New Crowd-Sourced Technology Exposes Bias; Allows People to Quickly See News from Left, Center and Right

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- AllSides Inc. today launched AllSides.com, a new website that uses the power of crowd-wisdom and a sophisticated bias-rating algorithm to reveal all perspectives on the news. Released in time for the 2012 Republican National Convention, this beta version of AllSides.com does not try to tell people what to think or what is more important. Instead, it quickly exposes them to a wide variety of opinions and information so they can decide for themselves without being overly influenced by any single viewpoint or source.  

"People are overwhelmed by the onslaught of noise and bias around this election," said John Gable, CEO of AllSides, Inc. "AllSides filters through the chaos so you can quickly see all perspectives and decide for yourself. Launching the site in time for the GOP convention is only a starting point."

AllSides incorporates multi-partisan views, crowd participation and news sources across the web to counteract bias and ensure greater balance in news and information. While the initial release of AllSides.com focuses on politics, its technology can be applied to practically any topic.

"AllSides has the potential to be a fundamental game changer," said Derek Reisfeld, Chairman of BBN Networks and co-founder of MarketWatch. "It fundamentally disrupts the way people use the Internet today to find information. Instead of getting the highest ranked results or the most popular opinions, AllSides shows you all perspectives so you decide. It's not about telling you what to think, but giving you the tools to make the best decision for yourself - today about politics, tomorrow about health, nutrition, stocks, pretty much anything controversial."   

More About AllSides Technology

Using its patent-pending AllSides Bias Rating™ technology, AllSides presents all perspectives and reveals bias. This provides users with a deeper understanding of today's news and opinions in a very fast and easy way, and provides partners who license the AllSides technology with new ways to earn more page views and increase user engagement.

Bias ratings are driven by the crowd. People blindly rate the bias of what they read without knowing the source or who wrote it. For any one source, like a newspaper or writer, lots of articles are rated by lots of people, providing an overall rating for that source. The people who rate the content also have their personal bias measured. With this, AllSides can "normalize" the data so one side doesn't drown out any other, being certain that those who rate the content represent the breadth of bias of everyone in America.

More About Balanced News and Combating Bias

AllSides delivers on the journalistic ideal of providing objective and balanced news and information from different vantage points. It does this by first recognizing that bias exists all around us.

"Bias is everywhere," added Gable. "As soon as you know even one fact, that fact will lead you in a certain direction to a specific opinion. The solution is to expose the bias and show the news from different perspectives."

Reporters are more stretched than ever, lacking time and budget to do the research they would like. And some news organizations are consciously pushing an agenda without giving other viewpoints a fair hearing.

Other approaches introduce other kinds of bias. Search engines and news aggregators highlight the highest ranked or most popular points of view. Social networks introduce a type of peer pressure whereby the most popular opinions among friends lead the way. Media company executives and editorial boards sometimes pick the priorities and slant while well-funded interests persuade people with every tool possible. Individuals often go to friends or sites they already agree with, never learning anything new but just confirming their own point of view.

Instead of attempting to provide non-biased news, AllSides provides all perspectives and lets you decide.

About AllSides, Inc.

AllSides couples wisdom-of-the-crowd technology and the best statistical research and methodologies available, enabling an online movement to take back control of information by exposing bias and presenting different points of view. AllSides was founded by a multi-partisan team of seasoned industry leaders with a track-record of paving the way for innovation, having served companies such as Microsoft, Apple, AOL and Netscape, media outlets including CBS MarketWatch and several political campaigns at the presidential, senate, state and local level. Based in San Francisco, California, AllSides is committed to empowering consumers to digest a variety of perspectives and gain a balanced view of news, opinions and important issues. As a result, they can then make informed decisions that affect their individual lives and, ultimately, society at-large. AllSides' technology is available to consumers directly through the AllSides.com website and through licensing agreements with media partners. For more information, visit www.AllSides.com.

Media Contact:
Andrea Corry
TopMind PR
(925) 640-5482
[email protected]

SOURCE AllSides, Inc.