For this blog I decided to listen to my muse talk for a couple days instead of ignoring his political babble. A wealth of information regarding current politics and foreign affairs, my fiancé, JT can tell anyone the current events in Washington D.C. Many of this information regarding health care but also gun policies, illegal alien acts, debt margins etc. If you choose to listen it never ends.
“True Enough” is an apt title for a book that discusses selective perception, questionable expertise, reality, etc. If you are a critical reader/ listener of the news you will understand that many things are not 100 percent true. So essentially, if it is “true enough” it must be reputable news. Too bad that truthiness has become based off of the political views of the network with which you get your news from.
While reading Farhad Manjoo’s chapter on objectivity, I couldn’t help but laugh. I have never taken any reporters word for the truth without question. JT, has become one of the avid Glenn Beckers who take Beck’s word for the gospel truth. An attribute he gained through exposure from family. I realized that JT has become the epitome of an individual with “biased assimilation.”
Fox News is considered the conservative voice in news with Glenn Beck at the forefront spewing information regarding the administration’s work. Beck has proclaimed himself as “not a reporter.” In a current disagreement between JT and me, JT tried to justify that statement. My response; “He talks about the news so he reports information? He’s just a reporter with his own TV show.” JT was quick to stand up for his idle with fervor only to meet my stubbornness. I will admit that Beck does have the most watched broadcast from 5pm – 6 pm.
There are many events and legislation that only Fox News covers which is highly commendable. While CNN was having a marathon on Michael Jackson’s death, Fox News was covering the earlier stages of the Health Care Bill. Fox is more about the hard news, things that “should” matter to the masses. CNN covers many of those issues as well but with a more tender approach.
JT bases all his gathering of news from the reports that Beck makes. There is no variation whatsoever. Biased assimilation says that people tend to interpret and understand new information in a way that accords with their own views. In JT’s situation, makes his gathering of news very limited. It is then that news that he passes along to all those willing to listen. “I feel that Fox is more accurate then any other news source because they cover a wider variety of information and they do plenty of research so that they are informed,” JT said during one of our many political conversations.
After going through a few semesters of journalism classes and being aware of the world around me, I understand the importance of hearing many different sides of the story. Sometimes my opinions change and sometimes they don’t. At least, I cannot say that I have a tendency for biased assimilation or selective perception.
No matter the person, they can fall prey to selective perception. People tend to see or believe what they want to be true. This is where conspiracy theorists come from and those crazies on both sides of the political spectrum. Theories like the government blew up the World Trade Centers, JFK’s assassination and the Lone Gunman theory are all brilliant examples of selective perception. Those so jaded by the government that they would give anything for a big conspiracy to damage it will find anything to prove bad practice in government.
Manjoo provides shocking statistics about the amount of people who actually trust the news. “Since the 1990s, people have become far more skeptical about what they watch, read, or listen to. The numbers for CNN are illustrative of what’s happened throughout the industry. In 1998, 42 percent of the people whom Pew surveyed said that the believed “all or most” of what they watched on the network. In 2006, only 28 percent said the same.”
When it comes to selective perception, “trusting your senses” is critical. While trusting your senses cannot save everyone from falling prey to idiotic theories, the normal, sane person will be able to keep their sanity intact.
Manjoo’s book was a slap to the face for all those that thought everything was done by the book which is one reason why I liked it. Manjoo eloquently portrayed the realities of news media. He did not sugarcoat anything, and although I got annoyed with the stupidity it was a much appreciated emotion.
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