Am I the only one who feels this way about the media?

[normab]

So with the quarantine, I have spent a lot more time on the TUG boards than I have in the last several years… We’ve been traveling so much I haven’t had the time… LOL.

As I’m reading many of the posts that people make In the Lounge, they insert articles from their preferred media sources, which of course makes sense...

However, when I read these articles, it seems like there are many instances where the articles are pitting one faction against the other. I dislike the media when they pigeonhole people into the good or the bad, the elite vs the average joe, Dems vs Reps, blue collar vs white collar, urban vs rural....etc.

I don’t fit in any of the “rigid boxes“ that they have come up with. I would think that many people can actually be a mixture of many things based on their life’s experiences and not fit some stereotype that the media wants them to.....

OK. Off my soapbox...Just my observation...not trying to start a political debate..just wondering if others feel the same way..

 

[Brett]

So with the quarantine, I have spent a lot more time on the TUG boards than I have in the last several years… We’ve been traveling so much I haven’t had the time… LOL.

As I’m reading many of the posts that people make In the Lounge, they insert articles from their preferred media sources, which of course makes sense...

However, when I read these articles, it seems like there are many instances where the articles are pitting one faction against the other. I dislike the media when they pigeonhole people into the good or the bad, the elite vs the average joe, Dems vs Reps, blue collar vs white collar, urban vs rural....etc.

I don’t fit in any of the “rigid boxes“ that they have come up with. I would think that many people can actually be a mixture of many things based on their life’s experiences and not fit some stereotype that the media wants them to.....

OK. Off my soapbox...Just my observation...not trying to start a political debate..just wondering if others feel the same way..

sure, but it depends on which "media" "pigeonholes" the people ...
maybe some politicians "pit one faction against the other"

 

[DeniseM]

Folks - I think this is a doomed topic. I don't know if there is a way to discuss this without going down the wrong road. Use caution!

 

[TravelTime]

So with the quarantine, I have spent a lot more time on the TUG boards than I have in the last several years… We’ve been traveling so much I haven’t had the time… LOL.

As I’m reading many of the posts that people make In the Lounge, they insert articles from their preferred media sources, which of course makes sense...

However, when I read these articles, it seems like there are many instances where the articles are pitting one faction against the other. I dislike the media when they pigeonhole people into the good or the bad, the elite vs the average joe, Dems vs Reps, blue collar vs white collar, urban vs rural....etc.

I don’t fit in any of the “rigid boxes“ that they have come up with. I would think that many people can actually be a mixture of many things based on their life’s experiences and not fit some stereotype that the media wants them to.....

OK. Off my soapbox...Just my observation...not trying to start a political debate..just wondering if others feel the same way..

I am not concerned with this. Of course, people are going to post from the media sources they find most truthful and reliable. I often hesitate to post from some media sources, even though I may like the article, because I view the media source as too biased. Yet I am sure others think some of my media sources are biased. Frankly, I am tired of hearing we should read from all sources (who has time to read that much anyway and why should I waste my time reading media that I think is garbage). Or that the media is the enemy of the people. That all seems too extreme to me. I think we should just respect diverse viewpoints and not worry so much about where people get their news or try to invalidate their news sources and beliefs. In the olden days, people did not bicker so much about beliefs. Now everyone is trying to prove to everyone else who is right and who is wrong. I really don't care about this.

I think this is a doomed topic too. Discussing the media tends to lead to arguments and it has become a socially contentious issue.

 

[bluehende]

Personally I think the media is a symptom of the current divides, Go back a few years and many of the topics discussed here that are political would not have been considered that at all. The media is a product of our society and what we demand. We will all have our bias' as to whom is to blame,but the very polarized society that we live in is the cause.

 

[Brett]

I am not concerned with this. Of course, people are going to post from the media sources they find most truthful and reliable. I often hesitate to post from some media sources, even though I may like the article, because I view the media source as too biased. Yet I am sure others think some of my media sources are biased. Frankly, I am tired of hearing we should read from all sources (who has time to read that much anyway and why should I waste my time reading media that I think is garbage). Or that the media is the enemy of the people. That all seems too extreme to me. I think we should just respect diverse viewpoints and not worry so much about where people get their news or try to invalidate their news sources and beliefs. In the olden days, people did not bicker so much about beliefs. Now everyone is trying to prove to everyone else who is right and who is wrong. I really don't care about this.

