“Got the bubble-headed bleach blonde, comes on at five,” (Don Henley, “Dirty Laundry”)
They’ve absolutely lost it. They’ve abandoned any attempt to bring information without bias. It’s always the other side who are the “politicians.” The “bureaucrats.” But our network is the one representing “the American people.”
So predictable. So childish. We were supposed to learn how to be fair in kindergarten. Listen to others. Be kind. There’s no trace of this on TV news. And we are swarmed with some of the most glaring and ridiculous cliches.
Listen to these promo lines. “Don’t tell me how to think.” What? “Let me decide.” Who? Like other networks literally tell me how to think? Who are these people? I’ve yet to hear anybody say “Here’s how you should think.” The presumption is networks are manipulating us with one sided news. So if someone is indeed telling us how to think, then be assured, they’re all doing it.
Or how about “Fair and balanced?” Everybody claims this moniker. Yet every network leans strongly one way or the other. (Most lean one particular way.) There’s rarely anything good said about the party we don’t like. So that party is clearly the devil.
More predictable cliches: We all have opinions and beliefs. Some will allege the other side is listening to a “narrative,” or are following “talking points.” And do you notice the party “across the aisle” is always the one “playing party politics?” It’s all politics! Why do you deny it? If it looks like a duck…
I don’t do journalism by trade, but my gut tells me this isn’t it.
Here’s a doozy: “Real news for real people” What the heck does that even mean? Certainly it’s the evil opposition who is always “fake news.” I presume those who consume it are “fake people?”
“No spin.” Here’s a hard truth. We’ve all got a spin. We all use semantics and presentation skills to sell our point. Some are just better at it than others. Those who claim they’re above this human trait are are either deceptive, delusional, or both.
The media likes to trash the “main stream media.” Some outlets call out the “left wing media” others toss verbal bombs at the “right wing media.” Or just “the media.” The hilarious part is these criticisms of the media are all coming from who? The media!
Some will say those with whom they disagree are listening to the “wrong media.” Count me as one who’s at a loss to know which media to believe. Everybody is so slanted. Just pick your flavor and consume the swill you agree with, knowing your guy is “bi-partisan,” and only reports “facts.”
Right.
Meaningless throwaway cliches: “At the end of the day.” What do you make of that?” “We’ll have to wait and see.” “It is what it is.” These mindless phrases only take up precious time and oxygen, yet they’re rampant on what used to be a powerful and essential force in the culture: the nightly news.
Now it’s news around the clock, and they’ve simply run out of things to say. So they’ve resorted to name calling, and pandering to their audience. To fill the time, they repeat the same stories for days on end to drive home their point, and blindly do exactly what they accuse the other side of doing.
It’s Lame News.
My only deduction: Do your best to stay informed with the extremely limited objective reporting available, and expose yourself to it carefully and in moderation. Don’t give it more than about a half hour a day. At best, it’s sub-par programming. At worst, it’s toxic.
I knew a guy in junior high who would fit right into this disgrace of a genre. He loved to argue. He never relented from his self-aggrandizing point of view, and when backed into a corner with undeniable counterpoints of proof, he resorted to exactly the same lame response as essentially, today’s TV news.
“I know you are, but what am I?”
Keep your dirty laundry.