4 ms·

I always thought PBS and NPR were pretty good. What am I missing?

p_j_w 5y ago
Yeah, not sure what that guy's on about. PBS, NPR, and other not for profit news orgs like BBC aren't perfect, but then what is? If I had to choose a single news source to try to stay informed, I'd take any one of those three over any of their for-profit competition.
- workinghard 5y ago
  I never trust any media org which is funded by gov. BBC is worst but you have to live to learn though
- denton-scratch 5y ago
  Don't mistake the BBC for a "not-for-profit". BBC Worldwide is a commmercial operation. The BBC has large shares in various commercial TV operations. The only parts of the BBC that are arguably not-for-profit are iPlayer, and domestic TV and Radio; and the BBC World Service. These are paid for by a controversial hypothecated tax, controlled by the government of the day; as a consequence, the Beeb is fairly consistently pro the government of the day, and anti the official opposition (they can see which side their bread is buttered on). [Edit] The World Service is paid for out of general taxation, specifically the Foreign Office budget. It's not paid for out of the Licence Fee.
Proven 5y ago
They are state owned - shouldn't exist.
whatev84584 5y ago
Well, let's just consider one example. Did NPR tell people thousands of times that Trump called Nazis "very fine people"? I suspect they did. Did they ever tell people the truth that he hadn't actually said that? I suspect they didn't, or that it was a very quiet and brief admission. Now, do you suppose NPR did vastly better on all the other stuff they gush at the mouth about all day?
coldtea 5y ago
Well, first of all, that they are 1/1000000 of the news produced by mainstream sources.
- maigret 5y ago
  In Europe they have a good market share, easily double digit.
  - coldtea 5y ago
    Huh? Who in Europe listens to NPR?
    - majewsky 5y ago
      They were presumably not referring to NPR specifically, but to public-service broadcasters in general, like ARD and ZDF in Germany, BBC in Britain, ORF in Austria, RAI in Italy, and so on.
      - coldtea 5y ago
        Most of them (including BBC) are the same crap the article laments, RAI four times so.
        majewsky 5y ago
        I wasn't arguing editorial merit. This was about them having a large market share, which they do.
coryrc 5y ago
NPR has an implicit assumption in ~every story that a problem is best addressed by government intervention and spending. They're credulous of any claim an "authority" makes. Two quick examples from npr.org right now: 1. Somehow we can model how the economy can adapt to zero carbon in 40 years yet couldn't predict changes to solar PV becoming more affordable in the last ten: https://www.npr.org/2021/08/14/1027370891/climate-change-solutions-global-warming-computer-models-paris https://www.npr.org/2021/08/14/1027370891/climate-change-sol... 2. Could this article be more sympathetic to the administration? https://www.npr.org/2021/08/14/1027552833/heres-why-biden-is-sticking-with-the-u-s-exit-from-afghanistan https://www.npr.org/2021/08/14/1027552833/heres-why-biden-is... the meanest thing they say it's "misjudged the speed". Why not "it's been obvious for two decades ANA could never hold together including the eight years he was VP"
- coryrc 5y ago
  And another acting as if an exorcism was a real thing: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/07/30/424980005/help-wanted-the-philippines-needs-more-exorcists https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/07/30/4249800... It's more benign than qanon. I haven't checked their coverage of mask wearing. I'll change my mind if they were pushing masks when Fauci was lying and saying they were unnecessary.
  - josefx 5y ago
    The key line in this story might be: > Father Syquia leads a team of four priests who get additional assistance from volunteers: psychiatrists, doctors, lawyers and laypeople. There seem to be some trained professionals hidden behind the show and prayers.
  - raxxorrax 5y ago
    QAnon is benign, we wouldn't even know of its existence if it wasn't constantly brought up by press outlets to supply their readers with a desperate need for a boogeyman.
bko 5y ago
According to the author's examples of bullshit, NPR peddles the same stuff as the other for-profit main stream publications. > Immerse yourself in news of Russian plots to counterfeit presidential children’s laptops [0], viruses spawned in Wuhan market stalls [1], vast secret legions of domestic terrorists flashing one another the OK sign in shadowy parking lots [2] behind Bass Pro Shops experiencing “temporary” inflation [3], and patriotic tech conglomerates purging the commons of untruths. I listed to them for years but noticed a considerable shift in their reporting in the last 2-3 years. [0] https://www.npr.org/2020/10/17/924506867/analysis-questionable-n-y-post-scoop-driven-by-ex-hannity-producer-giuliani https://www.npr.org/2020/10/17/924506867/analysis-questionab... [1] https://www.npr.org/2020/01/29/800725826/why-wet-markets-are-the-perfect-place-to-spread-disease https://www.npr.org/2020/01/29/800725826/why-wet-markets-are... [2] https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2021/01/15/957421470/when-white-extremism-seeps-into-the-mainstream https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2021/01/15/957421470... [3] https://www.npr.org/2021/07/17/1017264502/the-federal-reserve-says-higher-prices-will-be-temporary https://www.npr.org/2021/07/17/1017264502/the-federal-reserv... [4] https://www.npr.org/transcripts/959667930 https://www.npr.org/transcripts/959667930
- p_j_w 5y ago
  >According to the author's examples of bullshit That's the author's definition of bullshit though, it doesn't necessarily constitute actual bullshit.

