Distinguishing incompetence from bias

A classic example where conservatives see malicious lying when the reality is almost certainly the overwhelming innumeracy of most journalists.

BREAKING: America's economy just had its worst quarter on record. The US economy contracted by 32.9% between April and June, its worst drop on record, the Bureau of Economic Analysis said Thursday.

— Abby D. Phillip (@abbydphillip) July 30, 2020

She is part of the cabal of Ben Rhodes journalists:

The average reporter we talk to is 27 years old, and their only reporting experience consists of being around political campaigns. That’s a sea change. They literally know nothing.

Abby Phillip is slightly older but otherwise, she is what Rhodes was observing.

Further hindering her competency is her Harvard BA in Government. An institution once known for knowledge generation and transmission, now focused on information degradation and credential manufacturing for the Mandarin Class.

But her biggest weakness, almost endemic among journalists, is innumeracy.

As everyone is shouting on the internet - This is a 9.5% quarterly drop and a projected annualized 32.9% drop. She mistook a projection (32.9%) for a fact (9.5% past quarter shrinkage).

So conservatives get riled up because they see malicious fake news (32.9% quarterly drop) whereas it is simply bad reporting based on innumeracy.