When I took journalism in college, it was in a time when journalists were still expected to at least appear unbiased. My journalism professor–we just had one–made it clear that whatever your personal opinions were, you left them at the door when you started work. He acknowledged that we might have it, we were just forbidden from showing it.

In this day and age, journalists don’t even bother anymore, especially on issues like guns.

However, I hoped it was an artifact of the news industry post college. Why I hoped that, I don’t know, considering what we see on college campuses in general, but I hoped they’d at least try to teach people who to at least look unbiased.

Yet this bit from a student journalism website for Florida A&M University shattered that dream forever. It starts by asking why Florida isn’t an open-carry state. That’s a valid question. Florida tends to be pretty pro-gun, though not quite as pro-gun as a lot of other places, but it completely forbids open-carry unless you’re hunting, fishing, or camping.

But what we got was nothing but anti-gun nonsense.

Florida, recognized for its strong gun culture, upholds a ban on the open carrying of firearms, which contrasts with the trend in other states that have relaxed their open carry laws. 

With several states around the country adopting open carry laws, this has kept Florida in another league. Despite Florida’s unique gun-related challenges, the state’s prohibition on open carry is rooted in historical, political and public safety reasons.

The development of firearm-carry laws in Florida has been a concern in the state. In 1987, Florida lawmakers approved a concealed carry law, allowing citizens who qualify to carry a gun with a permit. That law, however, prohibits carrying a firearm openly. This decision was influenced by fears that open carry could escalate confrontations in public spaces. 

Law enforcement, policymakers and the tourism industry in Florida are against open carry laws. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement chose not to provide a comment, emphasizing that it simply enforces existing laws.

“FDLE has a long-standing tradition of political independence and impartiality; that tradition allows us to offer investigative and forensic findings free of any perceived bias. Our role is to enforce the laws that our lawmakers establish. For this reason, FDLE does not take positions, and we must decline the interview,” FDLE told the CapitalBureau.

Now, FDLE is a valid place to go for information. It’s a state agency and about as neutral as you’re going to get in that context. I have no issue with them having reached out to them for information or comment, just as I have no issue with FDLE opting to stay the hell out of the conversation. That was the right decision by a state law enforcement agency.

Yet what follows from there is literally nothing but the journalism student just quoting gun control organizations.

Seriously, there’s no mention of reaching out to the NRA or GOA, both of which have a strong presence in Florida. I’m sure both would love to comment on just why Florida isn’t an open-carry state.

Instead, the author only quotes Everytown for Gun Safety and Giffords.

What do those two organizations have in common again? Oh, that’s right, damn near everything.

That’s what it looks like when the journalism student and the faculty teaching her don’t even bother to try and hide the bias. This wasn’t just a first piece ever written by the student–it is the first one published on this site, though–but the kind of thing a J-school student turns in as a first assignment, something they get corrected on and learn from.

Instead, this was rewarded with publication, which is a big deal for any student journalist. It just signals she did things right.

And this is why our nation is so completely screwed these days.