One of the most annoying things to come out of the present situation concerning Covid 19 is the histrionics of the media. No longer are borders closed, they are "slammed shut". We no longer have a lock down, it must be classified as "brutal". Fines are no longer imposed, they are "slapped on". We are no longer concerned, we are all "spooked".
I recall from my student days that the head of each faculty of the university was a professor. It seems these days, according to the media, every employee of the university is granted this status.
If this in not galling enough, every cross from the television newsroom finds us with a talking head, waving their hands about whilst walking towards the camera. Usually behind them is a line of people going to be tested. The person back in the newsroom then generally asks this talking head as to their opinion of what will happen. This is not journalism, it is commentating.
I can understand why a great number of people get so frustrated and annoyed with the present situation when faced with these theatrical performances on an hourly basis.
bgt said
12:23 PM Jan 8, 2021
News.com.au is the best example of headlines that scare folks and when you read the news item it often isn't even related to the headline.
Politicians are now reacting to the media. And that includes social media.
Whenarewethere said
01:03 PM Jan 8, 2021
Check out ancient Rome, not a lot has changed!
Cicero is worth reading:
A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself.
Politicians are not born; they are excreted.
Recoup said
01:32 PM Jan 8, 2021
bgt wrote:
News.com.au is the best example of headlines that scare folks and when you read the news item it often isn't even related to the headline.
Politicians are now reacting to the media. And that includes social media.
And the owner is not even an Australian .( anymore)
Mike Harding said
03:42 PM Jan 8, 2021
Dmaxer: Donald may be a bit of a looney but he does have a few valid points....
Eaglemax said
06:01 PM Jan 8, 2021
DMAXER
Very much agree with you. I suppose thats why older folk turn to the BBC or other reputable news organisation.
I've found myself increasingly annoyed at so called "educated people" reporting words that arent words like "impordant".
But then again the English language does change and what's the harm? So I have my own tug of war with this.
On a separate subject I get annoyed at the generation that now does family planning in reverse eg travel comes before kids and kids are only a consideration at 37yo+ when its not ideal biologically wise. Where did that mentality come from? But I digress.
Tony
Tony LEE said
06:42 PM Jan 8, 2021
You need to switch to the ABC, or if you enjoy lots of advertising, SBS
Whenarewethere said
06:53 PM Jan 8, 2021
Or NITV The Point when it's back on!
DMaxer said
06:57 PM Jan 8, 2021
I watched the ABC news this afternoon Tony. The lockdown was not being imposed, it was being "snapped shut". I used to watch the ABC a fair bit but don't anymore. The moralising and whingeing from the likes of that Stan Grant & Co turn my stomach. I used to like the Insiders too once. Could not watch it anymore either for all the handwringing and being perpetually offended on behalf of everyone.
In the ideal world the ABC Sydney stations, both radio and television, including SBS, should be subscription funded only with the tax payer funding going just to regional areas. The latte set would then see how many people enjoy "Their ABC".
-- Edited by DMaxer on Friday 8th of January 2021 06:59:09 PM
-- Edited by DMaxer on Friday 8th of January 2021 06:59:40 PM
bgt said
07:24 PM Jan 8, 2021
I always read the ABC web news. But you have be very mindful of their bias on some subjects.
I read Sky news. Nine news and News.com. My point being unless you read from a broad range of outlets you can't get a broad range of opinions.
And one opinion is like living life with blinkers on.
Whenarewethere said
07:49 PM Jan 8, 2021
Robert Fisk & John Pilger are a some reporters I listen to.
For me, it's Australian ABC, BBC, CNN, PBS and Al Jazeera.
Fox News is an oxymoron. It is a propaganda organ for one ugly American by another ugly American.
I like Stan Grant's opinion pieces, but not when he injects them into his interviews.
-- Edited by dorian on Saturday 9th of January 2021 09:06:01 AM
DMaxer said
09:20 AM Jan 9, 2021
I like the BBC and also Al Jazeera. ABC News 24 is usually reliable but the rest of the ABC programming that drifts into commentary and left wing preaching is soon turned off.
I think the two most nauseating television shows would be The Drum and The Project.
In my view the ABC should not be tax payer funded with the exception of rural areas and sport. All their political and self righteous programs should be available by subscription. They could then moralise and preach to their ardent fan base to their heart's content. I imagine the only ones listening would be their parents and a cat.
Whenarewethere said
09:35 AM Jan 9, 2021
I watched BBC in England when I was with relatives. Talk about Navel gazing. ABC, SBS & NITV is much better.
