“What you see on the internet isn’t always true.”
It is easy to form an opinion based on a shocking statistic you see on Facebook. But who is to say that the information spread throughout social media is factual or reliable in any way?
While this era of technology makes it easy enough to fact check, it’s still much easier to just reshare a post. Very few want to conduct research to back up their claims with sources. And that is when people’s seemingly harmless opinions can become dangerous.
Vox also points out that CNN and Fox News mimic entertainment shows rather than serious unbiased news.
In addition to the increasingly popular “news outlet” known as Twitter, millions of people turn to cable news stations like CNN and Fox News as their primary news source. But not even those stations should be trusted as reliable on their own.
Cable news stations do not present true unbiased news; they present information for their audience. CNN has a more liberal audience while Fox News has a more conservative one– and their content reflects that. While catering to their separate audiences, these cable news channels lose credibility, as they often put on a spectacle rather than report unbiased news.
And as a result, cable news has “essentially become the ESPN of politics,” as Vox has pointed out. Similar to the sports channel, their content features countdowns, dramatic music and screaming matches. Vox also points out that CNN and Fox News mimic entertainment shows rather than serious unbiased news.
In fact, President of CNN Worldwide, Jeff Zucker, admitted this in an interview with the New York Times– at one point stating that some panelists are simply “characters in a drama.”
Those opinion panels can be viewed more like rants than as informational segments. They don’t give full context in order for someone to truly form their own opinion based on their own beliefs.
“The idea that politics is sport is undeniable,” Zucker said. “We understood that and approach it that way.”
This approach definitely makes the news more interesting to watch. However, it has become increasingly clear that reactions to zealous claims and the drama of on-air fights in the “news world” have taken priority over facts. Cable news stations’ focus has become less about ensuring factual information is reported and more about who is popular or riles up the audience, bringing in more viewers.
It is certainly easy to get caught up in the heated debates, arguing along the opinion panelists on your TV, but it is important to acknowledge exactly what they are doing– debating, not informing.
Forming a political ideology based on an opinion panel is, unfortunately, becoming the norm. Those opinion panels can be viewed more like rants than as informational segments. They don’t give full context in order for someone to truly form their own opinion based on their own beliefs.
At the end of the day, if cable news is a part of your diet– you need to go on a diet.
But it should be acknowledged that using cable news as a singular informant is not the way to actually stay informed.
Simply watching an opinion panel on candidates for governor doesn’t properly inform someone to decide who to vote for, as they are not being educated on their history or plans for office but, rather, other people’s perceptions of them.
The sad reality is that one can receive better-researched and better-presented information from a satire comedian than from cable news “reporters.”
At the end of the day, if cable news is a part of your diet– you need to go on a diet.
