Turn Off The News
Sep. 12th, 2003 03:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mishalakMy Cynical Post for the Day
One of my friends asked what would I do to be an informed voter if I was going to be off the news permanently. I can't say for sure how long I'll decided to keep up with this personal new blackout, but I really think that a person should not watch the news to be an informed voter.
Paying attention to the news gives a person the delusion of being well informed. The news is like something out of Fahrenheit 451, filling people up with trivia until they have the illusion that they know something important. When in reality news is just entertainment of a more highbrow nature. Talking heads going on about their opinions, polls presented as real news, groupthink judgments of candidates masquerading as balanced assessments, and shocking events out of their context intended to make us afraid.
To be informed about candidates for elected office read their positions, then read up on how they've actually voted recently, then read your state's Blue Book (if it has one). There is no need to keep up with whatever bleeding chunk of shock is being put out by news sources. And I'm not just talking about the major networks either. NPR, the Beeb, and newspapers are just as bad, just with a different slant and style.
The only reason I keep voting is because I'm a fatalist, I keep doing things just because. Like a Russian I don't think it will do any good, but maybe if I'm lucky someday it will. More than likely it won't though.
One of my friends asked what would I do to be an informed voter if I was going to be off the news permanently. I can't say for sure how long I'll decided to keep up with this personal new blackout, but I really think that a person should not watch the news to be an informed voter.
Paying attention to the news gives a person the delusion of being well informed. The news is like something out of Fahrenheit 451, filling people up with trivia until they have the illusion that they know something important. When in reality news is just entertainment of a more highbrow nature. Talking heads going on about their opinions, polls presented as real news, groupthink judgments of candidates masquerading as balanced assessments, and shocking events out of their context intended to make us afraid.
To be informed about candidates for elected office read their positions, then read up on how they've actually voted recently, then read your state's Blue Book (if it has one). There is no need to keep up with whatever bleeding chunk of shock is being put out by news sources. And I'm not just talking about the major networks either. NPR, the Beeb, and newspapers are just as bad, just with a different slant and style.
The only reason I keep voting is because I'm a fatalist, I keep doing things just because. Like a Russian I don't think it will do any good, but maybe if I'm lucky someday it will. More than likely it won't though.
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(no subject)
Date: 2003-09-13 07:53 am (UTC)Reminds me of some campaign slogans Carol sent me:
George Bush - because dictatorship is so much easier
(no subject)
Date: 2003-09-13 03:13 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-09-15 04:18 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-09-15 08:10 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-09-16 09:00 am (UTC)Who said anything about "every minute" ?