[roenxi]

In the absolute sense yes, but this thread was framed in comparison to undemocratic systems. The media aren't biased in the direction of making their host country worse off, so their biases aren't negative in that sense. We'd get better outcomes if people in the public discourse held themselves to higher standards; but their low standards don't stop the tendency of marginal voters to bias on rational decision making.

[em-bee]

The media aren't biased in the direction of making their host country worse off

i don't believe that. at least western media are biased towards majority and conservative views and for profit entities, ignoring or even suppressing minorities and that is making us worse off.

[roenxi]

Conservative views are things that worked in the past though. For profit entities are all dedicated to satisfying the needs and wants of people and are part of society too. >90% of all the gains since the industrial revolution came from for-profit entities so it is a stretch to say they are biased in favour of making things worse. Minorities are, by definition, not a group that includes most people so things can get really brutal for them before it starts hurting the greater society.

These are all biases that may be politically undesirable to you (the corporate media are basically the vanguard of class warfare, so they should be undesirable to a bunch of people), but they aren't biased in the direction of making things worse at the highest level of abstraction. A rising tide benefits all ships.