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Almost as an aside, he mentions the need for "content". The 24 hours news cycle and proliferation of Internet based news sources has created an insatiable need

by 7174n6 6y ago

Almost as an aside, he mentions the need for "content". The 24 hours news cycle and proliferation of Internet based news sources has created an insatiable need for content. These media personalities are so desperate for something to "report" that they will literally do anything to create it. The derogatory use of terms meant to slur a person with limited mental capacity is obviously poor taste and maybe offensive, but is it news? Is that what a "reporter" with a national audience should be focusing on? The news business is in desperate need of constriction.

ravenstine 6y ago
News for the most part is a scam. Yes, I'm using the word "scam" in its loosest sense but, depending on the news outlet, the intention is to commit a borderline scam. Just live a month never reading or watching the news and you'll realize how worthless most news actually is. The scam is to churn out tons of content so that more ads are seen, and the "news" has to actively convince its readers to take poorly-developed news items very seriously so they keep coming back. Focusing on petty drivel like something offensive someone said achieves this end very easily, as was demonstrated by Facebook's own A/B tests. In essence, the news must incorporate exaggerations and misrepresentations in order to make the kind of profits they want to see. That's only the layer we can see. What we can't see are the incentives that entertainment giants place upon their news outlets to publish the "accurate" truth. The problem with economies that value growth over almost everything else is that the constriction you refer to is much less likely to happen. When currency is flying, insolvent or barely solvent businesses such as the news industry can continue to plug along seemingly indefinitely. That notwithstanding, the news is a loss leader for much more powerful entities that need to shape the hearts and minds of the public to their benefit. I don't see much constriction happening any time soon beyond some companies being sold to others.

by 7174n6 6y ago

ravenstine 6y ago

News for the most part is a scam. Yes, I'm using the word "scam" in its loosest sense but, depending on the news outlet, the intention is to commit a borderline scam. Just live a month never reading or watching the news and you'll realize how worthless most news actually is. The scam is to churn out tons of content so that more ads are seen, and the "news" has to actively convince its readers to take poorly-developed news items very seriously so they keep coming back. Focusing on petty drivel like something offensive someone said achieves this end very easily, as was demonstrated by Facebook's own A/B tests. In essence, the news must incorporate exaggerations and misrepresentations in order to make the kind of profits they want to see. That's only the layer we can see. What we can't see are the incentives that entertainment giants place upon their news outlets to publish the "accurate" truth. The problem with economies that value growth over almost everything else is that the constriction you refer to is much less likely to happen. When currency is flying, insolvent or barely solvent businesses such as the news industry can continue to plug along seemingly indefinitely. That notwithstanding, the news is a loss leader for much more powerful entities that need to shape the hearts and minds of the public to their benefit. I don't see much constriction happening any time soon beyond some companies being sold to others.