Agreement question

[P2052 at AOL.COM]

As with that of other collectiv(ish) nouns, the agreement would depend on the
intent of the speaker/writer.

For example, if the intent is the following, then, the plural verb, "are," is
okay:

"The stories the [members of the] press tell are shaped not by a 'liberal
agenda' or a 'right wing conspiracy' but by..."
In this case, the members of the press are considered as acting separately or
individually, not as a unit or unified group.

If, however, the intent is that "the press" is functioning as a unit, then,
"The stories the press tell[s] are shaped not by a 'liberal agenda' or a
'right wing conspiracy' but by..." is correct.

While I've usually considered "the press" singular, in the example above, I'd
be inclined to think plural, for such terms as "stories" and "conspiracy,"
sugggest a number of individual partipicants whose collective products or
actions evoke a similar theme.

            P-A-T