Welcome to Media Myth Alert.

This blog, begun on Halloween in 2009, seeks to direct attention to the appearance of media-driven myths. These are stories about and/or by the news media that are widely believed and often retold but which, under scrutiny, prove to be apocryphal or wildly exaggerated.

It also seeks to promote my forthcoming book, Getting It Wrong, which will be published in spring 2010 by University of California Press.

We’ll seek to be vigilant and on guard about media myths that appear online and in print. And we’ll call attention to them when we see them.