News Without Nuance

~ Cathy Cade
News

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Media outlets today seem incapable of reporting straightforward news without giving an opinion on it.

Did we ever have impartial news reporting? Or was I too naïve back then to notice the bias? (Or were news reports just more subtle?)

From the accusatory, and often asinine, ‘questions’ hurled at politicians in the street, to the selective reporting, and the trotting out of ‘expert’ commentaries from ‘our political correspondent’ (or ‘business’, ‘health’, ‘economic’, ‘foreign’, ‘royal’, etc) news media in the UK has become a muck-raking lynch-mob baying for blood.

Leading interview questions, interruptions and downright bullying are not news.

Neither are interviews of people in the street. Meant to inform us of the views of the public, we have no idea how such interviews are selected from the total number of interviews recorded. Selected by whom? And what of moderate individuals who choose not to air their views in public? Is there actually any point to bombarding us with such ‘random’ opinions other than stuffing news bulletins and furthering the views of that particular corporation?

Reasoned argument has its place in a different type of programme. I don’t want controversial news reporting; I want it to be factual and impartial.

I want to be told the day’s events; I don’t want to be told what to think.

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TV in stream
Photo by Photography Maghradze PH on Pexels.com

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What prompts you to turn off or stop reading?

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Copyright © 2023 cathy-cade.com – All rights reserved.

47 thoughts on “News Without Nuance”

  2. I agree wholeheartedly Cathy, I rarely watch the news without wanting to scream and shout at the telly. A bit disconcerting for the neighbours but at least it stops me throwing a brick at it. I also hate that self satisfied look on the interviewers face when they successfully interrupt an answer to ask further asinine questions and yet again refuse to listen to the answer.

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  3. There’s only one station I watch for news and I think it’s good at being unbiased.
    I usually find that those news magazine programs are more into infusing their opinions. I don’t like watching those news magazine shows.
    I don’t need to hear your opinion. I’m quite capable of forming my own opinion, thank you very much!

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  5. I had been thinking very similar this week. I avoid watching the News, but even just reading headlines on the Internet doesn’t feel unbiased. I feel as if we are all being manipulated, and politics are being controlled by journalists and interviewers.

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  6. And it’s the same thing over and over and over again.
    We all know prices are going up, it isn’t news. We’ve been buying groceries all year – we don’t need some journalist to tell us. Change the record
    We’re not interested in who’s voting who into no. 10. We’re not voting.
    Change the record

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  7. You are remembering correctly. Years ago the news was much more balanced. Now there seems to be competition among sources and each is out screaming and out outraging each other. Every event is a catastrophe. Every weather event “once in a 1000 years.” Sadly it dulls us to recognizing actual peril when we need to.

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    1. Mortgages haven’t reached 15% yet, whichis what we were paying for a long time. Savings accounts were paying out 10% in the single year we had something to deposit (from my father’s will). I can’t see that happening soon.
      And the news bulletins didn’t spend all those years telling us how hard up we were.

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  9. I can remember one of Alistair Cooke’s letters from America when he said Americans traveling to the UK were shocked at the biased reporting in the British newspapers. At that time, pre-Reagan they had the fairness act to ensure the news was reported without bias, and opinion was reserved for editorials or opinion columns. This didn’t suit Murdoch and he ensured that the act went.
    In the UK the Dailu=y Mail was set up with the sole purpose of promoting the Conservative Party, the only time they deviated from this was when they swapped allegiance in the thirties to Oswald Moseley’s British Union of Fascists.
    https://spartacus-educational.com/Jmail.htm
    https://www.timesofisrael.com/how-britains-nazi-loving-press-baron-made-the-case-for-hitler/
    The Daily Worker unashamedly made the Marxist Case but it didn’t hide its affiliation although I was surprised when I read it as a teenager by the number of adverts for BMWs in it.
    The fairm=ness act seemed like a good idea and had Leveson been allowed to finish his work he may well have suggested something similar.
    We need a fair and truthful press but unfortunately, I can’t see us getting one.

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    2. Here in the USA when I was very young, we had a true pillar of ethical standards in our top newscaster position, Walter Cronkite. When he retired early, stating publicly that he could not bring himself to participate in what the news was becoming, it was only the 1960’s. Young as I was, I felt it for a death knell. The rot set in much earlier than perceived.

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      1. News media is set to make itself untrusted and irrelevant. Even hated when you see packs of reporters hounding the bereaved and accused (by the press). Let’s hope the pendulum swings the other way.

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        1. Every Sunday I deliver Sunday papers, there has been a decline in sales over the twenty years I have been doing the job. Things picked up during the lockdowns when people didn’t venture out but the decline is now continuing. I scarcely do more than glance at the headlines but even that is illustrative of the poor quality on offer. There is more interest in the lives of celebrities than in serious matters, when news is reported it is used politically to promote the point of view of the owner of the paper usually to the very far right. We really are in need of at least Leveson 2 and a commitment to make news coverage accurate and balanced.

