I understand that this topic has been discussed to the point of ad nauseam, but the MSM continues to print and report faux news.
Morning shows, such as Good Morning America, The Today Show, and the Early Show open with a quick read of the headlines, go to commercial and come back with segments about Jon and Kate, Nicolas Cage, the Octomom or another celebrity du jour.
If the media spent more time discussing the real problems concerning health care, the Afghanistan War, the economy, education, and politics etc, instead of reporting on American Idol contestants, our country would be more informed and better off.
It amazes me when a political topic makes its way into one of the segments, but only a Republican gets air time, leaving the host to give the opposing Democrat view, which they simply do not do.
Every time I hear the term – “Liberal Media” – I have to laugh.
ABC, NBC, and CBS cover American Idol whenever that show airs, and show clips of the performances, and then hold in-depth discussions about the winners of the night and the shocking losers.
This morning on Face the Nation, Bob Shieffer spoke to Axelrod for approximately 3 minutes about the Afghanistan War and then spent the remaining 7 minutes of that segment discussing Rush Limbaugh and the White House “war” with Fox News.
The media supposedly knows the criticism from the public, especially the coverage that led to Iraq, yet have they changed their formats and offer unbiased reporting?
Of course not.
We all saw the attention the tea-baggers received, while the pro-health care reform people were never shown.
Even the PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer shows more partiality to the Republican party in recent years.
Where are the hard questions and where are the real journalists?
Is the MSM of today the future of media for our country?
Is there any way that we the people can demand better quality news?
Living for 30 years here in Japan, I hardly ever watch the Japanese news. Our stuffy NHK is in some ways the old BBC of yore, filled with stories about the latest homicides, how to grow eggplant/aubergines and which politician said what outrageous thing.
The reigning LDP party of 50 years was dismally defeated, the new PM quite out of his depths to successfully change the country in any significant way.
The tv reports on his crazier ideas like an increase in tax for couples without children while flaunting the idea of paying couples to have children but I had to find out from my English newspaper, “The Japan Times,” that our new PM Hatoyama owes a considerable amount of money in back taxes. Welcome to the new crook just like the old crooks. It’s the same the world over, the media sits on the story until it is old hat and reports trivia to their hearts content.
Kalima, Please keep up your posts of international news. I(we) are malnourished when it comes to news from abroad. I used to be able to get ITN and I thought i was enlightened for a non- traveler. Thanks
I will try my best bitohistory and thank you. I used to post about international news and breaking news stories a lot on the site I was on before Planet, only about a handful of people found it interesting enough to leave a reply and one of them was nellie who is now here. I gave up.
I second that, I hope Kalima and all of our colleagues around the world keep us informed as to what’s going on in their part of The Planet.
Also, you may have noticed the addition of news headlines in the right column. Please note that you can choose between Yahoo News and BBC News by clicking on either, hopefully that too will help keep us more globally informed.
Wonderful addition AdLib. As you know I was hoping to start a column or regular posts about my funny and sometimes embarrassing adventures in Japan, I even had a title in mind, “The Perils of Kalima” but I’m still hunting for the notebook, the house is not that big, it must be here. When I locate it I’ll let you know and will unveil my days of horror and humiliation here, it was a hoot but hard to remember in detail now.
Give me a bit of time please. 🙂
Sounds intriguing.
Actually it’s 50% pure embarrassment with red faces and 50% a cultural “black hole.”
Now if could could only find that darned, elusive notebook, I could share a good laugh with all of you. I’ll keep hunting! 🙂
AdLib, we need to get “The Dutchman” over here.
Nice feature, Adlib.
Off topic, but I am writing people in my life, and telling them to visit this site.
It’s selfish on my part, because I am telling my friends and loved ones that I’ve finally been published!
🙂
I’ll do anything because I want to see this site succeed, and see it flourish.
We are the anti-HP, and a true liberal site.
Freedom of speech and freedom of expression lives here on Planet POV!
You Go Girl!!!
Suggest it’s time to do some homework people! Need to bone-up on “The 12 truths of the Pelosi Plan” (as presented by the GOP).
http://gop.com/index.php/12truths/ You too can ask a question to the man of Steele Please take a look at this “Think Progress” story
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/11/04/rnc-12-hour-town-hall/
Think any real question will be posted? Might be fun/worth a try.
Anytime right wingers say truth, freedom and peace they mean the exact opposite in my experience.
It would seem that we could come up with a bunch of contrarily posed questions for them, could we not? Example: how does your plan deal with pre-existing conditions? Will your plan stop rescission if I have a chronic condition? Does your plan disallow yearly and lifetime caps?
