Reader click-throughs have nothing to do with what stories make it to the New York Times online front page. Much like the print edition of any newspaper, the editors determine what the most important stories of the day are and print those – which was a great model before everyone had all the information at their fingertips. Now, the admission further diminishes the relevance of what used to be our nation’s newspaper of record.
Maybe news reporting will never be a “clear pane of glass,” showing readers the world’s events without bias, but that should be a goal. And the decision about what to cover matters just as much as the tone of the coverage itself. Basing the news on personal choice means less opportunity for bias to creep in.
The New York Times’s editorial decision to prioritze their news isn’t a political decision, though – it’s a business decision. Unfortunately for them, it’s a business decision consistent with a one-way newsmedia – a concept which gets more dated every day.
Jim Eltringham 