I tuned in to local and cable channels every day looking for news on the March for Life events I knew were being held in the nation's capitol for the 34th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade. But I could find little coverage, The same thing was true for print news.
Why? Because of the mainstream media's liberal bias, many would say. And I would agree with that.
But more specifically, could it be because, as William Saletan of the Washington Post writes, "For the first time in 14 years, legal abortion in the United States is in serious jeopardy."?
Has the mainstream media adopted a new don't show, don't tell too much pro-life news policy...because it could persuade more people to take a second look at the pro-life argument. Images of huge crowds demonstrating for civil rights is powerful, especially when there are large numbers of young people, in this case...marching for life.
A few years ago, one of my husband's business friends who was very active in the community tried to do something about the continual liberal-leaning bias in our county's newspapers, and ended up starting his own newspaper. What an undertaking. What an expense. What an uphill battle it was competing with the big media boys. Today, because of the internet, no longer is owning a newspaper or a television station the only options available for someone who wants to do something to get the unbiased news out.
Anyone can set up a website or a blog for little or no cost, and hundreds, thousands, even millions may very likely read what you post. The MSM having realized the power of the internet has a presence on the web, but they do not dominate it. News coverage is no longer in their control.
Every issue you can think of, and every side of every issue, is covered on the internet including the pro-life / pro-choice issue. Blogs for Life and ProLife Blogs, are just a couple of examples of credible news coverage. And NPLR (NationalProLifeRadio.net), which began just over two months ago, has had well over half a million hits to their site already. While Planned Parenthood is probably the pro-choice staple, the Democrat Party often leads with this issue on their site, such as covering the new Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi's remarks on the 34th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade:
"Today, we observe the 34th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that affirmed a woman's right to make her own reproductive health care decisions.
"Roe v. Wade is based on a woman's fundamental right to privacy, a value that all Americans cherish. It established that decisions about whether to have a child do not and should not rest with the government. A woman - in consultation with her family, her physician, and her faith - is best qualified to make that decision.
"The 110th Congress signals an end to 12 years of destructive debate putting politics above science and restricting women's rights afforded by the Constitution. In this new Congress, we will work together in a bipartisan way to reduce the number of abortions by preventing unintended pregnancies through comprehensive sexuality education and access to family planning in the U.S. and abroad.
"As I have throughout my time in Congress, I will continue to work to ensure a woman's right to choose. We must preserve the right to privacy while promoting a comprehensive approach to reproductive health care, including planning for healthy families."
However, while feminists such as Nancy Pelosi claim they are the 'majority', they are actually losing ground on one of their bedrock issues...a woman's right to abortion, as a new Zogby Poll indicates. As posted on their site: "Polls are consistently showing that Americans are becoming more pro-life. A December poll conducted by Zogby International, a respected nonpartisan polling firm, confirms that, by a 53% to 36% margin, the public supports the statement, "Abortion destroys a human life and is manslaughter." An amazing turn of events. Note, this is referring to abortion, period. Not partial-birth-abortion, et al.
Probably one of the most powerful reasons pro-choicers are losing ground is because of the emergence of organizations such as Feminists for Life, with their "Women Deserve Better" campaign, and the Silent No More movement, where women who have had abortions are admitting they regret having done so. Not to mention the new 3 and 4D ultra sound scans that show amazing pictures of what's really inside the womb of a pregnant woman...a baby.
More and more women have grown tired of being told that in order to be liberated they have to be on the side of death. They realized it doesn't work.
© Sharon Hughes 2007
