Monday, August 03, 2020

Finally

I've been waiting years for an article like this one, calling out the bullshit of media determined to show "both sides" instead of actually telling people what's happening and what it means:
What if the mainstream, reality-based media armed its audience with facts as emphatically and effectively as Fox News arms its audience with misinformation? What if the New York Times aggressively advocated for the truth, rather than just putting it out there for the record? 
A large fraction of America has tuned out the elite media, treating it like so much white noise. What if the Washington Post more assertively said in its news stories: "Here's what we believe are the facts, and why"? What if they said: "Here's where we're coming from"? What if they said: "Here's our best explanation of why all this crazy stuff is happening and why you're so screwed"? 
And what if the mainstream media provided its audience with a true, overarching narrative in which to situate the day-to-day stories — true, evidence-based narratives as  compelling as the false ones that Fox and OAN and others are selling — rather than throwing their hands up in the air and saying "you decide"?
Otherwise, why bother even having "news"?

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