Biden's student loan forgiveness plan is politically divisive, with some biased outlets portraying the issue differently in their headlines.

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Karah Rucker Anchor/Reporter

Politics

A ‘handout’ or ‘relief’? News coverage of Biden’s $7.7B student loan forgiveness

May 22, 2024

Karah Rucker Anchor/Reporter

By Karah Rucker (Anchor/Reporter), Ian Kennedy (Lead Video Editor)

Bias Distribution Powered by Ground News™

President Joe Biden announced Wednesday, May 22, that more than 160,000 borrowers will not have to repay $7.7 billion in student loans. The move is part of the ongoing debate surrounding student loan forgiveness, a topic that remains politically divisive.

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This latest round of student loan forgiveness comes after the Supreme Court rejected the Biden administration’s broader loan forgiveness program last summer. The Department of Education reported that, through incremental changes made by the Biden administration, a total of $167 billion in student loan forgiveness has been approved.

However, how this news is reported varies significantly depending on the political bias of different news outlets.

Headlines from more left-leaning news outlets, including CNN and Bloomberg, emphasize “relief” in their portrayal of Biden’s actions.

CNN: “Biden administration announces additional $7.7 billion in student debt relief.”

Bloomberg: “Biden Widens Student Loan Relief to More Than 10% of Borrowers.”

Headlines from more right-leaning outlets, such as New York Post and Fox News, frame the student loan forgiveness as a “handout.”

New York Post: “Biden admin announces $7.7B student debt handout for 160K borrowers.”

Fox News: “Biden admin adds $7,700,000,000 to taxpayer tab with new student debt handout.”

On student loan forgiveness, there are very different political opinions which are evident by the two major political party leaders in the Senate.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., criticized student debt forgiveness, calling it a “scam” and arguing that it unfairly benefits those who didn’t pursue a four-year degree or worked their way through college.

On the other hand, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., sees it as an opportunity to reduce the debt burden for Americans, allowing them to achieve their dreams.

President Biden released a statement following the most recent announcement of student forgiveness.

“I will never stop working to cancel student debt — no matter how many times Republican elected officials try to stop us,” Biden said.

Republican-led states have filed lawsuits challenging those initiatives.

Tags: Chuck Schumer, CNN, Department of Education, Fox News, Joe Biden, Media Bias, Mitch McConnell, Student loan debt, Student loan forgiveness, Student Loans, Supreme Court, U.S. Senate

[KARAH RUCKER]

PRESIDENT BIDEN ANNOUNCED WEDNESDAY $7.7 BILLION WORTH OF STUDENT LOANS WILL NOT HAVE TO BE PAID BACK BY MORE THAN 160 THOUSAND BORROWERS.

“STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS” IS A POLITICALLY POLARIZING TOPIC.

AND IT’S EVIDENT IN HOW OUR POLITICIANS AND **NEWS MEDIA TALK ABOUT IT.

THIS IS JUST THE LATEST ROUND OF “STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS” BIDEN HAS ANNOUNCED –

SINCE HIS ADMINISTRATION’S MUCH BROADER LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAM WAS SHOT DOWN BY THE SUPREME COURT LAST SUMMER.

THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT SAYS WITH LITTLE-BY-LITTLE CHANGES MADE BY THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION – THEY HAVE APPROVED 167 BILLION DOLLARS IN “STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS.”

HERE ARE SOME OF THE NEWS HEADLINES COVERING THE LATEST ANNOUNCEMENT.

SOME RIGHT-LEANING NEWS OUTLETS LIKE FOX NEWS ARE EMPHASIZING THE SIZE OF 7.7 BILLION BY WRITING OUT ALL THE ZEROS IN THEIR HEADLINE.

THEY ALSO SAY IT’S GOING ON “THE TAXPAYER TAB.”

FOX AND THE NEW YORK POST –

CALL IT A STUDENT DEBT “HANDOUT”.

WHILE LEFT-LEANING NEWS OUTLETS LIKE CNN AND BLOOMBERG –

CALL IT STUDENT DEBT “RELIEF” AND STUDENT LOAN “RELIEF”.

DEPENDING ON A NEWS OUTLETS POLITICAL BIAS –

THEY’LL USE DIFFERENT WORDS TO REPORT ON THE SAME STORY.

LIKE STUDENT DEBT “HANDOUT” VERSUS “RELIEF.”

IT’S IMPORTANT FOR US TO ACKNOWLEDGE THIS BECAUSE IT MEANS WHATEVER NEWS ARTICLE WE CLICK ON – WE COULD BE GETTING JUST ONE PERSPECTIVE.

AND ON AN ISSUE LIKE “STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS” –

THERE ARE VERY DIFFERENT POLITICAL OPINIONS –

CAPTURED HERE BY THE TWO MAJOR POLITICAL PARTY LEADERS IN THE SENATE.

[McConnell and Schumer]

“Of course the Supreme Court made it clear that this scam is illegal and basic common sense tells us it is profoundly unfair both to folks who opted not to pursue a four year degree and those who worked through college to pay their own bills.”

“You wanna reduce people’s costs? Reduce the debt burden. Its a huge huge anchor around the feet of so many Americans.”

“For too long, the debt has held back borrowers from reaching the middle class. President Biden is giving them a chance to achieve their dream.”

[KARAH RUCKER]

PRESIDENT BIDEN RELEASED A STATEMENT FOLLOWING THE LATEST ROUND OF DEBT FORGIVENESS FOR CERTAIN BORROWERS –

SAYING “I WILL NEVER STOP WORKING TO CANCEL STUDENT DEBT – NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES REPUBLICAN ELECTED OFFICIALS TRY TO STOP US.”

MORE THAN A DOZEN REPUBLICAN STATES **HAVE FILED LAWSUITS TO CHALLENGE BIDEN’S INITIATIVES.

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