Yeah, not sure what that guy's on about. PBS, NPR, and other not for profit news orgs like BBC aren't perfect, but then what is? If I had to choose a single news source to try to stay informed, I'd take any one of those three over any of their for-profit competition.

workinghard 5y ago
I never trust any media org which is funded by gov. BBC is worst but you have to live to learn though
denton-scratch 5y ago
Don't mistake the BBC for a "not-for-profit". BBC Worldwide is a commmercial operation. The BBC has large shares in various commercial TV operations. The only parts of the BBC that are arguably not-for-profit are iPlayer, and domestic TV and Radio; and the BBC World Service. These are paid for by a controversial hypothecated tax, controlled by the government of the day; as a consequence, the Beeb is fairly consistently pro the government of the day, and anti the official opposition (they can see which side their bread is buttered on). [Edit] The World Service is paid for out of general taxation, specifically the Foreign Office budget. It's not paid for out of the Licence Fee.

Proven 5y ago

They are state owned - shouldn't exist.

whatev84584 5y ago

Well, let's just consider one example. Did NPR tell people thousands of times that Trump called Nazis "very fine people"? I suspect they did. Did they ever tell people the truth that he hadn't actually said that? I suspect they didn't, or that it was a very quiet and brief admission. Now, do you suppose NPR did vastly better on all the other stuff they gush at the mouth about all day?

coldtea 5y ago

Well, first of all, that they are 1/1000000 of the news produced by mainstream sources.

maigret 5y ago
In Europe they have a good market share, easily double digit.
- coldtea 5y ago
  Huh? Who in Europe listens to NPR?
  - majewsky 5y ago
    They were presumably not referring to NPR specifically, but to public-service broadcasters in general, like ARD and ZDF in Germany, BBC in Britain, ORF in Austria, RAI in Italy, and so on.
    - coldtea 5y ago
      Most of them (including BBC) are the same crap the article laments, RAI four times so.
      - majewsky 5y ago
        I wasn't arguing editorial merit. This was about them having a large market share, which they do.

coryrc 5y ago

NPR has an implicit assumption in ~every story that a problem is best addressed by government intervention and spending. They're credulous of any claim an "authority" makes. Two quick examples from npr.org right now: 1. Somehow we can model how the economy can adapt to zero carbon in 40 years yet couldn't predict changes to solar PV becoming more affordable in the last ten: https://www.npr.org/2021/08/14/1027370891/climate-change-solutions-global-warming-computer-models-paris https://www.npr.org/2021/08/14/1027370891/climate-change-sol... 2. Could this article be more sympathetic to the administration? https://www.npr.org/2021/08/14/1027552833/heres-why-biden-is-sticking-with-the-u-s-exit-from-afghanistan https://www.npr.org/2021/08/14/1027552833/heres-why-biden-is... the meanest thing they say it's "misjudged the speed". Why not "it's been obvious for two decades ANA could never hold together including the eight years he was VP"

coryrc 5y ago
And another acting as if an exorcism was a real thing: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/07/30/424980005/help-wanted-the-philippines-needs-more-exorcists https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/07/30/4249800... It's more benign than qanon. I haven't checked their coverage of mask wearing. I'll change my mind if they were pushing masks when Fauci was lying and saying they were unnecessary.
- josefx 5y ago
  The key line in this story might be: > Father Syquia leads a team of four priests who get additional assistance from volunteers: psychiatrists, doctors, lawyers and laypeople. There seem to be some trained professionals hidden behind the show and prayers.
- raxxorrax 5y ago
  QAnon is benign, we wouldn't even know of its existence if it wasn't constantly brought up by press outlets to supply their readers with a desperate need for a boogeyman.

bko 5y ago

According to the author's examples of bullshit, NPR peddles the same stuff as the other for-profit main stream publications. > Immerse yourself in news of Russian plots to counterfeit presidential children’s laptops [0], viruses spawned in Wuhan market stalls [1], vast secret legions of domestic terrorists flashing one another the OK sign in shadowy parking lots [2] behind Bass Pro Shops experiencing “temporary” inflation [3], and patriotic tech conglomerates purging the commons of untruths. I listed to them for years but noticed a considerable shift in their reporting in the last 2-3 years. [0] https://www.npr.org/2020/10/17/924506867/analysis-questionable-n-y-post-scoop-driven-by-ex-hannity-producer-giuliani https://www.npr.org/2020/10/17/924506867/analysis-questionab... [1] https://www.npr.org/2020/01/29/800725826/why-wet-markets-are-the-perfect-place-to-spread-disease https://www.npr.org/2020/01/29/800725826/why-wet-markets-are... [2] https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2021/01/15/957421470/when-white-extremism-seeps-into-the-mainstream https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2021/01/15/957421470... [3] https://www.npr.org/2021/07/17/1017264502/the-federal-reserve-says-higher-prices-will-be-temporary https://www.npr.org/2021/07/17/1017264502/the-federal-reserv... [4] https://www.npr.org/transcripts/959667930 https://www.npr.org/transcripts/959667930

p_j_w 5y ago
>According to the author's examples of bullshit That's the author's definition of bullshit though, it doesn't necessarily constitute actual bullshit.