Michelle and I have been talking politics lately as I suspect have many of you. In fact, she got all fired up today and sent an email to her entire address book - something she said she has never done before and will never do again ("never say never" say I). I'll bet some of you got that email.
The gist of her email was that she's fed up with the spinning, twisting, and outright lying that both parties engage in especially during the conventions. She referred her contacts to factcheck.org, a non-partisan site that "aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics."
Our discussion reminded me of a book I read a while ago called Republic.com by Cass Sunstein, in which he argues that modern media, notably the Internet, allows each of us to filter out viewpoints that are different from our own so that what we read, watch, and listen to is consistent with our already closely-held opinions. In the process, it can serve to radicalize us in an echo chamber of our own making and prevent the civil debate that has been the foundation of democracy since ancient times.
I suppose I'm guilty of that. I probably have only a couple of primary news sources. And the majority of my friends, neighbors, and co-workers have similar political leanings as my own. There are people and TV channels and editorial writers that I dismiss out of hand having already decided that they are "wrong."
Well, my rather long-winded point is that we shouldn't believe everything our favorite politician or pundit tells us. In addition to their good intentions for our country they all gain power and profit by our allegiance to them. We should seek out the facts on our own. Go a step further: find somebody with a different perspective on the issues and listen. It may not change your opinion. Or theirs. But it might. And you'll both be better off for the exchange of ideas.
What do you think? Go ahead, tell me, even if you think I'm wrong.
6 comments:
Drake/Michelle
Good website...Having just survived the DNC and RNC conventions I have just about concluded that certainly the cable news networks are so biased that they are getting hard to watch. CNN is so far to the left and support Obama and FOX to the right in their support of McCain that it is difficult to watch. Hannity and O'Reilly are so vicious that I have stopped watching them...
I have memories of about 12 President/Vice President elections and have been trying to remember when the news networks stopped "reporting the news" and starting "supporting and promoting a candidate". This race will be interesting to watch, but I am concerned that the news networks are determining the winner not the people...
Thanks for the website....can we believe this one???
Dad
I agree with your sentiment. I love when the media reports about the media bias. Are they not the media we are talking about?
For me, I like to get a well rounded view of things. I believe information is power and the more informed a person is, the better the decisions they can make are.
I usually get my news from varying places. I listen to NPR driving to work, AFR driving home (talk about two sides of the coin). We watched the conventions on both Fox and MSNBC, flipping back and forth (again two sides of the coin). The regular websites I visit are foxnews.com, Crains business, pantagraph, tuscaloosa news, Detroit Free Press, and the BBC news. I really like getting the non-American BBC perspective and sometimes see stories that are never reported on in the major outlets of America.
Again, knowledge is power and we need to take in both sides and listen to the arguments. At times, this process will shift our decisions, at other times, it will strength our resolve and confirm our decisions. However, not listening will just hurt us all.
There's my two cents! EDK
I totally agree with you, Drake. I think the availability of the Internet and Cable TV have provided for so many choices of information that it is difficult to tell what the truth is. I looked at the website that Michelle suggested, but I quickly got frustrated by that too. Should we tally the lies, and then vote for whoever lies the least? I don't have time for that. Unfortunately, I -- like many people -- will vote for the candidate that I can most relate to. If you've always labeled yourself a conservative, you're probably leaning toward McCain. More liberal? Then Obama. Beyond that, it often comes down to who you "like" or "dislike". For me, I don't think it's possible to have the position Palin has about her daughter and the boyfriend at only 5 months PG. If my 17-year-old daughter was 5 months pregnant, I would not be past wanting to punch the boy in the nose! Sure, I'd come around and be proud and love the baby as every baby deserves, but not this early. And I certainly wouldn't be encouraging them to get married just yet. I'm just being honest here to illustrate how I think too often the vote for a candidate is not about the major issues, i.e. healthcare, energy, etc. I have watched the news, and I read the paper, and in doing so, I don't think there really is much difference between what McCain and Obama are saying. Both want to change America and make it better. I'm for that, so I'll vote for who I "like" best, and for who I don't "dislike" the most.
HEAR HEAR! I couldn't agree more. Jen and I were just saying the other day - there needs to be a legitimate third party - maybe called the Commom Sense Party - to give Americans a real alternative. I think there is so much political apathy because the 2parties are so at war - it gets to be ridiculous. They come across as a bunch of fools, if I dare be so blunt. Can't say I trust anyone, and that's downright shameful. Sorry if I sound mad, but to be honest it does make me mad. Hope ya'll have a good day. :)
Do you think there were fewer lies and nastiness now than in history? True, there were fewer media forms spouting their ideology, but the rancor was no less. Thomas Jefferson and John Adams fought almost to the very end when they died within hours of each other.
You are right, both parties are for change (aren't we all?), but the ways they want to go about it are poles apart. By the way, my husband approves this message!
Aunt Mim
It makes me very thankful that we live in a country with freedom of speech and non-violent elections. In Kenya, recently, when they had a close election the loosing party engaged in violence which resulted in "ethnic cleansing" and thousands of innocent people died. I must admit I enjoy our information "overload." We can read and hear every conceivable point of view and make up our own mind. No one point of view has a monopoly. I hope that never changes and I hope we can always change the leadership of our country every four years without violence. Carol's thoughts with Perry's okay
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