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.