I think this is a doomed topic too. Discussing the media tends to lead to arguments and it has become a socially contentious issue.

yes, topic certainly doomed. socially contentious issue
" why should I waste my time reading media that I think is garbage or that the media is the enemy of the people"

 

[TravelTime]

yes, topic certainly doomed. socially contentious issue
" why should I waste my time reading media that I think is garbage or that the media is the enemy of the people"

Think about it. If you think Harlequin romance novels are garbage, would you read them just to know how romance readers think?

 

[Brett]

Think about it. If you think Harlequin romance novels are garbage, would you read them just to know how romance readers think?

I'm not sure that's a good analogy but yes, I understand
that's why I read the Wall St Journal, NY Times, local news, nationals news - CBS / NBC / ABC & science publications, etc.

 

[TravelTime]

I'm not sure that's a good analogy but yes, I understand
that's why I read the Wall St Journal, NY Times, local news, science publications, etc.

Me too. That is what I tend to read too. Some people may not like it but they have won more Pullitzer Prizes and other awards for good journalism.

 

[DaveNV]

I read something recently that applies to this entire topic:

(Paraphrasing) "People don't want to hear your opinion. They want to hear their opinion coming out of your mouth."

I'm willing to give any media source credence until I find their reporting to be slanted into a biased, negative way. I want my news to be truthful, like Walter Cronkite said it, no matter how badly it may sting - facts, without the spin. When any media outlet shows me they are trying to paint a particular picture, or lean toward a certain bias, they've lost me as a viewer. The ABC TV affiliate in Seattle did that a few years ago when they were bought out by a known national syndicate with a very slanted political bias. The instant changes were palpable, as they tried to change public opinion to their agenda. I won't watch them any longer.

We tend to live in a siloed society right now, where everybody surrounds themselves with like-minded people. Nobody learns when they only repeat what the rest of them are saying. It can be difficult to find truth in any media outlet nowadays, including the Internet. One needs to keep their eyes and ears open, and sniff out the rats when they come along.

Dave

 

[TravelTime]

My mother, who is not too educated or worldly, said that she only believes the facts. I asked her how she knows what the facts are. She could not answer that question. Many people think they are being discriminating and catching the media in bias. But I wonder how many really are. And how do you know for sure you are? How do you know for sure that you know the truth?

 

[Ralph Sir Edward]

I read something recently that applies to this entire topic:

(Paraphrasing) "People don't want to hear your opinion. They want to hear their opinion coming out of your mouth."

I'm willing to give any media source credence until I find their reporting to be slanted into a biased, negative way. I want my news to be truthful, like Walter Cronkite said it, no matter how badly it may sting - facts, without the spin. When any media outlet shows me they are trying to paint a particular picture, or lean toward a certain bias, they've lost me as a viewer. The ABC TV affiliate in Seattle did that a few years ago when they were bought out by a known national syndicate with a very slanted political bias. The instant changes were palpable, as they tried to change public opinion to their agenda. I won't watch them any longer.

We tend to live in a siloed society right now, where everybody surrounds themselves with like-minded people. Nobody learns when they only repeat what the rest of them are saying. It can be difficult to find truth in any media outlet nowadays, including the Internet. One needs to keep their eyes and ears open, and sniff out the rats when they come along.

Dave

I seem to spend all my time trying to separate the lies from the deceptions. . . .

 

[bbodb1]

Given the state of the media these days, any time spent with them is akin to being in the rabbit hole.

These days, it may be safest to go see for yourself...

 

[Panina]

To me almost every media outlet has bias. I read/watch all of them and then decide for myself by looking for other sources that can clarify the truth.

 

[geist1223]

We watch 2 separate local and national news programs each evening. We avoid CNN, MSNBC, and FOX on TV. I do read online BBC, CNN, FOX, and local news sources. It is interesting to see how different News Sources can take the same basic facts and create whole different worlds.

 

[Talent312]

I'm annoyed by how much time the media spends "discussing" the news, instead of providing actual news. It seems that in each hour, there's about five minutes of headlines and 55 minutes of analysis. Shirley, there's stuff going on inside the front page.

My DW likes to say, let's watch a movie where we can watch monsters eat people instead. That's much more entertaining.
.

 

[Steve Fatula]

I don't think the media is the enemy of the people, but I do agree with the OP. For me, most "news" is opinion. The question was posed, how do I know? Clickbait is easy to spot of course. When the news complains about "this", and then when some side that is not their side has an example of "this", then they change to the opposite, somehow "this" is not longer valid. Of course they don't retract their previous statements. I am not going to post simple common widely spread recent examples publicly as it would start an argument as the moderator has suggested. I find very very very little news. It's too full of opinion for me. But I do still read articles, as I can't find any sources that really don't follow the modern trend of opinion. Yes, I know your journal doesn't do that. It does. But, one has to read or follow something as otherwise they'd live in a bubble. Which I don't think is good either, likely worse.

