PatrickforB
PatrickforB's JournalThe tribal journalism of cable news is at a crossroads.
This piece is well written and comes from the Hill. Here is the link: https://thehill.com/opinion/technology/525004-the-tribal-journalism-of-cable-news-is-at-a-crossroads
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Okay, now that you have read what Joe Ferullo says, here are my own thoughts:
From the conception of radio back in the 20s, and subsequent growth of television programming beginning in the 50s, we had a thing called a Fairness Doctrine.
Basically, this doctrine called for news to be called news, and for it to be kept above the ratings - more a public service offered by a free press on a new media platform. Revenue was generated by other programs, and while there were commercials on news, the thing that drove viewership was the thoroughness of the presentation, and the quality of the presentation in terms of being factual.
Guess which party ended all that? You got it - Republicans! Ronald Reagan let the Fairness Doctrine die in 1987. News shows slowly evolved to become entertainment. They did this by increasing a 'gotcha' approach to generate controversy, which then drove up advertising revenue.
The birth of AM talk radio, and the birth and growth of Fox 'news' happened according to a plan set forth by Lewis Powell in a manifesto he wrote to the US Chamber of Commerce in 1971.
What made Powell write what he wrote, and the US Chamber take it to heart? Profits. The quest for more and more money.
We often lament that healthcare, military spending, and much of our politics supports profits over people. The interests of billionaires, corporations, and shareholders are held above those of the people, and this is enforced by the media itself driving up the costs for candidates to be elected.
You all know this, right? You want to start ending it, get rid of Citizens United, reimpose a Fairness Doctrine that defines what news is, and require networks who are using the airwaves, whether radio, television, or wifi, to offer real, factual news, treat it as that, and report it as that.
Fun Halloween joke:
What is orange on the outside, hollow on the inside, and needs to be tossed in early November?
For my 11,500 post, I'd like to call to remembrance the
brutal and cruel family separation policies, and the 545 kids whose parents can still not be located.
Let us never forget that America came to this.
Let us not forgive, but instead hold accountable those who perpetrated these crimes against humanity.
Here's hoping that in 2021 things get better and keep getting better.
I'm posting this because ever since 2008, I have wished that the next year be better than the year before.
Oh, I know this is premature. It ain't New Year's yet. Sure.
But you know, we've been in the shit for SO LONG. Let's hope Trump drags what is left of the old Republican party into oblivion with him, and we see some sane people who are willing to debate, compromise and move us forward as the founders intended.
Biden has a really good platform. If he and Harris are able to accomplish half of it, we'll all be much better off, as will all other life on this planet.
Only possible problem is we have a lot of shitheads out there who are ignorant, stupid, mean and heavily armed.
So, when next you lift a glass of anything to your lips, do it in the hope that better times are coming, and with the intent to do all you can to help that happen.
Postmaster general says postal service can't return mail-sorting machines
Source: The Hill
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said U.S. Postal Service (USPS) mail-sorting machines dismantled earlier this year would not be put back together, according to a report from Bloomberg.
The postmaster general stated that the old machines were stripped for parts to improve or repair other sorting machines.
Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/news/518107-postmaster-general-says-postal-service-cant-return-mail-sorting-machines
This fits the definition of treason in the US Constitution, because by doing this, Trump and DeJoy are levying war against one or more states.
False Rumors That Activists Set Wildfires Exasperate Officials
Source: New York Times
Officials dealing with catastrophic fires on the West Coast have had to counter social media rumors that the blazes were set by antifascist activists, publicly pleading that people verify information before sharing it.
Despite their efforts, misinformation about the origin of the fires — which have killed at least 15 people and consumed millions of acres — continues to spread on Facebook and Twitter.
Several law enforcement agencies in Oregon said they had been flooded with inquiries about rumors that activists were responsible. On Thursday, several journalists reporting on fires near the city of Molalla, Ore., said they had been confronted by a group of armed people who were worried about unverified reports of arsonists in the area.
