Beware of Bias
There’s a lot coming at us through media these days: presentations, documentaries, reality TV, spins on news items... It’s wise to think about the process behind the camera that happens before the moving pictures pass before our eyes. Media presentations often appear as though they are a timely commentary of current events when in fact, they are often weeks and months in the making, designed intentionally to influence the gullible viewer to bend toward the producer’s bias.
Typically it starts with a person who has an idea about something they want to present. They allow their idea to percolate in their thoughts for days, weeks, months, sometimes years. They often begin with a bias-driven intention, because the bias is possibly what fueled the idea to begin with. Depending on the heart and character of the project creator, we may or may not find they choose to present a balanced perspective. This is something the viewer is responsible to discern.
(It’s worth noting that a psychological bias is often part of someone’s livelihood, ego, mode of survival, or reputation, and they are probably keen to hold as securely to it as they can. )
They put money and resources toward their project and often make a steep investment long before it hits the screen, to the point where there is little room for movement out of the originally bias box. They gather information that specifically supports their bias or goal. If the project is divisive, judgmental, or ridiculing in nature, they might seek out the most “juicy” clips they can find and edit them skillfully to align with their own beliefs, making the “victim” of their project seem foolish and deficient. (This can be the case on anything from a short one liner on social media to a full blown film.) Little of what we ultimately see is “real.” There are scripts, auditions, actors, hair, make up, and wardrobe people. And there's a director, cameras, lights, mics, and wires and cables galore, even on the most simple of video presentations.
If the documentary is a religious expose to deem something or someone as “wrong,” it literally becomes a presentation of brothers pitting themselves against other brothers in a “diablos” war of relationship-severing, words. In such a case I suggest a viewer switch off immediately because after all, they might be next in the line up for critical judgment - and perhaps already are. (The Pharisee Club is highly exclusive, so we shouldn’t think we’re exempt from being next to receive a stone to the head.)
Where the Body of Jesus Christ is concerned, I believe a divisive, ridiculing end goal can never support the mean-hearted intention that sourced the idea or project. (You shall know them by their fruit.) The ones under attack are rarely interviewed but picked apart with elements from their history displayed that are specifically presented to draw a viewer’s attention to their so called flaws. The idea that there are other ways to view pr perceive things is often intentionally overlooked. The project maker often spends years promoting his/her work, reinforcing their bias despite changes that may have taken place. They remains at odds with their brother while presenting “their gift at the altar,” unaware that part of their heart has become hard.
The point of this article is this: Let us be careful about what we give our attention to and buy into. If it doesn’t promote wholeness, brotherhood, unity, and empowerment, let’s enjoy it by all means (if we can) but let us weigh it carefully and discern the source. And above all, let us tune in to our own Guidance to discern what’s important for our own lives in each moment, unswayed by the multitude of voices seeking to influence us. Film, free speech, posts, facts and focuses... all of this is important of course. I’m all for exposing evil deeds, and wish to God there would be more disclosures. But in basic matters of opinion, where it’s simply a question of one preference or viewpoint versus another, let us be wise to let our measuring stick be love and Kingdom righteousness (gifted in Christ to all). Where possible, may we choose to relate in a way that transcends biases, especially if they’re geared to needlessly ripping a brother or sister in shreds. For the letter kills, the Spirit gives life, and the measure of judgment we use will be measured back to us.