Thursday, April 23, 2009
The Court Jester
Of course there is a reason for people to get their news from satirical sources. They are the only outlets to tell the truth. Like Medieval court jesters, they tell the hard truth by using humor. That makes a statement about the positive aspects of the American character. Whenever there is a problem, there will always be someone who will devise a solution. But the medium necessary to portray the truth says something about American apathy. People need something to grab their attention before they listen to it. This is a fact of modern culture. It just so happens that, in this instance, the hook is humor. But the fact is they tell the truth and people listen. There are always individuals with intelligence to see when a statement must be made. And if the establishments that are in place aren't doing their job, why can't a comedian do it for them?
Of course there is a reason for people to get their news from satirical sources. They are the only outlets to tell the truth. Like Medieval court jesters, they tell the hard truth by using humor. That makes a statement about the positive aspects of the American character. Whenever there is a problem, there will always be someone who will devise a solution. But the medium necessary to portray the truth says something about American apathy. People need something to grab their attention before they listen to it. This is a fact of modern culture. It just so happens that, in this instance, the hook is humor. But the fact is they tell the truth and people listen. There are always individuals with intelligence to see when a statement must be made. And if the establishments that are in place aren't doing their job, why can't a comedian do it for them?
Apathy
The failings of the media also points to a disturbing trend in American culture: a tendency towards apathy. Even though the public has access to more information and resources and information than they ever have before in history, they seem less interested and less willing to try and change the world. People express displeasure with the world but hardly ever protest to change it. They take stances on issues but only the politically active ever do anything about it. People are content not letting their voices being heard. They spend their time worrying only about their own lives, and do so in the easiest way possible. Everything must be presented in a convenient and entertaining manner for people to pay attention to it. And this is why the media failed. Instead of challenging the public, it simply indulges it with entertainment disguised as news. The evolution of the medium it is presented in is the same. Instead of news papers, the public get their news from television and the internet so it is fast and right at their fingertips. People no longer question, they simply accept anything that does not immediately impact their lives. This is a disturbing trend in American culture, and unless the public or the media realize it and change, the country is heading in a very dark direction.
The failings of the media also points to a disturbing trend in American culture: a tendency towards apathy. Even though the public has access to more information and resources and information than they ever have before in history, they seem less interested and less willing to try and change the world. People express displeasure with the world but hardly ever protest to change it. They take stances on issues but only the politically active ever do anything about it. People are content not letting their voices being heard. They spend their time worrying only about their own lives, and do so in the easiest way possible. Everything must be presented in a convenient and entertaining manner for people to pay attention to it. And this is why the media failed. Instead of challenging the public, it simply indulges it with entertainment disguised as news. The evolution of the medium it is presented in is the same. Instead of news papers, the public get their news from television and the internet so it is fast and right at their fingertips. People no longer question, they simply accept anything that does not immediately impact their lives. This is a disturbing trend in American culture, and unless the public or the media realize it and change, the country is heading in a very dark direction.
