Jubbergun wrote:
The only difference you can really point out is that Fox cops to their bias, whereas news organizations on the other side of the spectrum claim they're being 'objective,'
But see, Fox really doesn't admit their total bias...because their tagline is "Fair and Balanced" which implies that they are objective. This allows viewers to watch and think they are getting the whole story...when they really aren't much of the time.
Think about O'Reily and the "No Spin Zone" which implies that there's no political spin on what he says...which is laughable.
Jubbergun wrote:
Yet even trying to copy Fox, MSNBC can't get shit for ratings...which is what really pisses off people on the left.
I'd like to see numbers. In any case, I don't think people who lean left politically are sitting around their bongs and saying "MAN I'M SO MAD MSNBC's RATINGS AREN'T RISING EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE TRYING TO BE MORE BIASED LIKE FOX"
Jubbergun wrote:
They realize the power of groupthink and how it causes people to gravitate to sources that share their bias, meaning that more people who watch news and are at least partially informed prefer a viewpoint that is not their own.
I'm not sure what you mean here - I might be reading it wrong, but it sounds like you're saying two different things. People most definitely gravitate towards sources that will affirm their viewpoints rather than challenge them...I think that's just the nature of humanity. It is the sole reason Fox News has been so successful.
I consider myself partially informed and I have very little interest in Fox News. In fact, I have very little interest in most news outlets because they all have biases, and no matter what the network...it's a large amount of shoddy reporting, out of context clips, and sensationalism (again, the exact things Jon Stewart was trying to point out). I find digging around on the internet is the only way to find out the unbiased truth of most stories. But people in general (both sides of the political spectrum) are lazy....so they prefer to watch a 5 minute news story, get a talking point, and develop their entire opinion on an issue based on that.
My beef with Fox is not that it's a right wing news network...that's fine. My beef is that they try to play it off that they are "fair and balanced" and rather than simply sticking to right-wing opinions, they often spread misinformation, talking points, and half-truths designed to disparage the left.
They could just report stories as they are and have their right wing pundits say "blah blah I disagree with Obama because of X", but in the interest of ratings,
they construct sensationalized stories and rely on talking points (OBAMA IS FROM KENYA MAN HAR HAR! UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE IS THE GOVERNMENT TRYING TO CONTROL THE POPULATION! RABBLE RABBLE RABBLE).
Like I said, all news networks sensationalize...it's how you get ratings...but none do so in such an organized, biased, and unfortunately effective manner as does Fox. Fox news
blurs the lines between commentary and objective reporting. They were the first network to do this so blatantly and effectively....now others (MSNBC) are trying to jump in. It's killing journalism imo.
Anyway:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 434902428#I know you'd hate it...but try to watch a little. Start at 11 minutes in.