This page was last updated on September 15, 2011.
Article was one-sided; Serena Gaefke; Beaver County Times; September 15, 2011.
Mrs. Gaefke wrote a previous letter entitled “Don’t fall for sales pitch” regarding Marcellus gas.
Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.
“I believe the article on gas drilling (‘Chesapeake CEO takes on anti-drilling ‘extremists,’’ Sept. 7) presented a very biased viewpoint.
“While the Associated Press article quoted freely from drilling supporters, there was but one quote from someone opposed to the drilling.
“And why the title? Anti-drilling ‘extremists’? Come now, we can’t pretend that putting the words ‘extremists’ in apostrophe marks makes it excusable to label the other side as such.
“What about ‘anti-drilling’? That paints them in the readers’ mind as the bad side just by words alone.”
[RWC] I covered these techniques in my paper “Media Bias.”
“Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not opposed to jobs or private business or heating ones house for that matter, but I am concerned about the drilling chemicals. There is a well planned for just feet away from my place and as an owner of a private well I do have concerns.
“The least the article could have done was to quote as liberally from one side as it did the other.”
[RWC] If you read my critique of Mrs. Gaefke’s previous letter, you may remember her research included viewing the anti-drilling movie Gasland. In her Amazon review praising that movie, Mrs. Gaefke didn’t indicate she had a problem with the movie’s one-sided presentation.
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