Is it Fair to Brand Journalists as Part of the ‘Elite Media’?

By Alex Weprin 

Mediabistro.com is partnering up with Poll Position, the new polling company founded by former CNN executive Eason Jordan. On occasion, TVNewser and our other blogs will share results from Poll Position polls having to do with news media consumption and coverage. Each Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday night, Poll Position conducts national telephone polling, asking more than 1,000 Americans 10 hot topic questions in addition to demographic questions – gender, race, age, political affiliation. Among the Poll Position questions this week was the following:

In your opinion, is it fair or unfair to brand some journalists and media outlets as “The elite media”?

Fair
Unfair
N/O
35.3% 36.4% 28.3%

National Telephone Poll of 1,113 Registered Voters / 01.24.11 / Margin of Error +/- 4%

Advertisement

Respondents were divided on the question, with almost exactly the same number of people arguing that it was fair as unfair.

Demographic details below

There was a very strong correlation between political opinion and the question of media fairness. A plurality of Republican respondents said it was fair to call some journalists part of the elite media, while a plurality of Democratic respondents said it was unfair. Independents were split almost even.

Poll Position Crosstabs – Elite Media

Advertisement