Unbiased Media

A large literature has analyzed media bias, but the question of identifying unbiased
media behavior has received less attention. I address the topic of unbiasedness in a setting where a media firm engages in journalism that may affect the electoral outcome for political parties. I provide a characterization of the set of unbiased media strategies. I find that there are multiple strategies for unbiased media coverage, and that the choice of unbiased strategy will have electoral consequences. Because the electoral game is zero-sum, political parties will prefer different unbiased strategies. This paper
rationalizes partisan differences in views about media bias.