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A review by tttm333
#Newsfail: Climate Change, Feminism, Gun Control, and Other Fun Stuff We Talk About Because Nobody Else Will by Allison Kilkenny, Jamie Kilstein
4.0
This was my choice for the BookReads Read Harder Challenge 2016: a book about politics, in your country or another (fiction or nonfiction).
I first heard about this book on Melissa Harris-Perry's (sadly cancelled) show, and the authors were interviewed when this book was released. I had not listened to their Citizen Radio show, but I enjoyed their interview, so when this challenge came up, I picked #Newsfail.
I've seen a few comments regarding putting all 'media' into the same barrel, but that is the premise of the book. The mainstream/corporate media - regardless of whether it's TV, Cable News, or Print - does fail us, by virtue of its structure and profit model. The very fact that news needs to be 'profitable' should outrage us all, actually. The authors have their own way of combatting this (via their own reporting and Citizen Radio) but they reference many other journalists and others who report the news that actually is news, not just propaganda and talking points.
For instance, the authors note that - in a discussion about gay rights - CNN (trying to be 'objective') asked Tony Perkins of the incredibly conservative and bigoted Family Research Council to weigh in... As if both sides are equivalent, have equal merit, and it's just a matter of opinion whether or not gays are people. Kilstein/Kilkenny write, "But the real question is: why is CNN asking uninformed bigots their opinions in order to skew the debate?" This is not journalism, this is talking heads trying to fill a segment until the next commercial.
Each chapter in #Newsfail deals with a different theme (gays, guns, climate change, women's health), and is written in a very familiar or blog-type way. Some may be put off by this style, but the substance is worth paying attention to. Even if I disagreed with an individual opinion, I could not refute the main thesis: the MSM is not telling us what we need to know to make an informed decision about the topic.
The Mainstream Media is what most people see (thus 'Mainstream'). They have abdicated their responsibility to be a check on power, and instead have become a mouthpiece for it. Luckily, there are many outlets for news, if you want to look, but we have to CHOOSE to move away from the corporate sources, and find the independent sources - the ones who may not tell you what you want to hear, but will tell you what you need to know.
I first heard about this book on Melissa Harris-Perry's (sadly cancelled) show, and the authors were interviewed when this book was released. I had not listened to their Citizen Radio show, but I enjoyed their interview, so when this challenge came up, I picked #Newsfail.
I've seen a few comments regarding putting all 'media' into the same barrel, but that is the premise of the book. The mainstream/corporate media - regardless of whether it's TV, Cable News, or Print - does fail us, by virtue of its structure and profit model. The very fact that news needs to be 'profitable' should outrage us all, actually. The authors have their own way of combatting this (via their own reporting and Citizen Radio) but they reference many other journalists and others who report the news that actually is news, not just propaganda and talking points.
For instance, the authors note that - in a discussion about gay rights - CNN (trying to be 'objective') asked Tony Perkins of the incredibly conservative and bigoted Family Research Council to weigh in... As if both sides are equivalent, have equal merit, and it's just a matter of opinion whether or not gays are people. Kilstein/Kilkenny write, "But the real question is: why is CNN asking uninformed bigots their opinions in order to skew the debate?" This is not journalism, this is talking heads trying to fill a segment until the next commercial.
Each chapter in #Newsfail deals with a different theme (gays, guns, climate change, women's health), and is written in a very familiar or blog-type way. Some may be put off by this style, but the substance is worth paying attention to. Even if I disagreed with an individual opinion, I could not refute the main thesis: the MSM is not telling us what we need to know to make an informed decision about the topic.
The Mainstream Media is what most people see (thus 'Mainstream'). They have abdicated their responsibility to be a check on power, and instead have become a mouthpiece for it. Luckily, there are many outlets for news, if you want to look, but we have to CHOOSE to move away from the corporate sources, and find the independent sources - the ones who may not tell you what you want to hear, but will tell you what you need to know.