A few weeks ago, on my way to work, I got to thinking about talk radio. It occurred to me that I couldn’t name one liberal radio talk show host, but I could name a couple conservative wack jobs. This lead to a Google search and the surprise that there were actually liberal radio talk show hosts. People who would rank up there with Rush and Hannity, just using their falsehoods and incendiary tones to ignite the left and not the right. The same rhetoric, the same basic platform is there, just different ideologies.
I did find that I had never once heard of any of these hosts and that the only place I could find to listen to them was on the internet. This is in stark contrast to the ease of access to the right wing nut jobs. Spin the dial, flip to AM radio, you got them making their claims, conquering the world all over again for Christianity…
There is an implicit conservative nature to the news.
Anyone who listens to the right wing nut jobs will disagree with me because these “hosts” can’t go two seconds without blaming something on the liberal media. Unfortunately, the liberal media is almost non-existent. Almost all media are owned by a handful of corporations that are controlled by a handful of white, weatlhy, conservative fuckers. These people understand what they own and they exercise their right to control their companies in an implicit manner. You will find an overtly conservative side to news. CNN? definitely right. Fox? Are you kidding? MSNBC? Ok, there left for the US, but quite center or right of center for the rest of the world. Try any of the local media. I think you are getting the point.
Why?
Corporations are based on the idea that they must create a profit in order to pay dividends to those who hold a share of the company. It is in their direct interest to avoid taxation, avoid welfare programs, avoid government regulations, avoid social awareness, avoid just about everything, but most importantly they must avoid pissing off their advertisers. Despite the cost of subscribing to cable/satellite television services, most broadcast media are funded entirely by their advertisers. This is also true for print. The measly amount that one pays to receive the newspaper on your doorstep is a drop in the pan compared to what advertisers pay to be on your doorstep in the morning.
When you analyze media in this light, it seems quite obvious where loyalties lie, with advertisers. For without them there would be no newspaper on the porch in the morning, no CNN, no Fox, no nobody. As much as journalists like to pretend that they work for the people and are out to better the world, they really work for advertisers. There job is to report “news” that will increase subscribers so their advertisements will reach more people and therefore create more dollars for their respective media.
Unfortunately, media have found that focusing on a particular demographic and exploiting its fears and hopes with incendiary commentary and opinion is good business. Furthermore, it helps to drive forward the machine that publishes the shit. They get to enrage everyone, call it news and sit back while the dollars roll in.
Well, they can all go blow a goat.
NPR, National Public Radio is the place for news. Now I wouldn’t say they are the godsend of news organizations but they are the best of what is currently available. I find this to be for one reason. They don’t have advertisers. They do come on every once in a while and ask for donations and they don’t ever hesitate to let you know that they are being brought to you by people just like you who help sponsor the local and national stations. That’s right, that motivation to provide a profit for stock holders does not exist.
What will you find? No incendiary tones, I assure you. Every hour there is a recap of the breaking news of the day, and in between you will find everything. Opinion shows, that are presented as such and that provide both sides of an issue, science shows, human interest stories, fictional, old school style radio where there are performers playing out parts, you name it and they probably have a show for you. They even have a show that is dedicated to answering all your automobile fixing type questions. Informative? Absolutely.
I do not offer NPR as an opposition to the 24 hour news broadcasts and their joke of reporting. If you want opposition watch Fox and then watch MSNBC. If you want good journalism with informative stories, give NPR a shot. At least you can see what else is out there. And if any one accuses them of being slanted, I would encourage them to find one story that doesn’t provide both sides of an issue.
Go here.
Peace. Love. and Revolution.
News not being covered by the major media.
Underground sources of news with a slant on progressive movements.