‘Alexa’ Tells Woman She Can’t Promote A Specific Political Party After Being Asked Why She Should Vote For Trump — But Immediately Gives Reasons To Vote For Harris
"Alexa! Give me the unbiased truth."
Sir. David | Shutterstock A woman was shocked to learn that her Alexa device appeared to be politically biased after she asked her to list reasons why she should vote for specific political candidates.
When asked why she should vote for the Republican nominee, Donald Trump, this November, Alexa refused to answer her question.
However, she provided a much different answer when the woman asked why she should vote for the Democratic nominee, Kamala Harris.
The Alexa device listed reasons why the woman should vote for Kamala Harris after telling her she could not promote a specific political party.
In a video posted on X (formerly known as Twitter), Tony recorded herself asking her Alexa device why she should vote for Donald Trump.
“I cannot provide content that promotes a specific political party or a specific candidate,” Alexa answered.
However, contrary to what she just said, when Tony asked her why she should vote for Kamala Harris, Alexa provided her with a list of reasons why Harris is an ideal candidate.
“While there are many reasons to vote for Kamala Harris, the most significant may be that she is a strong candidate with a proven track record of accomplishments,” Alexa spouts off.
“As the first female Vice President, Harris has already broken down a major gender barrier and her career in politics has been characterized by a commitment to progressive ideals and a focus on helping disenfranchised communities.”
While Alexa's facts may be true, Tony could not help but notice the obvious hypocrisy and bias Alexa appeared to hold.
When Donald Trump refused to answer a question from a CNN reporter in 2017, he accused the outlet of spreading “fake news.”
The term has been widely used in the media, with many people using it to poke fun at Trump and argue that news outlets are just sharing the facts that Trump and other Republicans did not want to face.
However, some people believe that Trump made a valid point and that many modern-day media platforms and news outlets are biased toward the Democratic party.
Some Americans have noted that many news outlets have opted to report more on stories that align with progressive or liberal values, including social justice issues, climate change, and immigration policies, while topics associated with conservatism tend to be ridiculed or completely overlooked.
By consistently highlighting left-wing issues and perspectives, the media has the ability to influence public discourse and shape how audiences think about certain topics and what they consider to be important.
“Much of the corporate media tends to be liberal, and most people who go into media today tend to be socially liberal,” said Max Blumenthal, an award-winning journalist shedding light on media bias in a video on his platform “The Grayzone.”
Since most of the journalists who are producing content for the media are liberal-leaning, we will hear more of their voices as opposed to Republican content creators.
However, Blumenthal believes that some liberal journalists may lack critical information to report fairly.
“They’re groomed through journalism school, which costs $80,000 a year, so they come from a certain class,” he pointed out.
Of course, not all journalists hold a certain bias and are able to report fairly and honestly.
Research indicates that there is media bias on both sides of the political aisle.
Alexa's political leanings aside, researchers out of the University of Rochester analyzed news data in the form of headlines from 2014 - 2022 and determined that media bias does exist and that it all depends on the news source. This means liberal news sources are liberal-leaning, and conservative news sources are conservative-leaning.
That's not exactly mind-blowing in terms of data, but what is interesting is that most news consumers only watch or read content that feeds their preferred narrative, creating an "echo chamber" of ideas.
Jiebo Luo, the study's lead researcher, explained, “For consumers, it’s useful to know this information because the echo chamber effect is very strong, and people are used to only listening to things they like to hear. Showing the divergence and the increased partisanship may make them aware that they need to be more conscious consumers of news.”
If we work in the media and our voices hold a lot of influence, we owe it to our audience to deliver them the facts rather than one-sided opinions.
Despite which political party you most identify with, everyone deserves a voice and an expression to advocate their case fairly, even if you may disagree with certain ideas from the opposing side. It's the only way to be truly informed, after all.
An unbiased viewpoint is also incredibly helpful for those who are undecided on who to vote for in November.
At the end of the day, as consumers, it's our job to do our own due diligence and be as informed as possible on the issues so that we can make the best decision that aligns with our core values.
That means Alexa's political leanings, if they truly exist, should never come into play.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.