liberal media

[LittlePilgrim]

Okay... Here's my take on the media. And keep in mind I've watched both major left and right outlets, and also taken news from papers, magazines... Etc.

It's my opinion that the major media as a whole:
A) is extremely biased toward the left. There are very few centers which see things from a conservative point of view, and I am thankful that such people as Rush Limbaugh and Shawn Hannity are so outspoken. If not for them, the left might have the news media entirely (They already have major news outlets such as CNN, ABC, CBS, etc.).
B)has FAILED miserably in its duty to keep the country informed. They have FAILED to give the country the entire story. For example, the media has managed to report about every single casualty in Iraq, bringing up the total to approx. 1,500 now. BUT!!! What they fail to mention is that the all things considered, the cost of this war has been very, very low. These stats are a few months old, but they'll be relevant enough.

In Iraq, there have been an average of 1.5 casualties per day.
Consider that in the revolutionary war, we lost about 300 per day.
In one battle alone in the civil war, we lost over 40,000.
In World Wars I & II, the average casualty rate per day was somewhere from 2,000 - 3,000.
I'm not entirely sure of what it was in Vietnam.

Now, does that make our Iraqi war deaths any less tragic? Of course not... But the media needs to stop focusing, like the vultures they are, on all the death and start looking at the bright side as well as the dark side... They need to give the whole story!

C) In its current state, the media has become little more than a political propaganda and agenda machine, doing whatever it can to destroy the image of NOT ONLY conservatives and the president, but also we as Christians as well. The only time a Christian gets major air-time is when he screws up. So yes, I think the major media IS a MAJOR pawn in Satan's chess game.

D) Has gone from free-speech to slander. The founding fathers wanted free speech in that they wanted to have a say in their government. If one disagrees with a decision a leader makes and thinks he has a better solution, then that person can try to get it changed. This does NOT mean however that one should be free to disrespect and condemn a leader for certain things which are beyond his control. This ALSO does not mean he should be free to support enemies of freedom, IE, terrorists, Saddam... And the list goes on..

Anyway... Just my little soap-box rant. You want the whole story? You've got to look at the good and the bad, look at the left and the right. It's gotten to the point where one can no longer look to just one single source for all their information.

[forgiven2]

Little Pilgrim,
You are 100% right. I really do believe that FOX is more balanced in their reports, although the only time I get to watch it is when I'm in a hotel.
I could not believe it when the other networks were protesting their motto, "Fair and Balanced." I want the news pure and simple, so that I can make up my own mind.
When I sent something to an acquaintance before the election, he pounced on me and said you must watch FOX. I said, sorry I watch the major ones, but I can recognize an agenda when I see it.
I wish there was a conservative network that I could get.
What gets me, is that in so many letters to the editors and editorials, that the writers just keep perpetuating lies. Its like they have been brainwashed by the left. I have to repent of the feelings that come over me when I read their ranting and raving. If they could just think for themselves, they would know how ridiculous they sound. And so what if no WMDs were found in Iraq? That is in the past, this is present. They wish to cast conservatives and Christians in a negative light and blame all of the worlds problems on them.
I'm sorry that some Christians do not act like them, God knows I have not always done as I should and had to repent.

[nChrist]

Hello LittlePilgrim,

Extremely Well Said!!

If the American people depended on the mainstream news media, we would be kept in the dark and fed only what the liberals want us to know.

One of the things that bothers me the worst right now is the lack of news about all the good things our members of the Armed Services are doing. Not only have they rescued and liberated millions of people from a mass murdering tyrant, they have and are performing thousands of acts of kindness and assistance to a down-trodden people. One needs to know someone serving there or have a family member serving there to find out about all the good things they are doing. My son did a tour there. So, why aren't these good things in the news?

Love In Christ,
Tom

Romans 8:1-2 NASB  Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.

[Florida_Catholic]

I understand why so many have turned away from the mainstream media, because there is a lot of truth to the accussation that they haven't kept the American people informed.  Like in the report I posted earlier, so many Americans have been fooled into thinking that Iraq was somehow responsible for 9/11, and the media has done an ill job of alleviating that myth.

