The Root of the Problem

I stumbled across an article from Crooks and Liars on Current.com this morning that I found very poignant.

What's fact got to do with it?

Go ahead, read up.

Okay, if you decided not to read then I'll give you the bullet points (in a bulleted list of course):

• In the age of information, one could reasonably believe that information and fact should undo erroneous beliefs
• However, new studies show that instead of undoing such beliefs, it actually strengthens them
• Furthermore, scientific studies show that fear and the perception of threat also prevents people from accepting fact as, well, fact
• C&L's solution then is to bring the hammer down on news corporations, since the bias that fuels this phenomenon is built into our psychology
• Another solution they present is to tap into findings showing that those with higher self-esteem are more comfortable changing their minds

I think they did a fantastic job of articulating a subject that I've always sort of merely circled. Day-to-day I find myself more frustrated than inspired that people consistently believe in lies. Sarah Palin has found fame in it, Republican attacks against health insurance reform relied on it, and the 2010 midterm elections will likely be affected by it.

My problem, though, is with their proposed solutions. There really is no public accountability for news organizations, since any attempt to regulate them finds one lambasted in "1st amendment" arguments, there really is no natural, commercial way to regulate them, since the sensationalist, fear based reporting is what brings in the big bucks, and there is no natural psychological way to moderate them since, as C&L mentioned, the bias is built into us.

So I'm asking you guys, what can we do? As intelligent individuals, its not as difficult for us to question and re-shape our beliefs when presented with legitimate facts contrary to our already-held beliefs. But what about those mired a little deeper in the information quagmire with less tools to escape? Frankly, I think that improving self-esteem has already failed miserably, since it has created the most narcissistic generation of all time (extreme narcissists are even less likely to accept facts that contradict their subjective reality).

For my money, I think a cultural shift is required. The "information age" was supposed to bring about this utopia of enlightened minds but it has instead brought people's attention spans to their knees. According to recent studies (mentioned here for example) our attention span has actually regressed to the point that it resembles that of our primitive ancestors; analyzing every rustle and movement in search for predators. In order to counter-act the fast-paced news cycle, scanning of information, and deleterious effects of shallow conversation and thought, our culture must shift back from a rapid-fire information fueled one to a more pensive, more thoughtful, more deliberate one. That way people might instead analyze information more thoroughly as it comes to them, perhaps diffusing the hegemony of errant opinions based on flimsy facts in the first place.

Unfortunately, this one could be pretty hard to legislate.

But hell, what do you think? I believe we have enough intelligent people reading this blog to come up with a real solution. Just put your fingers on the keys and fire away.

Well if I Can't Trust Fox Who Can I Trust?

Let's face it, if we're completely honest with ourselves, it's ridiculous to consider Fox News, CNN, or even MSNBC as credible news sources since each have sponsorship details that require embellishing some facts if not with lies then with sensationalist rhetoric to attract viewers.

So with this in mind, who can you trust?  Cable news networks dominate the airwaves and trying to find non-biased news sources yields results that are both slim and esoteric.  Let's face it, MoveOn.org ain't exactly filled with open-minded individuals...

Through my experience, however, I feel that I've found a handful of resources for finding the (mostly) unvarnished truth behind what goes on in our world today.

NPR: Radio and Podcasts

Ask anyone who's been looking for a reliable and unbiased news source for a while and they'll inevitably recommend National Public Radio to you.  Their ability to report the facts without embellishment is as impressive as it is rare in a world dominated by blatantly biased journalism.

The first place to start would be the NPR website which I've posted in the Links section on the homepage.  From there you can find the same daily stories that you get from other news outlets but without all the fluff.

The next place to go would be NPR's podcasts.  Just search NPR in the iTunes library and you'll find a bevy of shows on both general news and more specific topics.  One of my personal favorites is "It's all Politics" which features a poignant appraisal of the supposedly earth-shattering gubernatorial elections that took place recently.

Finally, if you have an iPhone, NPR makes it very easy for you with their app.  Download it from the App Store and say hello to integrated radio stations, up to the minute updates on daily news, and audio from the stories as they are reported on the radio.

Mediamatters.org: Fact Checkers and Heartbreakers

Remember when John Kerry saved several of his military colleagues from certain death and was awarded the purple heart for his courage?  Neither does anyone else because in today's politics, "Swiftboating" or lying/distorting the facts frequently enough that the distortion becomes truth has replaced real debate in our political discourse.  That's where MediaMatters comes in: they are a staff of qualified and often award winning journalists who analyze the news and point out distortions and falsifications.

Many of my favorite items have come from this site because let's face it, when you're sitting in front of the TV watching CNN, you want to accept everything they say as truth.  Lately, however, the introduction of right-wing (or left-wing for that matter) political analysts billed as unbiased experts has so far distorted honest journalism that we need an entity like MediaMatters to keep things straight.

You: The Final Word

At the end of the day, here's the bottom line: you are the one accepting what's given to you on news networks and so it's up to you to examine what you're hearing to find out if there's any truth in it.

The process is simple: if the anchor makes a comment about a bill or an event, look for editorial comments.  Often times it's subtle: using words such as "deadly" or "decisive", over-the-top adjectives that overemphasize the importance of an event or, in some cases, underemphasize it.  Sometimes its even bigger: Fox News recently displayed doctored video footage of a Republican Tea Party to exaggerate its turnout.  Look at news with an incredulous eye and I think you'll be surprised at what you find.

No human being is capable of viewing something without their perspective coming in to play, but journalists should be able to report facts without fiction.  Have you seen poor journalistic practices lately?  Feel free to leave comments at the front desk.