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Yeah. Its been about 10 years. I noticed all the slanted language and opinions stated as fact in AP articles about that time. TV news probably started earlier.
The first newspapers, in the U.S. and elsewhere (colonial days and earlier), were published and sold for the purpose of spreading the opinions of the publisher. They often threw in news articles to get people to buy them and read them - a practice that continues to this day.
Just as, today, most TV shows are aired for the purpose of getting people to watch the commercials.
The news didn't "stop being the news". Because it never started.
Walter Cronkite, David Huntley and Chet Brinkley were nothing like the news people today. TV news was actually the news for many years.
The slippery slope of news began decades ago, but a slow decline has been accelerated by the internet and current political polarization. I give most "credit" to the declining education system, so "journalists" no longer seem to have much competence or any ethics or much objectivity. News has become entertainment.
Want something more objective and more news than entertainment, my favorite is the Economist. Not perfect, but better than most in my opinion. On the other hand, if all you want is "news" that supports your point of view, don't bother. They "try" to show both sides of an issue, which is ... being more objective.
I had a chilling moment in my Freshman English class in the 70s. The TA asked each of us to introduce ourselves, tell our major and why we chose it. The journalism major without a hint of doubt or question said she chose journalism so she could manipulate people's opinions. Those people have taken over the news rooms.
I had a chilling moment in my Freshman English class in the 70s. The TA asked each of us to introduce ourselves, tell our major and why we chose it. The journalism major without a hint of doubt or question said she chose journalism so she could manipulate people's opinions. Those people have taken over the news rooms.
Sadly not just the news rooms. But also that of many companies/boards and NGOs and even some government offices.
My friends who are still working tell me horror stories of the "new breed" who are there to change things ( to their liking ) instead of being there to do their jobs. That might be okay if they were also doing their jobs competently and conscientiously, but in many cases that is not the case.
The first newspapers, in the U.S. and elsewhere (colonial days and earlier), were published and sold for the purpose of spreading the opinions of the publisher. They often threw in news articles to get people to buy them and read them - a practice that continues to this day.
Just as, today, most TV shows are aired for the purpose of getting people to watch the commercials.
The news didn't "stop being the news". Because it never started.
What a weird thread.
So many people in this thread seem convinced that before such-and-such a date, news coverage was news coverage only. The date varies from poster to poster, but everybody seems convinced that there was a time when opinions played virtually no part in "news" coverage.
Sorry, folks. The only thing I can say about that fallacy is that, maybe before the 1960s (pick your own date), we didn't realize we were listening to half opinion and half news, at best. And the things the publishers decided to leave out, were just as much opinion-driven as the things they decided to include. And after that date, we started to realize it, and started to complain about the percentage of "news" that was not really news.
But in fact, the newspapers published by Ben Franklin and Thomas Paine contained quite a lot of opinion as well as "just the facts". And I'm sure that printing all the way back to Johannes Gutenburg did the same. And even back when "publishing" was done with quill pens and lots of manuscript, in every language under the sun, the same was true, to greater or lesser effect.
If you think that before such-and-such a date, the news was "just the facts", you are simply mistaken. It never has been that way. We just naively thought it must have been... because we weren't really paying attention, and it was pleasant to think it was so.
So many people in this thread seem convinced that before such-and-such a date, news coverage was news coverage only. The date varies from poster to poster, but everybody seems convinced that there was a time when opinions played virtually no part in "news" coverage.
Sorry, folks. The only thing I can say about that fallacy is that, maybe before the 1960s (pick your own date), we didn't realize we were listening to half opinion and half news, at best. And the things the publishers decided to leave out, were just as much opinion-driven as the things they decided to include. And after that date, we started to realize it, and started to complain about the percentage of "news" that was not really news.
But in fact, the newspapers published by Ben Franklin and Thomas Paine contained quite a lot of opinion as well as "just the facts". And I'm sure that printing all the way back to Johannes Gutenburg did the same. And even back when "publishing" was done with quill pens and lots of manuscript, in every language under the sun, the same was true, to greater or lesser effect.
If you think that before such-and-such a date, the news was "just the facts", you are simply mistaken. It never has been that way. We just naively thought it must have been... because we weren't really paying attention, and it was pleasant to think it was so.
Interesting post...but most of the talking heads on cable/satellite news are just that talking heads who are expressing their view on breaking events and not there to inform people of the actually news.
That is for the MSM like local TV and newspapers are supposed to do. Do they slant the news...of course and it's everyone responsible to hash out what is said and come up with the truth from not true to half truth.
The real change came with the internet like facebook/twitter etc.and cable/satellite stations and later it became the smart phone.
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When did the news stop being the news
