Posts tagged ‘fox news’
OBSERVATIONS & OPINIONS: WHAT IS OUR FUTURE?
There was a time when I viewed the news on both Fox and MSNBC. I saw reports on both stations concerning the same incident. And by their reporting, I could not believe they were discussing the same issue. I have come to realize, in this day and age with so many channels available, you can select your source of facts and hear what you what to hear, what fits your view of life.
I’ve stopped listening to the news.
I should be using this blog to tell of my writing success. Unfortunately, if I depended on my career news, this blog would cease to exist. I should be writing articles to help other writers be published. That will come soon, I promise.
Now, back to the purpose of this article.
As I stated at the beginning, in this day and age a vast amount of reporting is slanted. You can hear what you want to hear without facts getting in the way. But with almost everyone able to record what is happening around them and countless cameras observing our lives there is the opportunity to record the raw truth. However, it is easy to alter photos and videos. It comes to a point ‘what do you believe’?
As an aside, I chuckle when someone decides to rob a convenience store and there are enough photos of the event to fill a family album.
To prove my point on video alteration, I saw a video on UTUBE of a propane leak and people were leaving their cars and running down the highway to safety, then the massive explosion came. I also saw the same video again, but this time there was a flying saucer in the sky and the world was under attack. Both presented as fact.
I have seen, granted in a news source known to report the news fitting their agenda, videos of protests occurring in North Carolina which, in all honest, scared the shit out of me. Protests where freedom of speech was denied by the authorities and arrests were made of whom ever made the effort to voice their opinion. I felt as if I was watching a movie in which a foreign government or calculated purpose was taking over our country. I could not believe this was my home. I don’t think these were altered, but once or twice in the last 69 years I’ve been wrong. This is to provide a bit of levity. We all need a bit of laughter these days, and a spoon full of sugar.
SPIN
It’s time for a confession.
In a past posting I ranted and raved about how I hated the way news was being presented in this day and age and vowed to never watch it again. Well, it seems that ‘never’ can be a short interval. I admit I am a flawed individual with addictions to bear, and the news is one of them. For instance, when on vacation I agonize that some major event will occur and I will be left out of the loop. Who know, Congress may agree on something, nuclear war and or the end of the world would happen and I wouldn’t know about it. All this is rationalizing to soften my failing: I’m watching the news again.
Not only am I watching the news, but I am watching the news given by multiple sources. This may explain what led to this piece.
With the advent of cable news there are a host of news outlets to provide fodder for whatever persuasion you may be, be it liberal or conservative. The middle is more or less left for the networks to serve. So yes, I have even begun watching a cable news station that rhymes with ‘sox’.
As I watch some of these news presentations, I find it difficult to determine what news is and what is editorial. Then it dawned on me. Today you can watch the news and hear the slant that you want to hear, according to your beliefs.
The above insight brings me to the topic of this discussion, the definition of spin as I see it.
I can be rather slow in the thinking process at times. Okay, most of the time. I always thought that spin was delivering half-truths to support your opinion, incorporating falsehoods, to some extent. However, after listening to various outlets delivering the news on the identical topic, I’ve come to change my opinion. There is no falsehood involved. Cable news chooses to report the facts, but only the facts that they know will support the views that their viewers will be comfortable with, that support the agenda of both the station and those who hold what the station presents as gospel. At times I find it amusing to listen to the various outlets reporting on the same topic, selecting only the facts that they find relevant.
Bottom-line; listen to as much news as you can even if you don’t agree with the philosophy of the outlet. Then, use your brain to decide what the truth is by assembling all the facts. That’s what it’s all about.
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