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What are the most fair and unbiased news & facts sources for you?
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Author | Message |
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j mercer Send message Joined: 3 Jun 99 Posts: 2422 Credit: 12,323,733 RAC: 1 |
I have wanted to ask this for a while. There are some very sharp folks here and I would like to know what you think. It would be interesting if there is any consensus with the broad views expressed here. I ask because I am at a loss and it seems to me they all have lost the plot and put “their†own spin on everything. I watch, listen, and read several sources locally, nationally, and globally and try to gleam what I think is the better information but still come away not feeling like I know what is really going on. Is there even such a thing as fair and unbiased news and facts sources any more? ... |
James Sotherden Send message Joined: 16 May 99 Posts: 10436 Credit: 110,373,059 RAC: 54 |
Not any more. [/quote] Old James |
Gary Charpentier Send message Joined: 25 Dec 00 Posts: 30608 Credit: 53,134,872 RAC: 32 |
In reality there are only 3 sources for news. AP, UPI, Reuters. Frequently only one of them will report a given story. The means whatever bias that news wire reported had will appear in every story written from the wire service report. Not good. If all three report the same given story, then a reading of all three is the closest you can get. Even so official bias can not be ruled out. |
Sirius B Send message Joined: 26 Dec 00 Posts: 24877 Credit: 3,081,182 RAC: 7 |
There's an old saying.... "Believe nothing that you see and only half what you hear" More true today than it ever was in the past. The trick is to ascertain which half is the truth. |
j mercer Send message Joined: 3 Jun 99 Posts: 2422 Credit: 12,323,733 RAC: 1 |
Great input everyone. Thanks for sharing. Growing up in the 60’s I was fortunate to have lived outside of the US (near London) for a few years and got a good look at how the rest of the world sees the US. Needless to say as a teenager I was ashamed at what I learned. As dependents of US military we were well indoctrinated to be little ambassadors as such. GAWD what an eye opener, I could not see it till I got out of the US and away from its influence. I do use BBC a lot. I think they report on US better than the US reports on itself. I’m not saying they are the gospel for US news they just seem to have less propaganda about the US. It is quite a contrast watching the big three (NBC, ABC, CBS) national news and then watching BBC US edition. But I think even the US edition is a little off from the BBC that is telecasted in the UK. I have to agree with Chris S in that BBC has changed in the last few years. I was not quite sure what direction it has gone. And yes Sirus B, Edgar Allan Poe had it right. LOL!! ... |
j mercer Send message Joined: 3 Jun 99 Posts: 2422 Credit: 12,323,733 RAC: 1 |
Gary, I keep forgetting about Reuters. They do not show up as often it seems. If all three report the same given story, then a reading of all three is the closest you can get. Even so official bias can not be ruled out. If only they all would report on the same more often but they seem to stay away from each other unless one has more dirt than the other. LOL! It is refreshing to see most, even with different views, see it some what as I do. For me it is not so important that we agree but that we take the time to try and understand. I like to think that I can disagree but I do try to understand the other positions. It can be an eye opener to try and walk in another's shoes. I have been humbled more than once. (^; ... |
j mercer Send message Joined: 3 Jun 99 Posts: 2422 Credit: 12,323,733 RAC: 1 |
It is disappointing Guy. It seems it is even worse with local news outlets. The one newspaper towns & cities have become some of the worst up here in Washington State. Your popcorn bag becomes your barf bag before you can get through the local paper and or the local news hour is over. (^; If the reporting does not make you sick what is being reported on most sure idly will. I am a cup is half full person so all is not lost in the slightest. ... |
Es99 Send message Joined: 23 Aug 05 Posts: 10874 Credit: 350,402 RAC: 0 |
I find that every news outlet nauseates me, except for FOX News. lol, its a sad state of affairs when the comedy network is a better news source than the actual news. However, I am not a huge fan of Maher. I've found he misleads to make a point and the facts are bad enough without doing that. Also he comes across as a bit of a sexist arsehole. Reality Internet Personality |
Gary Charpentier Send message Joined: 25 Dec 00 Posts: 30608 Credit: 53,134,872 RAC: 32 |
