The first century worth of newspapers were ridiculously biased rags. They existed as political, social, and commercial propaganda for whomever funded them, and they were bought by people who liked that kind of thing.

I think modern professional journalism was a fluke of history. Without independent funding it's going right back to its original state. And the only way that independent funding will happen is with a highly educated and involved citizenry, which scares the living crap out of the powerful.