This just in
You might want to sit down for this one.
I just stumbled across this article in which former CNN news anchor Aaron Brown makes an astonishing revelation. Apparently the news is a business.
That’s right. Under the guise of “informing the public”, these folks are secretly out to turn a profit and even go so far as to give their customers what they want.
Now, I know this isn’t really news - no pun intended - but it does makes me wonder if the term “news” itself has any validity in today’s world. Think about it…
What do we call material that comes directly from the government? Propaganda. And what do we call material that is designed to secure the largest audience possible? Entertainment.
Both of these realms have their agendas. One political. The other, economic. And there’s nothing wrong with that. The trouble comes when we - as in “you and I” - forget the nature of information and treat it as if it were something else. Like say, I don’t know, unbiased news, for example.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not knocking the “news” business per se’. The truth is, when people speak, they have an agenda. Good people. Bad people. News people.
In fact, maybe that’s all there is. Propaganda and entertainment. That may be hard for us to admit. But it’s even harder on us when we don’t.
Welcome to the show.
Posted on Sunday, March 05, 2006 at 10:02 AM
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(2) Reader Comments about This just in
REX says...
More enlightening than Brown’s article, were the responses he got from other posters.
Most of them were critical of him and sympathetic of CNN.
This one characterizes the tone:
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“Mr. Brown: Of course the news is a business. What’s wrong with that? How do you think you were paid, the tooth fairy?”
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The masses like to be entertained and news are there to deliver what the viewers want.
Why?
Because ratings, advertising, political agendas, strategic positioning, competition, money and power, all of these are at stake when viewers tune into their broadcasts.
Besides being a competitive business, news is also an instrument of political propaganda and other twisted agendas, affecting public opinion through relentless campaigns.Posted on 03/05/2006 at 06:38 PM
REX says...
PART 2
This is on today’s edition of BBC News:
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“The UN has warned there will be many deaths in Kenya if immediate food aid is not delivered to 3.5 million people facing the threat of starvation.”
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“Pakistani troops battled pro-Taleban militants near the Afghan border for a second day on Sunday in clashes which have killed more than 50 people.”
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However, these news are not to be found on CNN or MSNBC Web sites, not even in small print.
Why?
Because the Oscars are more entertaining!!!
And also a teen that may have died from a peanut buttered kiss...isn’t that horrendous!!!In fact, anytime you mix money, power, and decisions, you can expect that the decisions will be tainted by the money and the power.
Don’t you?
The responsibility of the viewer is to be aware of being exposed to a super narrow, skewed, spinned, portion of reality when watching the news.
But that’s too much work and it takes away the relaxation provided by the enetrtainment.
Oh well, let them eat cake…
OK. I have to leave because the Oscars are about to start.Posted on 03/05/2006 at 06:39 PM
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