I mentioned three wire services earlier. There must be some others. As a consumer of news you must be aware of where the story originates. Read the by line and also see if there is an attribution "and wire service reports" or some such. Know what wire service the news source you are looking at subscribes to. In discussing this we must also realize there is international news, national news and local news. On the international front many large news organizations have their own reporters in national capitols. They write their own story. At the national level, the coverage of the news organization suffers if it isn't their home country. One man can report it all, even if he is aware of it all. At the local level, you are at the mercy frequently of a single source. Not reassuring for fair and balance. Also the local guy is frequently the new hire who is still wet behind the ears and looking for the scoop to move up the ladder, liberties are easily taken. Personally saw a reporter at my local paper arrive at an accident scene. He grabbed a passerby and asked what happened. That was the news story. Didn't ask any of the people involved, didn't speak to the police or fire people. Didn't even speak to a second passerby. Story was wrong of course. Sloppy and in a hurry. You also have 3 broad categories of news. Political news, which is these days really just opinion pieces. You have the soft news, Actress has Nip Slip! Cat rescued from tree. Then there is hard news. Plane crash, film at 10! For political news, rarely is there a fair or balanced source. The only time it is fair is where the are reporting hard facts, such as poll numbers. Everything else is opinion. For soft news, most of it is verifiable as is hard news. This ability to verify tends to make it fair. Some of it however is just reprinting press releases. That is claptrap of course. For hard news, nearly every source realizes they must get it right, and this applies even to faux news. Right means fair and somewhat close to balanced. They know if they don't they will get lambasted by their competitors and worse loose market share. For all of them, the race for a scoop causes BS to get put out. If they wait to verify, their competitor prints it and they loose sales. The last issue is how they decide what is news. Frequently that is the personal bias of the editor. So you need a diverse selection so all the stories important to you can be found. If you want to try and put together a bunch of places to compare and contrast to pick out the true parts, you will need to look at a bunch of places. I'll give a list but understand every single one of them is biased on some subjects or areas. NHK, CCTV, RT, DW, BBC, Al Jazzerra, VOA. Note none of the USA's networks are here as they all tend to give short shift to international news unless there is blood flowing in the streets. Google and Yahoo both aggregate news from multiple sources. Read the same story from several and then start making decisions on who you think is fair. |
Es99 Send message Joined: 23 Aug 05 Posts: 10874 Credit: 350,402 RAC: 0 |
Also he comes across as a bit of a sexist arsehole. lol Reality Internet Personality |
bobby Send message Joined: 22 Mar 02 Posts: 2866 Credit: 17,789,109 RAC: 3 |
Tabloid newspapers misreport news with lurid headlines to sell copy Though frequently the UK tabloids had the best sports reporting when I lived there. I think you'll find it's a bit more complicated than that ... |
W-K 666 Send message Joined: 18 May 99 Posts: 19014 Credit: 40,757,560 RAC: 67 |
The only time it is fair is where the are reporting hard facts, such as poll numbers. Are you sure these poll numbers are the facts? Isn't it possible to manipulate the polls by the questions asked and the order in which the questions are asked? |
betreger Send message Joined: 29 Jun 99 Posts: 11360 Credit: 29,581,041 RAC: 66 |
Isn't it possible to manipulate the polls by the questions asked and the order in which the questions are asked? That has been demonstrated many times. |
j mercer Send message Joined: 3 Jun 99 Posts: 2422 Credit: 12,323,733 RAC: 1 |
Nice break down Gary. I have been pushing more and more foreign language sources through a translator. Polls are to easily manipulated. ... |
Gary Charpentier Send message Joined: 25 Dec 00 Posts: 30608 Credit: 53,134,872 RAC: 32 |
Isn't it possible to manipulate the polls by the questions asked and the order in which the questions are asked? Yes. However how much a poll has been manipulated has nothing to do with the accuracy in reporting the numbers obtained. Heck you can even manipulate the actual election vote in how you lay out a ballot. |
W-K 666 Send message Joined: 18 May 99 Posts: 19014 Credit: 40,757,560 RAC: 67 |
In reality there are only 3 sources for news. AP, UPI, Reuters. Frequently only one of them will report a given story. The means whatever bias that news wire reported had will appear in every story written from the wire service report. Not good. Just for reference the three agency news site links are; Reuters (UK site) - top of page option to change region. Associated Press (AP) United Press International (UPI) |
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rob smith Send message Joined: 7 Mar 03 Posts: 22160 Credit: 416,307,556 RAC: 380 |
I can't comment about Al-Jazeera; but FOX, BBC & CNN often draw stories from the big three wire services. This is particularly true at the start of a "big" story before their own reporters and correspondents have arrived. Many of the small, local, agencies have bi-directional ties with the three wires, it gives them a window into the wider world and can act as a revenue stream when "the big one" breaks - there is nothing like having a reporter two blocks away rather than two thousand miles. Bob Smith Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society) Somewhere in the (un)known Universe? |
rob smith Send message Joined: 7 Mar 03 Posts: 22160 Credit: 416,307,556 RAC: 380 |
...as they dive for page three Bob Smith Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society) Somewhere in the (un)known Universe? |
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