The rumors appear to have started on Wednesday night, after the Portland Police Bureau warned people on Twitter about the risk of fire during demonstrations. But there is no evidence that activists have deliberately set fires.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/10/us/antifa-wildfires.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage
So, starting these rumors make America great again?
I guess my question is why isn't Trump doing all he can to send aid to the West Coast to take care of these fires?
Why is Trump doing nothing about the pandemic?
Why is Trump doing everything he can to cast doubt on the results of the upcoming election?
I think Trump is a traitor.
Trump bars 'propaganda' training sessions on race in latest overture to his base
Source: CNN
Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump on Friday night banned federal agencies from conducting racial sensitivity training related to "white privilege" and "critical race theory" that his administration says amounts to "divisive, anti-American propaganda," the latest overture to his political base two months before the presidential election.
Citing "press reports," Russell Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, decried the "millions of taxpayer dollars" spent on such programs "across the Executive Branch" in a two-page memo.
Vought directed federal agencies to identify contracts and agency spending related to training programs that suggest the US "is an inherently racist or evil country" or "that any race or ethnicity is inherently racist or evil." He urged agencies to seek out legal courses of action "to cancel any such contracts and/or to divert Federal dollars away from these unAmerican propaganda training sessions."
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/04/politics/trump-administration-memo-race-training-ban/index.html
So, there you have it. Yet more proof Trump is a disgusting racist. As if we needed more.
Let's hear it for Kamala Harris. She tore into Trump just now like no one's business.
What a GREAT speech.
Boy, did Biden choose a VP well!
I was literally blown away. Let's hope Trump gets so mad about what she said he destroys himself politically in his own speech tonight.
I like Harris more each day.
New Ebola Outbreak in Congo Raises Alarm
Source: The Hill
The WHO has committed about $2.3 million to the battle against Ebola, and Congo’s health ministry has said it will need $40 million to control the outbreak. But the world is consumed by the coronavirus pandemic, and international partners have not committed the funding necessary to stop Ebola.
“The virus is spreading across a wide and rugged terrain which requires costly interventions, and with Covid-19 draining resources and attention, it is hard to scale up operations,” said Matshidiso Moeti, the WHO’s Africa regional director.
This is the second major Ebola outbreak in Equateur Province in the last two years. A previous outbreak that began in May 2018 was contained in just three months, after 54 people were infected and 33 died.
The latest outbreak came just as Congo ended its worst Ebola epidemic ever recorded, in eastern North Kivu and Ituri provinces. That incident, unconnected to the current conflagration, lasted for almost two years and killed more than 2,200 people.
Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/513106-new-ebola-outbreak-in-congo-raises-alarm
Ordinarily, I would not be as concerned about this as I am now, because I'd feel like American scientists and doctors were helping WHO and would get it contained.
But.........................Trump.
Louisiana Supreme Court upholds Black man's life sentence for stealing hedge clippers more than 20 y
Source: CNN
A Black Louisiana man will spend the rest of his life in prison for stealing hedge clippers, after the Louisiana Supreme Court denied his request to have his sentence overturned last week.
Fair Wayne Bryant, 62, was convicted in 1997 on one count of attempted simple burglary. In his appeal to the Second Circuit Court of Louisiana in 2018, his attorney, Peggy Sullivan, wrote that Bryant "contends that his life sentence is unconstitutionally harsh and excessive." Last week, though, the state Supreme Court disagreed -- with five justices choosing to uphold the life sentence.
The lone dissenter in the decision was Supreme Court Chief Justice Bernette Johnson, who wrote that "the sentence imposed is excessive and disproportionate to the offense the defendant committed." Johnson is the only female and Black person on the court. The rest of the justices are White men.
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/06/us/louisiana-supreme-court-trnd/index.html
So there you have it. Johnson pointed out the people of LA have already spent $500K housing Bryant, and that if he lives 20 more years it would double. So, the people of Louisiana will have spent a million dollars on a guy that stole a pair of hedgeclippers.
Racism sure is costly.
I'd say the Butthole of America award now passes to Louisiana.
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