Shallow News
Investigative journalism used to be a staple of media outlets. It has brought about great change in American life and has always been a champion of the people. In the modern media, investigative journalism seems to have little place. It is too busy airing pundits and showing celebrity gossip. Today the media seems more content to just present the facts than to actually attempt to uncover the truth in a story. The most recent example would be the mortgage meltdown and financial crisis. Now, the mortgage market doesn't just collapse in the span of a year or two. The seeds of this crisis were planted as far back as 2000. This occurred when the government began to relax it's regulations on the financial industry and banks began to participate in risky lending practices. None of this was keep secret, and with a little investigation, the media could have uncovered this mess and possibly prevented it from happening. But instead, they proceeded to ignore it, focusing more on soft, inconsequential news stories. And to think maybe even 20 years ago, the media would have seen this coming and warned the public. After all, it was two reporters who uncovered Richard Nixon's criminal activities during the Watergate scandal. But instead, because of the modern media's sense of apathy, millions of Americans have been thrown out onto the street, and there is no possible excuse for this.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Fox "News"
And then there is the biggest crime against journalism, Fox "news". Oh, where to begin. Let's start with the media's responsibility to the public. The media is supposed to report the facts of the news to the public. They are supposed to investigate and uncover the truth. They are supposed to uncover corruption and dishonesty in politics and the world. Most importantly, they are supposed to do it in an unbiased manner. This seems to be the opposite of what Fox "news" stands for. There is no attempt made to hide the network's Conservative bias, and what's more impressive is that they have the courage to state that they are "fair and balanced." The media is supposed to present the facts, not the facts that are convenient to their political party. And then they have their Conservative pundits who get paid to go on T.V and spew their opinions on the national airwaves. Now, under the Constitution, they do have the right to express their opinions freely. But Bill O'Reily and Sean Hannity are a major crux of the Fox "news" network. This has no place on a news network. If these people want a place to display their opinions, it belongs on another network. But Fox proudly displays their pundits. And that, along with their obvious bias, is why Fox does not deserve the title of a news network. They can be a Republican party network if they want, but their crimes against journalism have lost the network the right to call itself news.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Public Fascination
But Americans have fickle interests. Once Barack Obama was elected president, the American public's fascination quickly jumped to the newest person of interest. And of course, the media came long for the ride. The public wanted, like with all celebrities, to know as much about him as possible. That is fine, to a point. But what happened bordered on the disturbing. The media swarmed all around the new first family. And who would think it wasn't a little creepy that the cable news networks went so far as to follow Obama's daughters to their first day at school? Showing the school's lunch menu to the public? This is when the situation became absurd. But this also reflects on the culture of the American public as well. People are obsessed with celebrity. The countless gossip rags, T.V stations, and blogs can attest to that. Perhaps it is an ingrained American desire to rise above our lot, and subsequently worship those that have. Or maybe it is a deep-seated loneliness and a desire to know someone, anyone, intimately. Regardless, this is the root of the Obama situation. But the sad fact is that the mainstream media was the one who indulged the public, not the celebrity watchers. This is disheartening because it is not the media's job to cover such things. It is to investigate and to protect the public, and if this is what the American media has devolved into, another source to indulge the public, then the country is in a sorry state indeed.
But Americans have fickle interests. Once Barack Obama was elected president, the American public's fascination quickly jumped to the newest person of interest. And of course, the media came long for the ride. The public wanted, like with all celebrities, to know as much about him as possible. That is fine, to a point. But what happened bordered on the disturbing. The media swarmed all around the new first family. And who would think it wasn't a little creepy that the cable news networks went so far as to follow Obama's daughters to their first day at school? Showing the school's lunch menu to the public? This is when the situation became absurd. But this also reflects on the culture of the American public as well. People are obsessed with celebrity. The countless gossip rags, T.V stations, and blogs can attest to that. Perhaps it is an ingrained American desire to rise above our lot, and subsequently worship those that have. Or maybe it is a deep-seated loneliness and a desire to know someone, anyone, intimately. Regardless, this is the root of the Obama situation. But the sad fact is that the mainstream media was the one who indulged the public, not the celebrity watchers. This is disheartening because it is not the media's job to cover such things. It is to investigate and to protect the public, and if this is what the American media has devolved into, another source to indulge the public, then the country is in a sorry state indeed.
The pitbull, or bulldog, or whatever
The American media has devolved itself into a mindless reflection of popular opinion. No longer does it report to the public information in an objective manner, but merely throws out anything it believes will reward them with the most ratings. A prime example of this took place in the past presidential election when Alaska Governor Sarah Palin was nominated as the Republican candidate for Vice President. Her nomination was historic, yes, but not terribly so, since the first female Vice Presidential nominee for a major party was Geraldine Ferraro in 1984. To be fair, it was the first the Republican Party had nominated a female Vice Presidential candidate. For that, she deserved some attention from the media. But what happened could only be described as a media frenzy. Her every move was covered with vigor. Throughout the election there was hardly anything she did that was not reported on the 24 news networks. Some might say it was because her nomination and campaign was historic, but that is far too naive a view. The true reason was that the country was interested, so the media had to constantly stalk her. Now some might say that is the media's job. To some degree that is true, but the media's more important responsibility is to protect the public. They should not be following a celebrity like some common gossip rag. Add to this the failure to investigate in-depth some doubts people had about her qualifications for office. This phenomenon was just another manifestation of the preference of the media to gain ratings and viewers rather than discover the facts and the truth in the news.
