4 ms·

The irony is that the "news" often focuses on exceptional events, which tends to result in having a skewed view of the world.

protomyth 12y ago
If you haven't read "It's Not News, It's Fark: How Mass Media Tries to Pass Off Crap As News"[1] by Drew Curtis, then I highly recommend it to explain quite a lot of the process and thinking of the news. It might not be the most serious, and it is funny, but it digs into the truths of the beast. 1) http://www.amazon.com/Its-Not-News-Fark-Media/dp/1592403662/ http://www.amazon.com/Its-Not-News-Fark-Media/dp/1592403662/
- Sammi 12y ago
  My life has become markedly better since I cut out following daily mainstream news. I realized I wasn't gaining anything from it, just loosing.
  - spain 12y ago
    I'm curious as to where you get your news instead. I feel like you do and I've been looking for more thoughtful places to get news.
    - JonnieCache 12y ago
      http://www.stratfor.com http://www.stratfor.com and the like. Protip: If you abandon your subscription in last stage of the cart and come back later, it knocks 50% off the price. It did for me anyway.
      - maxmax 12y ago
        The MSM creates a false world view by creating an impression that rare, exciting events are the norm. Stratfor creates a false world view by "contextualizing" current events and making predictions, thus creating a false impression that the future is knowable. Pick the fantasy you're most comfortable with.
        JonnieCache 12y ago
        Yes, a lot of the analysis is quite silly. It's a good way to find out about stuff though.
    - NickPollard 12y ago
      I'd actually recommend the Economist - the writing is generally pretty good (in my opinion), but more importantly, as a weekly publication rather than daily, it's less knee-jerk about getting out the story quickly, and more focused on actually understanding the news and the implications of it. I learn more from reading the 2 front page summaries (news + business) in the Economist than from all my internet daily news reading.
    - lmm 12y ago
      Sibling mentioned The Economist; I read Prospect for similar reasons (it's monthly, so even more so), and reading something a bit leftist helps balance something a bit rightist. (I also read TIME, but I hear the US edition is quite dumbed down, so maybe only if you can get a European or Asian edition).
    - tiler 12y ago
      Last Week Tonight by John Oliver is a good source of news when it is in-season. [1] https://www.youtube.com/user/LastWeekTonight https://www.youtube.com/user/LastWeekTonight
    - thirdtruck 12y ago
      I also cut out mainstream news consumption. For the most part, I simply haven't missed it. Events worthy of my attention (i.e. that will change my behavior) tend to bubble up through more specialized news sources (like Ars Technica or my Twitter feed) anyway. That said, I have found NextDraft (http://nextdraft.com/ http://nextdraft.com/) very useful.
- thenomad 12y ago
  I've just read "Trust Me, I'm Lying" by Ryan Holliday - a very similar book by the sounds of it, and also one I'd heartily recommend if you want to understand what you're seeing any time you look at Twitter, Facebook, or any mass media.

protomyth 12y ago

If you haven't read "It's Not News, It's Fark: How Mass Media Tries to Pass Off Crap As News"[1] by Drew Curtis, then I highly recommend it to explain quite a lot of the process and thinking of the news. It might not be the most serious, and it is funny, but it digs into the truths of the beast. 1) http://www.amazon.com/Its-Not-News-Fark-Media/dp/1592403662/ http://www.amazon.com/Its-Not-News-Fark-Media/dp/1592403662/

Sammi 12y ago
My life has become markedly better since I cut out following daily mainstream news. I realized I wasn't gaining anything from it, just loosing.
- spain 12y ago
  I'm curious as to where you get your news instead. I feel like you do and I've been looking for more thoughtful places to get news.
  - JonnieCache 12y ago
    http://www.stratfor.com http://www.stratfor.com and the like. Protip: If you abandon your subscription in last stage of the cart and come back later, it knocks 50% off the price. It did for me anyway.
    - maxmax 12y ago
      The MSM creates a false world view by creating an impression that rare, exciting events are the norm. Stratfor creates a false world view by "contextualizing" current events and making predictions, thus creating a false impression that the future is knowable. Pick the fantasy you're most comfortable with.
      - JonnieCache 12y ago
        Yes, a lot of the analysis is quite silly. It's a good way to find out about stuff though.
  - NickPollard 12y ago
    I'd actually recommend the Economist - the writing is generally pretty good (in my opinion), but more importantly, as a weekly publication rather than daily, it's less knee-jerk about getting out the story quickly, and more focused on actually understanding the news and the implications of it. I learn more from reading the 2 front page summaries (news + business) in the Economist than from all my internet daily news reading.
  - lmm 12y ago
    Sibling mentioned The Economist; I read Prospect for similar reasons (it's monthly, so even more so), and reading something a bit leftist helps balance something a bit rightist. (I also read TIME, but I hear the US edition is quite dumbed down, so maybe only if you can get a European or Asian edition).
  - tiler 12y ago
    Last Week Tonight by John Oliver is a good source of news when it is in-season. [1] https://www.youtube.com/user/LastWeekTonight https://www.youtube.com/user/LastWeekTonight
  - thirdtruck 12y ago
    I also cut out mainstream news consumption. For the most part, I simply haven't missed it. Events worthy of my attention (i.e. that will change my behavior) tend to bubble up through more specialized news sources (like Ars Technica or my Twitter feed) anyway. That said, I have found NextDraft (http://nextdraft.com/ http://nextdraft.com/) very useful.
thenomad 12y ago
I've just read "Trust Me, I'm Lying" by Ryan Holliday - a very similar book by the sounds of it, and also one I'd heartily recommend if you want to understand what you're seeing any time you look at Twitter, Facebook, or any mass media.