I like your questions, they may get thru their moderators…
I really wonder if they will let question thru that question the plan…but bitohistory seems to have some good ones…I think I might give it go with some questions regarding small businesses healthcare costs, since I’m familure with that..
Those questions were just off the top of my head. I am sure that with the intelligent and thoughtful people (man, that’s an old ploy) here, we should be able to get something across their mods. Perhaps start the phrase with ” how does the Pelosi plan deal with ……….?
who owns the media?
who prints the text books?
who owns the radio stations?
who owns the television stations?
who owns the major print outlets?
there should be no surprise that the media HAVE ALWAYS SUPPORTED THE AGENDA OF THEIR OWNERS. it has ALWAYS been this way.
in the past, it was more subtle. now it’s flagrant.
Short of Bill Moyers, possibly Rachel Maddow, I cannot think of any other person in the journalism industry with any integrity.
These days, if you want truth, you must seek it out, and trumpet it like a paperboy on the corner. While we still have neutral internet, do your best. They will stifle this voice soon as well.
There are more out there. Seymour Hersh is another one. And there are less famous journalists (like Larisa Alexandrovna) who do excellent investigative work, other strong writers for Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair. The NYT has a lot of really good reporters. And so does the Post.
But all these good people have editors. And their stories sometimes end up in the back pages. And sometimes don’t run. And more often than not, don’t make it to the tv circuit — which is where most people get their news.
Nellie, you struck a chord with me! Editors!! Many of the writers you mention have been or are members of their respective “Guilds”. The editors were writers and the writers have pride in their craft.They took an oath to print only what has been sourced, checked and re-checked, same with the editors. Then publish.
There is corporate media and right wing media with a few sanctimonious progressive pundits sprinkled in as well.
Thanks, javaz, for writing this post. It’s discussed often, but never enough.
Randi Rhodes is fond of saying “The news has been cancelled.” And I agree with her. What we get now is not news, but sensationalized bits of cherry picked irrelevance designed to generate ratings — or clicks if we’re talking about the web.
The meme about “liberal press” is just another right wing talking point, adopted by the corporate media so they have an excuse for pushing the public discourse as far to the right as possible. It’s an ingenious talking point — one of the most clever the right wing has devised. It guilts reporters into overcompensating for their own sanity, while giving cover to the military industrial complex and corporate interests that now own many of our media outlets.
There are relatively simple legislative fixes that would address our news woes, but there doesn’t seem to be much political will in congress — or much urgency from the White House for that matter — to tackle media reform. But here’s the list I keep hearing from those who care about this issue:
(1) We need to detach the news departments from the other profit-generating operations. News should not be required to make a profit, and for decades was a protected aspect of commercial broadcasting. News is a public service. And should be provided as compensation for using the public airwaves.
(2) We need some kind of standards put into law. If you’re going to call yourself “news,” then you ought to be held to guidelines that lets the public know you can be trusted to at least try to get the story right. Currently, we have so-called “news” organizations going to court for the privilege of lying to the public. We have erroneous stories that go uncorrected when the facts come to light. We have outright lies published on the front pages of our “paper of record” with no repercussions. People who pretend to deliver the news need to take their profession more seriously. And standards would go a ways to improving quality control.
(3) News organizations should not be beholden to weapons manufacturers or insurance corporations. The vertical and horizontal integration that has taken place in the communications industry is a real threat to our democracy. We have our “news” in the hands of four or five corporate owners. This amounts to nothing less than control over our information. Which is why we have so much propaganda and opinion masquerading as newscasts.
(4) We need more local ownership and reporting. That’s probably a separate issue, but it’s as important as diversified ownership. People living in different parts of the country have different concerns, different issues, and different things going on in their communities. The “one-think” brainwashing that goes on by having everyone fed the same news diet is also doing our democracy a lot of harm.
Sorry to go on for so long, but this is probably the biggest of my pet peeves — or a close second to election reform. The main frustration is that so few people seem to care about this issue, or even think there’s a problem.
OMG!
I think this is the absolute best post that I have ever read anywhere online.
Nellie, you are so eloquent, and right on and don’t apologize, because you are a writer.
Are you an author?
Thank you so much for this comment.
I applaud your writing abilities and admit to being jealous because you said exactly what I was trying to convey!
Keep it up and author more posts here at Planet POV!
I look forward to reading more from you!
Thanks, javaz. I think you give me too much credit, but I appreciate your very kind words.
I am a writer, and I’ve been at it a long time. I try not to be too long-winded, but your post just set me off! It’s so important.
Are you published?
I, too, am a writer since retiring at the ripe old age of 40, and that was 15 years ago!
I’ve only tried selling one book, and it was the first one that I ever wrote, and even though I was rejected by more publishing houses than I care to count, I’ve never stopped writing.
