Clarity

Understand media bias and attention across news topics

Free

Description

Clarity is a platform designed to offer users insights into how different media outlets cover major news stories. It aggregates headlines from various sources, categorized by their political leaning (left, center, and right), and analyzes the relative front-page attention given to each topic. This allows users to quickly grasp the varying degrees of importance assigned to stories across the media landscape.

The system highlights discrepancies in coverage, noting when certain media segments might be ignoring, focusing heavily on, or 'obsessing' over specific topics compared to others. Users can filter stories by time period (past day, past week) and sort topics based on attention across different source types, including unified, left, center, right, and international perspectives. Clarity aims to help users break out of their information bubbles by providing a comparative view of news reporting.

Key Features

News Aggregation: Gathers top stories from various media sources.
Media Bias Analysis: Categorizes sources (Left, Center, Right) and shows relative attention.
Attention Measurement: Quantifies front-page prominence of topics across different media leanings.
Bias Indication: Highlights when specific leanings ignore or excessively focus ('obsess over') topics.
Trend Indication: Notes stories with rising front-page attention.
Filtering & Sorting: Allows filtering by time period (Past Day/Week) and sorting by attention metrics.
International vs. Domestic View: Compares attention from US vs. international outlets for relevant topics.

Use Cases

Understanding media bias in current events.
Comparing coverage of specific news stories across different political spectrums.
Identifying topics being potentially minimized or magnified by certain media groups.
Getting a broader perspective on news beyond a single source.
Monitoring emerging news trends based on rising media attention.
Media research and analysis.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is 'attention' measured?

Attention measures the front-page real estate of a topic, aggregated across all outlets, based on the headline position on the front page. The higher up the front page and the bigger the banner headline, the more attention a topic receives. Attention is normalized across left, center, and right outlets for parity.

What does it mean when a media side is 'ignoring' or 'obsessing' over a topic?

This indicates a significant disparity in attention compared to other media leanings. 'Ignoring' suggests one side gives very little attention while others give serious attention, potentially attempting to minimize the topic. 'Obsessing' suggests one or two sides give much more attention than others, potentially magnifying the topic.

What sources are used?

The tool aggregates stories from top media sources which are categorized as left, center, and right leaning based on their reporting patterns.