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Saying that US Networks do a poor job of reporting because their coverage sucks is exactly like saying that Wal-Mart does a poor job of retailing because they s
by raganwald 16y ago
Saying that US Networks do a poor job of reporting because their coverage sucks is exactly like saying that Wal-Mart does a poor job of retailing because they sell plastic junk. It's what the people want.
- srean 16y agohttp://www.relfe.com/media_can_legally_lie.html http://www.relfe.com/media_can_legally_lie.html and apparently legal as well.
- joubert 16y agoTo some extent. But "news coverage" can, and is, also slanted by many networks to shape and promote specific behavior and knowledge amongst it's viewers, without them necessarily being aware of that. There is perhaps a deeper evolutionary reason for viewers to crave information of a certain color, but the producers also cleverly manipulate. One could perhaps argue that "reporting" sucks in inverse proportion to it's objectivity, completeness, and emotional neutrality.
- hasenj 16y agoJournalism is not about satisfying consumer demands; it's about getting the truth out. Or at least that's what I like to think.
- ajdecon 16y agoGetting the truth is what being a journalist is about. Unfortunately, journalists are rarely in charge of news organizations.
- galactus 16y agook, ok. They do an excellent job entertaining people. That's not the same thing as real journalism.
- raganwald 16y agoThis thread has entered a twilight zone inhabited by True Scotsmen: Raganwald: "American journos act like they work for WalMart." HN Chorus: "Those aren't Real Journalists." :-)
- natnat 16y agoDoing something well and doing something profitably are far from the same thing. No one would deny that Microsoft had a successful, profitable stranglehold on the PC operating system market from the early 1990s to the 2000s. But few people would say that it's because they made good software. Likewise, making meaningless "news" that gets people's attention but doesn't inform anyone may be a good way to sell ads and gain market share. But it doesn't inform people, and that's what good journalism does.
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- drallison 16y agoObjective, factual journalism is the cornerstone of our society. News should not be a product and the content should reflect reality and not the desires of a particular demographic or the fantasies of a particular political group.