It has been suggested that news is reflecting our society and the divisions. To some degree, I agree. But not entirely, I think it is leading society on this. i.e., when you read articles from some journal that is opposite your view on most things, you get the idea that everyone in "that camp", whatever that camp is, feels the same way. Maybe it's all NE people, who knows doesn't matter. I find the reality from talking to people is that this is not the case. I find that most people (most meaning merely >50%) that I talk to on any side of any issue actually do not agree with everything "that camp" says. It's the news promoting various ideas, the narrative so to speak. There are definitely some who follow everything the narrative says, 100%. But it's more the minority than the majority. Journals however do follow their set of ideas pretty reliably, they are entrenched and nothing can ever convince them otherwise. I can almost always predict what a given journal I read a lot of will say on any given issue. I find most publications pretty extreme actually, yes, on "my side" of something too.

And headlines, don't even get me started. If I read 20 articles on any given day, I find 19 of them with outrageous headlines.

Anyone who knows me knows I do *not* always follow what "my side" says. I do tend to read opposing views, but as some have said, who has time to read all journals from all sides, not me. But, as long as we think for ourselves and don't fall prey to a biased view most of the publications have, what else can we really do. I don't mind discussing opposing views with anyone really. Ok, almost anyone. I greatly dislike discussing with those who only follow the narrative. Brainwashed. And that applies to my side on any given issue, or the other side. There are people here on TUG who know or who have assumed what my affiliations are. But, they will also see me arguing at times against the very thing I am supposed to be for as well.

Maybe it's I am older now, or maybe this really has changed in the last 50 years.

I find it interesting when I talk to people with quite a different worldview than I, that mostly we can see eye to eye on so many things. Perhaps bicker on minor things, and maybe a couple things where there is no common views hardly at all. But very few of those.

What I always struggle with is articles that says "group x are against this", yet, I am in group x, and I am not against that. I actually read these every single day. This used to be called stereotyping, and, it used to be a very bad thing to stereotype people, heinous almost not too many years ago. Somehow, it's become okay again.

Sorry, this subject upsets me as I really like news, not opinions.

I hope I did not anger DeniseM with this, tried to stay "in bounds" and vague on some portions. If I did, I apologize in advance as I honestly tried to not stray.

 

[JanT]

True journalism died in 2008 IMO. The media now is a circus. I will leave it at that.

 

[Brett]

True journalism died in 2008 IMO. The media now is a circus. I will leave it at that.

OK but what happened in 2008 that changed "true" journalism

or is that code for something ....

 

[bogey21]

(Paraphrasing) "People don't want to hear your opinion. They want to hear their opinion coming out of your mouth."

Agree... Couldn't have said it better...

George

 

[Ken555]

I suspect many of us would agree that if certain “journalists” were replaced by those who sell timeshares, we might not be able to tell them apart.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[bobpark56]

My mother, who is not too educated or worldly, said that she only believes the facts. I asked her how she knows what the facts are. She could not answer that question. Many people think they are being discriminating and catching the media in bias. But I wonder how many really are. And how do you know for sure you are? How do you know for sure that you know the truth?

I find it easy to identify biased language. Just look at the unnecessary adjectives and adverbs they use to modify their nouns and verbs. (Did you catch that I just used "unnecessary" to slant the last sentence?) Better yet, cross out or otherwise delete the adjectives and adverbs. If the sentence still leaves the same impression, their report is likely balanced. If your impression from what they said changes, their statements are likely slanted by their bias.

 

[dayooper]

Shirley, there's stuff going on inside the front page.

I know there there’s stuff going on inside the front page. And don’t call me Shirley.

 

[needvaca]

I know. I have come to loathe 24/7 media channels. It is not “breaking” news. It is the same info over and over told with their own spin.
I think 24/7 media should be outlawed. It should be 2 hours per day max. Maybe that would force them all to stick to the facts.

 

[x3 skier]

Very few news outlets still maintain the separation from news and opinion that is the true function of journalism. The vast majority have basically have abandoned that hallmark and it’s practically impossible to distinguish the Editorial pages from the alleged news pages. Every reporter seems to think they are an “analyst” and add their particular view to any and everything they write.

Cheers