5 Things The Media Loves Pretending Are News
Not long ago, an article of mine was published on Cracked.com, a comedy website, that pointed out examples of lazy/filler journalism that weren't just celebrity gossip and fear mongering. You can read the full article here.
Here is a basic outline (NOTE: This list isn't in a "countdown" format, so don't expect #1 to be the worst or whatever.):
5. "Let's hear what the idiot has to say." By all means, give both sides of an argument when discussing something based on opinion or personal beliefs, but when it comes to an issue that's requires an actual background and extensive knowledge on a certain subject, you shouldn't give non-experts the same treatment as experts.
4. "_______gate." Tacking "-gate" to the end of something does not make on par with the original Watergate scandal, nor does it make it newsworthy.
3. "Now for the Weather." Two issues: reporting weather that is blatantly obvious and needs no reporting ("it's snowing! In Chicago! In January!"), and hyping an upcoming storm like it's an action movie.
2. "Recycled News." Various news reports that we get every year. The "war on Christmas," reporting on "black Friday," and shark safety tips are among these.
1. "Passing Advertisements Off as News." Ads that are dressed up news stories. These "stories" tend to note how you can buy the product being reported on and how awesome it is.
So I've started this thread for two reasons:
-Sharing your thoughts on the points raised in the article.
-What are things you want news outlets to do less/more of?
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Good piece, NCHammer, but I have to take exception to your take on Jenny McCarthy. You point to her as an example of "let's hear what the idiot has to say."
Let me preface my argument by saying this: I disagree with her on the autism -vaccine link. However, I'm not sure how you can say she isn't a qualified person to at least present her view. She lived with this exact condition as a mother of an autistic child .
Why is she automatically ruled out?
My bigger argument is this? Don't people with life experience count as experts in some fields? Wouldn't you consider a cop an expert on crime -- even if he can't present any scientific or social research evidence to back up his observations?
Like I said, good stuff. I enjoy reading your work !
I've lived in New Jersey for 99% of the 18 years of my life, and I am by no means an expert on anything in New Jersey. I have spent countless hours listening to teachers, but I could never teach a class without proper training.
I'm sure she knows how to care for an autistic child and what it's like, but it doesn't give her knowledge on how/why autism occurs, nor does it give her knowledge on vaccines .
Anecdotes and personal experiences will never hold to up against an argument that requires actual evidence. Just recently, I was arguing on these boards with someone who believed global warming was a hoax. One of his arguments was that heat from urban areas made temperature data unreliable, and I posted two links to some climate scientists who explained how it didn't. He then responded by talking about how, during cold weather, he would ride his bike from his rural home to the city and noticed that it was warmer.
Even if I didn't post the evidence that disproved the "urban heat" thing, that anecdote still stands as one of the most retarded arguments I've ever heard against GW.
Same with McCarthy. There are no facts that support her "vaccines cause autism" thing. Hell, the guy who published the original study saying it did, faked his results:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article5683671.ece
She says that she "truly believes" there's a link between autism and vaccines, but "truly believing" is not evidence.
"Wouldn't you consider a cop an expert on crime -- even if he can't present any scientific or social research evidence to back up his observations?"
Absolutely not. You can't become an expert on something you can't prove. You know why cops don't have to tell people what they're being arrested for? Because they're not walking encyclopedias, and don't immediately know what laws you've broken. I listen to climate scientists regarding climate change not because they're climate scientists, but because they've shown their work .
Even then, it's not related to the discussion. Cops and doctors get their jobs because trained for this stuff and studied the things that they have to deal with. What did McCarthy do? She had a kid who happened to have autism, and that somehow made her an expert on autism and vaccines.