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          1. I think printed news media is dying since the internet. the only reason I occasionally buy a print newspaper is when I run out of puzzles (Mail). I picked up the Express by mistake in the supermarket this week. It seemed to me on a brief read that there was more actual news in there, but there aren’t so many puzzles and they overdose on word puzzles and crosswords with less variety in their number puzzles.

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  10. Not too long ago I happened upon a YouTube video of Russell Brand talking extensively about politics. He was really laying it on thick regarding US politics. Much of what he said made sense, but there were some areas I was a little grey on.
    Before I go any further, I have to mention when I first saw this video of his, I was shocked because I’m thinking, Isn’t he a comedian? It’s as if he completely did an about face on us – at least for me. Russell Brand isn’t one-dimensional and has every right to get on YouTube and talk about whatever he wants. It just seemed that he was putting all of his energy into commenting on world politics. It just threw me off balance at first.
    An online friend of mine from the UK asked me my opinion of Russell Brand about a month ago regarding his videos, particularly the ones where he’s talking about Biden. I told her I’d need to do some research before I could get back with her.
    I went online and did my best to search for information that was unbiased and purely factual information on him. I could not. All I got were sites that completely agreed with his views and others who vehemently disagreed with him. No matter how hard I searched I couldn’t find anything purely factual. I had to give up. If I didn’t I’d drive myself crazy. I ended up telling my friend on the other side of the pond that I honestly couldn’t give my opinion on him because I found NOTHING that could just give me the facts.
    Could I still have given my opinion on the way he sees things? Yes, I could, but I was specifically looking for anything that could tell me whether much of what he said was based on fact or personal prejudice. This is what my friend was asking from me, and because I couldn’t find pure factual information on Russell Brand, I didn’t feel truly qualified to say anything.
    I guess the point I’m making is this: No matter how diligently I looked for unbiased, factual information, I COULD NOT FIND IT!! There was always a slant one way or the other. I spent so much time refining and re-wording my search that I started to think maybe I needed a refresher course on the English language! That alone was driving me bonkers! It was so disheartening.
    News is no place for opinions and prejudices.
    The very fact that this is happening tells me that news organizations – and even governments – don’t trust us to come to our own conclusions, that it’s important we be brainwashed into believing one way over another. The scariest part is – who is deciding this for us?
    Then we have the leaders of certain rogue nations who are doing their best to manipulate the citizens of other countries by attempting to brainwash us (not just the US) with online ads, hoping to steer us in the direction they (these foreign countries) want us to go. Sadly, many people are falling for it and buying what they’re being fed.
    We have got to get back on our toes and then remain on our toes, being ever so vigilant. For the most part, the citizens of all countries have become lazy and prefer it when big corporations and governments do their thinking for them. I pray that I never get that lazy.

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    1. I don’t like Russel Brand – not based on any facts (although some of the rubbish he has spouted in the past has no doubted affected m view). It’s just a feeling I have. I suspect he is out purely to promote Russel Brand. Touting controversy is a good way to focus everyone on your opinions rather than behaviour or credentials.

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      1. Something Trump is an expert at. I’ve never been a fan of Russell Brand either.
        By the way, they finally subpoenaed Trump. We’ll see what happens next. There’s a strong feeling he won’t comply.

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      1. Didn’t one of our founding fathers state that we need to be very careful that we don’t allow the government to have so much say about our personal matters. If we do, we’ll find that government will keep encroaching on our personal freedoms. Something like that. The idea is, if you give them an inch, they’ll take a mile. Well, it’s happening. Not just here in the United States, but everywhere.
        I’ve been looking forever for that quote, as well as the founding father who said that, with no luck. I would be forever grateful if someone could find that quote AND who said it. 🙂

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          1. I’m sorry. I wish I could help you there. If Google fails you, go old school and call your local library. They are usually very good at finding such things.
            You say you remember the quote? Can you put it here for me? Thanks Ana 😊

            Liked by 1 person

          2. Oh, I’m sorry to have given you the wrong impression ~ I remember that the quote exists, not its exact wording. However, you know, it sure sounds a lot like Orwell, doesn’t it? You might check there.

            Liked by 1 person

  11. I found your post looking for tags for my new one, and no matter how I word this comment, I will be self-promoting. The question is, is that ever okay? Would if you’re an ignored poet, and the gatekeepers won’t let you in, and the only way to get your poems out there is in comments and such basically? Anyway, the poem I’m leaving a link to is about your post, and I’m leaving it more because I think you’ll like it than promoting Donny, although it is actually poetry, and has to be thought out some, as conversational English as it is, and if it matters, I myself took the photographs: https://twitter.com/donnyduke7/status/1583327033609682944

    Anyway, you look older than the net (I’m 61), and it has had a lot to do with the creation of editorial news, with a lot of things. News media did try in the past to at least act like they were objective, the mainstream newspapers at least, or most of them. If you like the photopoem, help it along, will yah? Thank you.