Because we are at the ar_e end of the world we do get a lot of news about the rest or the world.
KJB said
09:37 AM Jan 9, 2021
I am with you on that DMaxer......
Whenarewethere said
10:15 AM Jan 9, 2021
I forget, Phillip Adams on RN, good old AM radio in remote areas at night. Never get bored.
Mike Harding said
06:13 PM Jan 9, 2021
The ABC has become far too agendered with its left leaning social change approach, especially on weekends. NB: the children seem to be in charge of the radio newsroom on Sat/Sun.
The BBC is still pretty good but one needs to be discerning in one's news acquisition and a global view is best it seem to me.
For those of you with short-wave radio the proliferation of Chinese stations is both alarming and interesting.
montie said
07:17 PM Jan 9, 2021
Don't forget Tara "I'm out a here" Brown who decided that reporting the news was boring so she went overseas and decided to make some news...
That one backfired!
Whenarewethere said
07:23 PM Jan 9, 2021
Radio Australia diplomatic presence was cut in 2014. A stupid thing to by any government to allow others to fill the gap.
montie said
07:28 PM Jan 9, 2021
DMaxer wrote:
One of the most annoying things to come out of the present situation concerning Covid 19 is the histrionics of the media. No longer are borders closed, they are "slammed shut". We no longer have a lock down, it must be classified as "brutal". Fines are no longer imposed, they are "slapped on". We are no longer concerned, we are all "spooked".
I recall from my student days that the head of each faculty of the university was a professor. It seems these days, according to the media, every employee of the university is granted this status.
If this in not galling enough, every cross from the television newsroom finds us with a talking head, waving their hands about whilst walking towards the camera. Usually behind them is a line of people going to be tested. The person back in the newsroom then generally asks this talking head as to their opinion of what will happen. This is not journalism, it is commentating.
I can understand why a great number of people get so frustrated and annoyed with the present situation when faced with these theatrical performances on an hourly basis.
Plus we don't report Covid infection numbers anymore, not enough of them so no sensationalism there....we are now on the Covid "alert" bandwagon that could potentially affect "thousands".
When we report on floods it always amuses me when the journalist is standing in 6 inches of water wearing gumboots when there is a perfect piece of dry ground 20ft away.
Theatre at it's best!
Whenarewethere said
09:27 PM Jan 9, 2021
Or reporting from the beach with only g-string clad girls in the background, I'm not complaining, but really, it is a bit sexist.
landy said
11:09 PM Jan 9, 2021
Mike Harding wrote:
Dmaxer: Donald may be a bit of a looney but he does have a few valid points....
You wouldn't need two hands to count them on though Mike.
montie said
07:13 AM Jan 10, 2021
Mike Harding wrote:
Dmaxer: Donald may be a bit of a looney but he does have a few valid points....
70 million Americans thought so.
We better be careful or we'll have Cindy "slamming" the thread shut!
bgt said
12:38 PM Jan 10, 2021
Any news needs to be absorbed with a very open mind. If you just watch one media outlet then you simply don't get a divers view of how the world works. Open eyes = open mind.
We lived in the USA for about 8 years. You think our news is bad then you ain't seen nuting till ya seen American news. Most of, lets say 99.99999% of American news is well, er, ah, American news. The rest of the world doesn't get a mention unless it involves American interest or troops. Take all news out of the USA with at least a wheel barrow load of salt. The likes of CNN have an open agenda.
We have a number of America friends. One couple lived in Australia for many years helping to open up mines in central Qld. They have an open mind. They are the exception. Other friends have visited with us for a few weeks here in Australia. They never realised that we have freeways. McDonalds etc etc. They were amazed at our news of how much of the rest of the world the average Australian knows about. (Amazed we played football with out several layers of protection!!).
Don't knock the news here in Australia. But be very very wary of our news headlines and some of their agendas. Read the left wing and right wing views and make up your own mind. Don't take it all in without thinking past the headlines.
TheHeaths said
01:21 PM Jan 10, 2021
bgt wrote:
Any news needs to be absorbed with a very open mind. If you just watch one media outlet then you simply don't get a divers view of how the world works. Open eyes = open mind.
