Somehow I doubt that this study will suprise anyone who pays much critical attention to the news media. Study after study like this comes out, and yet Democrats complain when efforts are made to make PBS (arguably one of the more biased networks, despite being government funded) more balanced. PBS doesn’t seem to be directly addressed in this study, which is a pity.
The study also confirms something that I’ve long thought about the media: they need to be more cheerful and report the good sides of things sometimes. I know it doesn’t draw ratings as well in the short term, but over the long term I think it would give you credibility and build a solid viewership. I don’t watch Fox News, so I don’t know if that’s what they’ve been doing and the mainstream criticism of them comes from their lack of negativity, but their ratings seem to be doing a lot better than other networks, so obviously they’re doing SOMETHING right.