Not Just News Anymore
The news used to be reserved for hard-hitting journalism with in-depth reports and investigations. It also only appeared in morning newspapers and on morning and nightly news broadcasts. Then in 1980, CNN came along and changed all that; They would broadcast the news 24 hours a day. In theory it sounds like a good idea, but with a little bit of thought, one wonders: is there really news occurring at all hours of the morning, afternoon, and night? To be honest, no. But these 24/7 news networks need something to fill all those vacant hours. What could they do? They could keep running the same important news repeatedly. That, of course, would be boring, meaning people wouldn't watch, and they would lose(and this is key here) money. So, instead of filling in the hours with relevant information, the networks were forced to put pretty much anything on the air. Meaningful report and investigative journalism began to fade into extinction. Soft news stories, celebrity gossip, and pundits spewing their biased opinions all found their way on to the networks. And to distract the public, fancy graphics and useless technology were also implemented. The race for ratings forced each network to sell their own soul in order to receive better ratings and become more entertaining than informative. And that's what it boils down to. The more time a network is on the air, the more money it makes. But then again, the only way to pull the public out of their apathetic slumber is to engage them somehow. People today, with their short attention spans and indifference, need something they will keep them entertained constantly. And that is a true shame in society.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Immune Response
When a foreign entity enters the body, the immune system immediately activates to help combat the threat. This phenomenon can be compared to the rise of satirical news shows. They have grown to combat a sick and corrupted media. The advent of the 24 hour news has brought about a steady decline in the respectability and integrity of the American media. All the major "news" networks were forced to compete for ratings, shifting the focus from hard-hitting journalism to just another source of entertainment available to America. In response, several comedians, entertainers, and general truth-seekers have begun to search for the truth using satire, in part, to draw attention to the absurdity of the media.
When a foreign entity enters the body, the immune system immediately activates to help combat the threat. This phenomenon can be compared to the rise of satirical news shows. They have grown to combat a sick and corrupted media. The advent of the 24 hour news has brought about a steady decline in the respectability and integrity of the American media. All the major "news" networks were forced to compete for ratings, shifting the focus from hard-hitting journalism to just another source of entertainment available to America. In response, several comedians, entertainers, and general truth-seekers have begun to search for the truth using satire, in part, to draw attention to the absurdity of the media.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Satirical News
With all the 24 hour news networks scattered throughout cable television today, it seems absurd that satirical news shows such as The Daily Show, the Colbert Report, and Saturday Night Live would earn the immense popularity that they have. But that is exactly the case in modern America. Millions of American youth get their news from these, what are supposed to be comedic, shows. Why has this phenomenon occurred? After all, we have CNN, MSNBC, and Fox(sort of) to give us all the news we want at any time of day. There's no need to take such shows seriously, right? Well, according to the Rasmuusen Reports, nearly one- third of Americans under 40 see satirical news as an alternative to traditional outlets. But why? Why have such shows risen to such popularity and gained so much support? The answer is simple: to counteract the decline of American media.
With all the 24 hour news networks scattered throughout cable television today, it seems absurd that satirical news shows such as The Daily Show, the Colbert Report, and Saturday Night Live would earn the immense popularity that they have. But that is exactly the case in modern America. Millions of American youth get their news from these, what are supposed to be comedic, shows. Why has this phenomenon occurred? After all, we have CNN, MSNBC, and Fox(sort of) to give us all the news we want at any time of day. There's no need to take such shows seriously, right? Well, according to the Rasmuusen Reports, nearly one- third of Americans under 40 see satirical news as an alternative to traditional outlets. But why? Why have such shows risen to such popularity and gained so much support? The answer is simple: to counteract the decline of American media.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