We lived in the USA for about 8 years. You think our news is bad then you ain't seen nuting till ya seen American news. Most of, lets say 99.99999% of American news is well, er, ah, American news. The rest of the world doesn't get a mention unless it involves American interest or troops. Take all news out of the USA with at least a wheel barrow load of salt. The likes of CNN have an open agenda. We have a number of America friends. One couple lived in Australia for many years helping to open up mines in central Qld. They have an open mind. They are the exception. Other friends have visited with us for a few weeks here in Australia. They never realised that we have freeways. McDonalds etc etc. They were amazed at our news of how much of the rest of the world the average Australian knows about. (Amazed we played football with out several layers of protection!!).
Don't knock the news here in Australia. But be very very wary of our news headlines and some of their agendas. Read the left wing and right wing views and make up your own mind. Don't take it all in without thinking past the headlines.
I think your last paragraph sums it up Bruce. Listen to all sources, and then make up your own mind, based on all the sources, and your own experiences. I can certainly not think of any news agency that doesnt have some bias to their reporting of the world, but certainly they all use the emotive words to draw us in and colour our thoughts to their position.
I have just finished reading a book called Factfulness, by a Swedish doctor called Hans Oseling. It gives an interesting twist on the world, admittedly the authors view, but does offer up some interesting thoughts about perceptions of the way the world is, how it is developing, how it is presented and how we should look at changing it. It does give an interesting view of the thoughts and actions of journalists. I am not pushing it as a solution for things, simply as a read to gather a different view of things to consider.
-- Edited by TheHeaths on Sunday 10th of January 2021 01:24:09 PM
Tony Bev said
01:57 PM Jan 10, 2021
As I like to sit on the fence, and try to see both sides of any story, I do realise that "some" news is told in a sensational manner
But...
I still read all news, or at least those news articles which are free
I rely on my own gut feelings, to interpret what I have just read
I also realise that other people, may also rely on their own gut feeling interpretations, which may not be the same as mine
Such is life, as if we were not all different, then mankind, may never have invented the wheel
bgt said
02:01 PM Jan 10, 2021
The thing is with news and life in general is that we are all influenced by our own experiences. The trick is to look past your own experiences and try to see things from the other side of the fence.
Santa said
03:49 PM Jan 10, 2021
Frank Sinatra hit the nail on the head when he visited Australia in 1974, he said
They keep chasing after us. We have to run all day long. Theyre parasites who take everything and give nothing. And as for the broads who work for the press, theyre the hookers of the press. I might offer them a buck and a half, Im not sure.
Most Australian journo's would sell their own mother for a buck, the ABC are among the worst, no respect for them here.
Mike Harding said
03:57 PM Jan 10, 2021
Have a read of Frank Furedi - a man with much wisdom:
One of the most annoying things to come out of the present situation concerning Covid 19 is the histrionics of the media. No longer are borders closed, they are "slammed shut". We no longer have a lock down, it must be classified as "brutal". Fines are no longer imposed, they are "slapped on". We are no longer concerned, we are all "spooked".
I recall from my student days that the head of each faculty of the university was a professor. It seems these days, according to the media, every employee of the university is granted this status.
If this in not galling enough, every cross from the television newsroom finds us with a talking head, waving their hands about whilst walking towards the camera. Usually behind them is a line of people going to be tested. The person back in the newsroom then generally asks this talking head as to their opinion of what will happen. This is not journalism, it is commentating.
I can understand why a great number of people get so frustrated and annoyed with the present situation when faced with these theatrical performances on an hourly basis.
Politicians are now reacting to the media. And that includes social media.
Check out ancient Rome, not a lot has changed!
Cicero is worth reading:
A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself.
Politicians are not born; they are excreted.
And the owner is not even an Australian .( anymore)
Dmaxer: Donald may be a bit of a looney but he does have a few valid points....
DMAXER
Very much agree with you. I suppose thats why older folk turn to the BBC or other reputable news organisation.
I've found myself increasingly annoyed at so called "educated people" reporting words that arent words like "impordant".
But then again the English language does change and what's the harm? So I have my own tug of war with this.
On a separate subject I get annoyed at the generation that now does family planning in reverse eg travel comes before kids and kids are only a consideration at 37yo+ when its not ideal biologically wise. Where did that mentality come from? But I digress.
Tony
Or NITV The Point when it's back on!
I watched the ABC news this afternoon Tony. The lockdown was not being imposed, it was being "snapped shut". I used to watch the ABC a fair bit but don't anymore. The moralising and whingeing from the likes of that Stan Grant & Co turn my stomach. I used to like the Insiders too once. Could not watch it anymore either for all the handwringing and being perpetually offended on behalf of everyone.
