[dbingham]

Everyone had an agenda of some kind. Whether conscious or unconscious everyone has their own opinions and belief systems which color their perceptions of the world. That includes their perceptions of hard data. There's no such thing as objective reporting -- it's simply not possible for humans to remove their own opinions and feelings from their perception of an event or an issue and report on it in an unbiased way. No matter how hard they may try, their bias will slip in.

This is why I prefer intentional debate as a way of understanding the world rather than poor attempts at "objective" reporting. I always feel far more informed about a topic after I've listened to people with opposing agendas duke it out on an intellectual stage than I do when I've read a supposedly "neutral" article by someone either masking feelings on the topic or who doesn't care about it much. Intelligence Squared US is fantastic for this and I really wish there were more outlets like them.

With that in mind, if you think this article has an agenda, then -- instead of complaining about it -- go find one with the opposite agenda and read that. Then compare their points and arguments.