Many have also turned to Fox News and Rush Limbaugh so that they can hear what they want to hear.  These outlets, as shown in the study, lead to a more misinformed population than any of the other new sources.  If you'd like I can delineate a number of times these people have lied to the public to push an agenda, but I doubt you'll want to hear that since most of their audience are interested in hearing what they want to hear, true or not . . . and they know it.

Although the facts do indeed show that the Bush administration is doing a poor job and amounts to negative press for them, reporting these facts does not indicate that the press is biased.  Although the media has covered the casualty count you mentioned in Iraq (probably because the people from the hometowns of these fallen soldiers would be very interested) : actually just over 2,000 for the 'coalition' (about 1900 for the USA), the media has hardly mentioned the civilian Iraqi casualties - estimated to be about 25,000.  Would that count as a bias in favor of the war, the conservative agenda i.e. not liberal ?

And finally, as far as gathering for protests being treasonous, let me remind you that the US Constitution's Bill of Rights specifically calls for a freedom for people to assemble to protest grievances like these.  But again the conservative political agenda seeks to weaken this and other rights through accussations of lack of patriotism, treason, and even support of the enemy.  You'll find this infectious propaganda readily in these alternative news sources.  The mainstream media undoubtedly has unintentional biases (not all to the left as the conservatives need you to believe), but these alternate sources are intentionally propagating an agenda . . . not a smart place to get your news if you seek the truth.

[nChrist]

Florida_Catholic,

WOW! - You are so far left that you can't even see the center. So far, the majority of the American public won't buy it now and won't buy it in the future. It appears that America will go forward, regardless of how much trouble the left causes along the way. In fact, the more trouble the left causes, the further right the country will go. America is finally wising up and sees the big picture, so I appreciate your work in encouraging conservatives.

[JimmySwift]

Hi all,

great topic!  As a Journalism student, and a conservative one at that, this is a topic that I have studied in great detail.

I really wish that my own findings on the topic were a little more positive for the right in this country, but they do not seem to be so.

The notion that FOX provides fair and balanced reporting is simply not true, and in fact, recent studies have shown that FOX NEWS viewers are actually much more likely to be hopelessly misinformed as to actual world events in many instances.  

In general, I certainly don't expect any of you to stop watching FOX, as it is very comforting to see someone reaffirming what you think you know, but rest assured, you are most likely, being intentionally (but obviously willingly) mislead.

If it intrests any of you, check out the film: Outfoxed, Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism.  It is an interesting and highly reliable look into what FOX news is really all about.

cheers,

Jimmy

[nChrist]

JimmySwift Said:

great topic!  As a Journalism student, and a conservative one at that, this is a topic that I have studied in great detail.

Jimmy,

     If you are a conservative, I'm Bin Laden. You made me spit coffee all over my monitor. I'll try to stop laughing and read your post later.

[JimmySwift]

Bep,

You're Bin Ladden!!!  Wow!  you're doing a great job of hidding from the us!  I guess our armies being distracted with the whole Iraq thing has kind of let you off the hook for the 9/11 unpleasantness.

Cheers,

Jimmy

[LittlePilgrim]

JS,
First, what makes you think you are conservative? All of your posts would tend to lead me to believe you are quite the opposite.

Secondly, don't get me started on Iraq and the WOT.  

[Florida_Catholic]

Yea, don't get him started.  He'll tell you how the liberal media is lying about this whole thing.  You know those WMD sites that the administration was pointing at before the war - Al Gore actually went in and stole 'em to give to Bin Laden.  And Bin Laden is actually not off the hook, really the administration sent double as many people after than they did into Iraq so that they could smoke him out of his hole.  Now they have him in hiding and are secretly interrogating him for info - which is what tipped them off that the people trying to volunteer and help with Katrina might actually be with Al Qaeda.  Good thing they were there to protect those New Orleanians.

[LittlePilgrim]

@ Florida_Catholic

...
Okay... I've got NO idea where most of that came from. Al Gore and John Kerry (Or as I call him John Scary) agreed that Iraq had WMDs... Until their political necks were on the line. Clinton agreed that Iraq had WMDs...  When dummocrats make statements like that and then they are believed to be false, you liberals tend to say that they got "Faulty Intel." George Bush and other GOP leaders make the same statements, and suddenly they're liars! Talk about double-speak!

Still... From my experience in dealing with liberals (And I'll use a favorite quote of Sean Hannity), they're political HACKS!