In the ideal world the ABC Sydney stations, both radio and television, including SBS, should be subscription funded only with the tax payer funding going just to regional areas. The latte set would then see how many people enjoy "Their ABC".
-- Edited by DMaxer on Friday 8th of January 2021 06:59:09 PM
-- Edited by DMaxer on Friday 8th of January 2021 06:59:40 PM
Robert Fisk & John Pilger are a some reporters I listen to.
Try:
Spiked
and
Al Jazeera
For me, it's Australian ABC, BBC, CNN, PBS and Al Jazeera.
Fox News is an oxymoron. It is a propaganda organ for one ugly American by another ugly American.
I like Stan Grant's opinion pieces, but not when he injects them into his interviews.
-- Edited by dorian on Saturday 9th of January 2021 09:06:01 AM
I watched BBC in England when I was with relatives. Talk about Navel gazing. ABC, SBS & NITV is much better.
Because we are at the ar_e end of the world we do get a lot of news about the rest or the world.
I am with you on that DMaxer......
I forget, Phillip Adams on RN, good old AM radio in remote areas at night. Never get bored.
The ABC has become far too agendered with its left leaning social change approach, especially on weekends. NB: the children seem to be in charge of the radio newsroom on Sat/Sun.
The BBC is still pretty good but one needs to be discerning in one's news acquisition and a global view is best it seem to me.
For those of you with short-wave radio the proliferation of Chinese stations is both alarming and interesting.
That one backfired!
Radio Australia diplomatic presence was cut in 2014. A stupid thing to by any government to allow others to fill the gap.
Plus we don't report Covid infection numbers anymore, not enough of them so no sensationalism there....we are now on the Covid "alert" bandwagon that could potentially affect "thousands".
When we report on floods it always amuses me when the journalist is standing in 6 inches of water wearing gumboots when there is a perfect piece of dry ground 20ft away.
Theatre at it's best!
Or reporting from the beach with only g-string clad girls in the background, I'm not complaining, but really, it is a bit sexist.
You wouldn't need two hands to count them on though Mike.
70 million Americans thought so.
We better be careful or we'll have Cindy "slamming" the thread shut!
We lived in the USA for about 8 years. You think our news is bad then you ain't seen nuting till ya seen American news. Most of, lets say 99.99999% of American news is well, er, ah, American news. The rest of the world doesn't get a mention unless it involves American interest or troops. Take all news out of the USA with at least a wheel barrow load of salt. The likes of CNN have an open agenda.
We have a number of America friends. One couple lived in Australia for many years helping to open up mines in central Qld. They have an open mind. They are the exception. Other friends have visited with us for a few weeks here in Australia. They never realised that we have freeways. McDonalds etc etc. They were amazed at our news of how much of the rest of the world the average Australian knows about. (Amazed we played football with out several layers of protection!!).
Don't knock the news here in Australia. But be very very wary of our news headlines and some of their agendas. Read the left wing and right wing views and make up your own mind. Don't take it all in without thinking past the headlines.
I think your last paragraph sums it up Bruce. Listen to all sources, and then make up your own mind, based on all the sources, and your own experiences. I can certainly not think of any news agency that doesnt have some bias to their reporting of the world, but certainly they all use the emotive words to draw us in and colour our thoughts to their position.
I have just finished reading a book called Factfulness, by a Swedish doctor called Hans Oseling. It gives an interesting twist on the world, admittedly the authors view, but does offer up some interesting thoughts about perceptions of the way the world is, how it is developing, how it is presented and how we should look at changing it. It does give an interesting view of the thoughts and actions of journalists. I am not pushing it as a solution for things, simply as a read to gather a different view of things to consider.
-- Edited by TheHeaths on Sunday 10th of January 2021 01:24:09 PM
But...
I still read all news, or at least those news articles which are free
I rely on my own gut feelings, to interpret what I have just read
I also realise that other people, may also rely on their own gut feeling interpretations, which may not be the same as mine
Such is life, as if we were not all different, then mankind, may never have invented the wheel
Frank Sinatra hit the nail on the head when he visited Australia in 1974, he said
They keep chasing after us. We have to run all day long. Theyre parasites who take everything and give nothing. And as for the broads who work for the press, theyre the hookers of the press. I might offer them a buck and a half, Im not sure.
Most Australian journo's would sell their own mother for a buck, the ABC are among the worst, no respect for them here.
Have a read of Frank Furedi - a man with much wisdom:
Frank Furedi