When Galileo's telescope revealed moons orbiting Jupiter and not the Earth what happened to the claim "all heavenly bodies orbit the Earth"?
The claim went from "possible" to "false."
Similarly, now that the expiration of unemployment insurance has proven not to reduce the unemployment rate, what has happened to the claim "benefits like unemployment insurance increase unemployment"?
It our popular discourse at the level of mass media, the claim has gone from "possible" to "ideological."
This is the glaring problem with the prevailing theory that good journalism is objective and fair. As applied, "being objective" means "telling both sides of the story." When one side is true and the side is false, the good reporter reports both sides. If he is willing to risk attack from Reaganists he might also quote an academic whose answer leans true. But academics who say "the Democrats are right and Republicans are lying" is useless to the journalist. He can't print that!!! No more press quotes for you academic guy!
The only way a journalist can succeed at this game and stay sane is to think of both sides as equally valid, competing ideologies.
Too bad for you, America.