Editorial #175 Confusing Commentary with News
News and commentary are tools of propaganda. The beginning of the end of real news from network television occurred when the 24 hour news channel were born. There is not that much real news that was worth knowing, so to provide content it should have been renamed 24 hour commentary, instead. It is all commentary that is addictive and exist only for entertainment purposes. There is so little real news being reported on a national networks, that it is nearly impossible to get the truth on anything by listening. It is like watching a car accident. It is horrible, it is hard to look away and we can’t do anything about it. How many times do we need to hear there are riots going on? Local newspapers and regional broadcasters are the last real sources for news.
So what is News? It is supposed to be facts about a situation that is useful. This would mean any college lecture on thermodynamics or chemistry would be considered news. No national network would publish such a lecture, for the same reasons advertisers do not put ads in a text book, because it is boring and few would see it. Sadly, the more controversial it is, the more “entertaining” drawing more eyeballs.
Attempts at accurate reporting are impugned and lampooned by the liberal elite as racist, sexist and discriminatory because it does not advance their agenda. There are subscribers that demand social media providers fact check posts they don’t like. The fact checks are also commentaries. That is like the fox watching the hen house. If they fact checking just one post, that opens the Pandora’s Box of liable and slander suits. It would require fact checking of all posts, to avoid charges of discrimination under the fairness doctrine demanding equal time by the FCC.
The reporting allowed under our Constitution’s “Freedom of the Press” is NOT news. It does not need to be factual. The constitution gives us the right to comment, but not be heard. The first amendment is intended to facilitate free and open conversation so logical outcomes can be found without fear of going to jail if anyone disagrees. It is up to us to be educated enough to understand truth, and not expect commentaries, from “so called” journalist, to declare their understanding of the truth.
No man-made law should allow the violation of our core values in its enforcement. Abortion, anti-discrimination and environmental laws often violate our core values. Two plus two can never equal five in base 10 math, in spite of a consensus from low information thinkers, Facebook or Twitter. These are sins of omission, violating all of our core values. The liberal elites deal exclusively in this realm. They support positions out of convenience and emotion, believing their truth and not facts. This hypocrisy is the “fake news” we know and detest. If this prevails, unchecked, it is among the last of a thousand cuts that will kill our constitutional republic upon which the core values of our country were built, if we let it.
This is Keith Kube wishing you the best in making the world a better place.
Keith has a regular commentary on WJAG 780 radio at 7:40 on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Check his website www.keithkube.com for past editorials.
