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To me it wasn’t about that at all. I read it in the context of the movie “Network” — the evolution of news from a public service towards one of profit generatio

by gdubs 8y ago

To me it wasn’t about that at all. I read it in the context of the movie “Network” — the evolution of news from a public service towards one of profit generation. The point seems to be that as a culture we take “news” as reality. But ultimately it’s its own construct; having more to do with pulling emotional strings for attention than pushing a particular agenda. [Bias and propaganda certainly exist; but the argument here is about a different, overriding bias that serves the aims of “news” itself.] James Fallows of the Atlantic has a great book from a long time ago called “Breaking the News” which offers a compelling take on how we ended up in this state, and what the news is really about.

basetop 8y ago
If there was a time when news was a public service ( at least in the US or even anywhere in the world ), I'd be interested to find out. My take on news has been that it's always been about influence, power and control. Public service ( like the weather ) are secondary considerations. And profit isn't a real consideration for major news companies. It why the guardian can exist for 20 years without a profit. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19799893 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19799893 It's why WashingtonPost is bailed out by Bezos. Do you really think Bezos bought the WashingonPost to make money? The first newspapers in the US and during colonial times were created by wealthy landowners and business elites to push their views and ideology. Fundamentally, I don't think much has changed, but I'm open to having my mind changed.
- akiselev 8y ago
  > And profit isn't a real consideration for major news companies. You names WaPo and NYT but those are tiny in reach and revenue compared to CNN or Fox News, which are both extremely profitable. Bezos WaPo for $250 million which is barely more than a third of CNN's profit in 2018 [1] and Fox's profitability is even bigger [2] with a giant warchest after the sale of its other media assets. The television news channels that most Americans get their news from are very profit motivated and some like Fox have found idealogical niches that are consistent across media empires like News Corp but they all just push outrage for profit. [1] https://www.theinformation.com/briefings/cf4270 https://www.theinformation.com/briefings/cf4270 [2] https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-03-28/fox-news-shows-what-outrage-is-worth https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-03-28/fox-ne...

by gdubs 8y ago

basetop 8y ago

If there was a time when news was a public service ( at least in the US or even anywhere in the world ), I'd be interested to find out. My take on news has been that it's always been about influence, power and control. Public service ( like the weather ) are secondary considerations. And profit isn't a real consideration for major news companies. It why the guardian can exist for 20 years without a profit. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19799893 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19799893 It's why WashingtonPost is bailed out by Bezos. Do you really think Bezos bought the WashingonPost to make money? The first newspapers in the US and during colonial times were created by wealthy landowners and business elites to push their views and ideology. Fundamentally, I don't think much has changed, but I'm open to having my mind changed.

akiselev 8y ago
> And profit isn't a real consideration for major news companies. You names WaPo and NYT but those are tiny in reach and revenue compared to CNN or Fox News, which are both extremely profitable. Bezos WaPo for $250 million which is barely more than a third of CNN's profit in 2018 [1] and Fox's profitability is even bigger [2] with a giant warchest after the sale of its other media assets. The television news channels that most Americans get their news from are very profit motivated and some like Fox have found idealogical niches that are consistent across media empires like News Corp but they all just push outrage for profit. [1] https://www.theinformation.com/briefings/cf4270 https://www.theinformation.com/briefings/cf4270 [2] https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-03-28/fox-news-shows-what-outrage-is-worth https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-03-28/fox-ne...