Fair Language

In the following pairings of words, how might a news organization’s choice of these words be unfair -- to the people written about? to the evidence? -- to the news consumer? Particularly in a news report?

Who will react most strongly to one or the other term?

Why might that be?

What does that suggest about the viewpoint of the author or the publication??

Another thing to watch out for are adjectives and verbs that describe certain parts of a story, where they may not be needed -- such as:

• "The criminal was busted for the crime" (when in fact they were only arrested)

• "Angry demonstrators protested the actions of the government"

• "The ugly truth about..."