I write now as a hobby, and is one reason I love to blog, and love this site for several reasons – no trolls, no pending, no scrubbing, and no banning.
But it does my heart good when POV posts one of my articles, and even better, when people reply.
I’ve written 32 stories, and they are more like a diary of my life and current events.
I love to write.
I cannot express myself when talking, but when it comes to writing, I do a much better job!
Are you published?
Talk to me, either way.
I am very impressed. 32 stories is a real accomplishment.
I’m published — but only magazine and journal articles. Most of my writing has been for consulting, short scripts, marketing, and education. A lot of in house work and straight to video or straight to audio. I’m working on a screenplay now with a partner and at the same time working on a couple of novels.
I’ve written a lot on my own time–like you have–but never tried to sell anything. I’m finally at the point now where I like what I do enough to peddle it, so we’ll see where that goes.
The most important thing about getting published is perseverance. So don’t get discouraged. Send out those stories! You might hit an editor with your same sensibilities. It just takes time and persistence.
Since receiving so many rejections, well, not going to try again, even though my writing has improved vastly from my first attempt.
I’ve read a lot about publishing, and it occurred to me that if I were lucky enough to be published, it would make it a job.
There’d be stress to meet deadlines, and I’ve been there, done that in my actual career as an engineer.
I’m just impressed with people who write and are published.
I have attended writer seminars locally, and honestly, I prefer not to try anymore.
I enjoy very much what I write, and from what I know about authors, is that is key.
In that if you enjoy what you write, that’s all that matters.
I never started writing to make a fortune, but write because I love it.
And I’ll keep on writing for my own pleasure.
Kudos to you, for courageously venturing out and being successful for your writing!
Thanks. It’s nice to have a fellow writer on PPOV. I think there are a few more of us here.
Yet another writer here. I’m a tech writer for a living, have written many short stories (published 15 or so in litmags), have one non-fiction book published (barely made a dime) and I’m working on yet another novel. My dream is to write and publish novels but I’ve been through two agents now who couldn’t sell my work. I’m still plugging away. I’ve got enough rejections to insulate my house. I think one of the reasons I like posting short posts here is because it’s just fun — I don’t worry so much about logic and structure and consistency and strong verbs and all the stuff that makes it “work” (in both meanings of the word).
I am humbled to be amongst so many people that are writers. The last time I researched and wrote papers was in the ’70’s for my ex’s English papers while she was going for her R.N. degree. She got good marks. (not bad, he says, for a Union carpenter). So please, please show me some allowance.
(begging? You bet! :-D)
I’ve worked in the “liberal media” for nearly twenty-six years, and rest assured it is anything but. Our group of stations consists of four–two AM, two FM. We are a dying breed, as stations such as ours are being swallowed up by giant corporations. I blame this on the deregulation of the industry. There are large cities where every radio station is owned by one entity. Never used to be the case. Anybody who believes the media is liberal should look and see who is signing the paychecks. Ought to clear up that misconception right quick like.
That has always been the case. My hometown paper was owned by a conservative organization but the editor was a midwestern populist. Stayed there for years.
Anyone who believes the media is liberal has to look no further than today’s headlines.
Yesterday, the news was all about the elections, especially the election in New York.
Somehow these elections were a referendum on Obama’s clout, and yet another “test” of his presidency.
But this morning, I woke up to find that the GOP swept the elections, and this does not bode well for Obama or the Dems.
I had to search to find the results in NY, and VOILA!
Ends up the Democrat won a congressional seat, yet the MSM is mum on that one and what it means to the Republican Party.
And hee-hee, about the Democrat winning in an area that Republicans controlled for over 100 years.
Yet the MSM is ignoring that part.
Gee, I wonder why.
As I’ve said before, expect no honest news from the Arizona Republic. It might as well have an elephant on it’s banner.
We only buy the Republic on Sundays for the TV listings and my husband loves the sport’s and financial section.
I checked here on the Planet after reading my email, and saw the post YIPPEE, but before jumping for joy I wanted to confirm it.
I had to search online to find the results and didn’t find them until I went to dailykos.
We are channel 5 (CBS) viewers for local news, and they are towing the line for the corporate-owned news.
I’m shocked that CBS locally, actually did that segment about Sheriff Joe last week!
Thanks for your insight. I would love to see a full column about your experience some time.
Wow!
Thank you to the administrators of PlanetPOV for finding this post for me and attaching the image!
You guys are the best!
ps. We’re really not idiots, well, I probably am, but my husband isn’t.
Thank you so much for your patience with us in trying to figure out the image attachment.
My husband thinks he knows what we did wrong, so we’ll try it again someday.
And you should be getting a donation, but it’s under my husband’s email, in case you wondered!
Thanks again!