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    1. good to meet you. I’ve copied your images onto Word as I may never otherwise find it again – I haven’t really got the hang of Twitter. I think I need to read it through a couple more times to unpick it, properly. It’s hard now to see where the press media ends and online pressuring begins.
      I am, indeed, considerably older than the net. Even my children are older than the net, but their children will never know how life was without it. I hope that at least they will grow up too media-savvy to swallow whole whatever they hear, read – or indeed see – broadcast or online, as some of their not-much-elders seem to.

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    2. Personally, I give “comments” containing links an automatic miss, as do I solicitations either to visit or follow any other site.

      To me, if people find themselves sufficiently affected by your deeply interested and therefore interesting comments on the actual subject of the post upon which you are doing something other than giving it a token “yeah, yeah…” mention in the shortest and most automatic possible fashion before returning to your original theme ~ yourself ~ then they will check out your offerings.

      If they find, at that point, that you have something/anything worthwhile to say on your own currently chosen subject they’ll read you again, whatever you look like (I’m 64 and have led a very hard life).

      If they see that repeatedly and consistently you offer valuable insights, they’ll subscribe.

      There’s no other way to get readers. Why don’t you change your icon, so you can get past this issue?

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      2. I can just humble myself and admit that you are right, I messed up with my comment, put myself first, commented just to put myself there, but that would not be the whole truth, just a part of it. I was also taken with the post, its ideas, its timeliness, and I had just posted a photopoem on Twitter that said the same things, and so, instead of praising her I promoted my poetry. My bad. There’s a Rumi poem about three men in a mosque, where silence is required. One man prays loudly to Allah, and another chides him for it, and yet another says to himself how righteous he is for remaining silent. All three messed up you see, or so says Rumi at the end of the poem.

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          1. Well, uh, gee wiz, you rock too. What a pleasant surprise, connecting with you, and it’s the kind atmosphere that Cathy has created it that’s helped cause it. Thank you Cathy, and thank you Ana.

            Liked by 1 person

          1. You have that exactly right! I’ve spent much of my life speaking up in defense of those who don’t have a voice or who are afraid to speak up.
            I’m sad to say that I don’t have much respect for those who don’t speak up when they see something happening that’s not right. It may be unfair of me, because I’m sure they have their own stories, but it’s just I’ve lived too many years watching people keep their mouths shut while others have been hurt.

            Liked by 1 person

  12. Cathy, I believe that what may appear to be random really isn’t. Whatever comes from the pen and onto the paper – so to speak – has meaning to someone, even if it may appear to be random to others.
    I guess it’s like going to a therapist and you just sit there and blah, blah, blah, blah for an hour. If the therapist is astute enough, they will know that whatever came out of your mouth, meant a great deal.
    Once, years ago, while talking with a therapist, I started talking about something that to her seemed pointless. She made the statement, “Well, sometimes it’s good to talk about nothing.”
    I told her, “Nothing that is said in therapy should be regarded as pointless and futile. If the therapist is alert, they will always be able to garner something from what is being said and help the client get to the crux of the matter.
    So, having said all that…… Cathy, what’s REALLY the issue here, eh? 😀

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      1. You’re a professional at life, particularly your life. Throw some of your wisdom out there. When I use the word wisdom I’m referring to the things you’ve learned throughout your day to day experiences. You have a plethora of gems to share with the world, at least in this little world you’ve created here 😊

        When ’31 Days of Spooky’ is done with I’m going to be talking about so many issues having to do with mental health. There are so many myths and preconceived ideas out there that I’m dying to crush. Things that I’m talking about in my memoir.

        My favorite thing to do is blow people away with simple truths. I was given an extremely hard life for a reason and I don’t want that reason to be for nought. There’s so much the average person doesn’t know. Too many people live in their insulated bubbles, wearing blinders. Many through no fault of their own. At the same time, there are plenty of others who don’t even consider that there are other points of views.

        I’m not saying I have the wisdom of the ages here, but I firmly believe that those who’ve had particularly raw lives have unique perspectives and have so much to share. Others need to know.

        Ever since I was a very young child I’ve always been in the business of raising people’s consciousness. I’ve always thought on a deeper level than most people. Please forgive me if I sound like I’m bragging. I don’t mean to come off like that. It’s just that I was born with something which I will eventually disclose in my blog.

        I joke a lot because I have Major Depressive Disorder, along with a myriad of other mental and emotional disorders. Joking helps to lift me out of the hole I always seem to find myself in. Making ‘funnies’ keeps me from slipping my neck into a noose. It’s how I survive.

        That’s why in nearly all of my flash fiction pieces I put my characters in outlandish situations, give them unusual names. Even the cities, towns and villages they come from have bizarre names – all real mind you! I do searches online for strange names all over the globe. I’ve been writing like this since I was 13.

        I want my blog to be a platform for those like myself, as well as to teach and open people’s eyes. Now I just have to work on my following.

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