ed and analysis pieces is pretty crappy, and it does not require any moral or intellectual honesty from the authors.

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sukilot | karma 2382 | avg karma 1.24 · | 2020-06-01 00:44:36+00:00

The articles available on their site seem to all be opinion columns, not news?

elmerfud | karma 3021 | avg karma 2.84 · | 2023-04-20 09:20:29

An opinion piece does not good journalism make. That would be like a someone citing Sean Hannity show as a source.