Our "Mainstream Media" is fucking worthless.

[Stinky The Clown]

That

Is

All

[JDPriestly]

1. K&R.

[uhnope]

72. except much of the alternative media is fucking worthless

that
is
also
all

[Skittles]

2. the sad thing is, repukes think it is "liberal"

which is ABSURD

[malaise]

5. l disagree - they don't think so = they want their base to think so

They use it as a tactic to promote their agenda. They also threaten to withhold ads.

[Enthusiast]

47. Huge +1!

[davekriss]

81. Z Magazine vs. National Review

I recall 35 years ago there were 2 magazines. One, Z Magazine, was a radical left wing mag (and one of my favorites). The other was National Review, Bill Buckley's far right wing rag.

Z Magazine was printed on cheap paper and had (almost always) no advertising. It survived on subscription fees and donations. It always focused on the needs of the disadvantaged, downtrodden, rascal multitudes of us around the globe.

National Review, on the other hand, was printed on glossy paper, had twice as many pages, and was loaded with advertisements. Corporations, owned by the same socio-economic class as the owners of National Review, were only too glad to give the magazine $ in exchange for advertisements. It preached the status quo and dreamed how to advance the needs of the already advantaged.

Hard to have a better illustration of the principles of Chomsky's Manufacturing Consent.

[malaise]

83. Excellent

Thanks for that

[liberalmike27]

31. It isn't just about convincing Republicans.

It's about convincing Democrats they are liberal too.

MSNBC is a network pretending to be left. What they are is what the rich, and corporations want you to believe the left is comprised of. They leave out issues they don't want to discuss, they include usually meaningless, or less meaningful ones and discuss them too much, for the distraction. Most of all, they prop up whatever NeoLiberal is in office, a Clinton, Obama, whomever.

[Enthusiast]

48. MSNBC is truly pathetic.

[Jackie Wilson Said]

79. Rachel is not a big woman , you dont need a bus this size for the job

[Enthusiast]

85. Jeez!

[elljay]

69. NPR, too. nt

[arcane1]

77. +10,000,000

[ladjf]

3. The media is worse than "worthless". It is a criminal enterprise committing crimes

against most Americans. Such activities used to be illegal are not now.

[pansypoo53219]

29. indeed. they act counter to informing. bring back the media horse. profits before democracy.

$$$$$$$$ is all that matters.

[world wide wally]

4. If you take your politics seriously, you can't dwell on their bullshit

Just check it out now and again so you "know your enemy". Then find something constructive to do.

[Stinky The Clown]

8. The problem is the low information moron voters

They believe what they see on TV and read in the internets.

They

Are

Morons

And

They

Have

The

Right

To

Vote

[world wide wally]

9. It sure is a problem

[Cosmocat]

54. I would go one step further

they might not know this directly, but IMO, they aren't just innocents who are getting bad information and blindly taking it was fact.

IMO, they WANT to believe the bullshit.

It reaffirms how they actually think.

The sell out "media" isn't the cause, it it a symptom.

The rich and monied know people are prone to having their lesser elements stoked, and put forward the bullshit to stoke it.

[hay rick]

24. If I think of the news media as enemy troops...

their "reporting" starts to make a lot of sense.

[Trust Buster]

6. I believe in the right to free speech for everyone, a right not limited to extremists.

[Doctor_J]

12. A canard often spewed by those who agree with the 24/7 far right propaganda apparatus

When the far right owing class has 1200 radio stations that blare their propaganda to every square foot of the country, with no opposing views, that is not free speech for everyone.

[Trust Buster]

17. Extremists on both ends of the political spectrum often show this level of intolerance.

[rurallib]

19. you forgot the sarcasm tag

[Trust Buster]

22. No need for one. I believe the Far Left and Right both display high levels of narcissistic tendancy.

[Ford_Prefect]

37. There you go again with that false equivalence thing.

[tenderfoot]

82. Yep.

And trust is totally busted.

[HOPNOSH]

91. You have how many hidden posts?

Intolerance...I don't think you know what the word means. But it appears you are trying hard son.

[hatrack]

40. But you were the one honking and blowing about Matt Taibbi's article in Rolling Stone

Your belief in free speech doesn't appear to be all that robust, or to extend very far.

Oh, and your username? Top-shelf sarcasm!

[Trust Buster]

42. Did anyone on MSNBC refer to Sanders and his supporters as "monsters" ?

Or that "hell isn't hot enough for them" ? Apples and oranges.

[hatrack]

46. Which party nominee rolled out his campaign in Philadephia, MS and talked about "States Rights"?

Ronald Reagan

Which president supported the attempted overthrow of the legitimately elected government in Nicaragua and in the process helped cause the deaths of tens of thousands of civilians?

Ronald Reagan

Which president supported the overthrow of the legitimately elected government of Chile, which resulted in thousands of deaths and disappearances, and supported the coup after a deliberate campaign by the American government to destroy the Chilean economy?

Richard Nixon

Which president supported the overthrow of the legitimately elected government of Argentina, and the subsequent deaths and disappearances of at least 30,000 Argentine citizens by the military junta whose rule he approved?

Gerald Ford (and who was his SOS? Henry Kissinger).

Which president fabricated evidence, fanned the flames of post-9/11 panic and invented a case for war in Iraq out of whole cloth, then launched a disastrously fucked-up imperial misadventure in the Middle East, in the process killing anywhere between 151,000 and 1.03 million Iraqi civilians and destabilizing the entire region and leading to the rise of the homicidal lunatics of Daesh? Oh, and let's not forget 4,487 US combat deaths and 32,226 wounded.

George W. Bush

Any of the preceding strike you as "monstrous"? No? Well, sucks to be you.

[Martin Eden]

64. Money = Free Speech

The corporate (aka "mainstream&quot media has long since abandoned the responsibilities and key role of the Fourth Estate in our representative democracy. What we get instead of informative journalism is infotainment to garner profits in service of the large conglomerates which own the major media.

Our political process is driven by the moneyed interests, from campaign finance to how the issues are framed and fed to us. What's left out is just as if not more important than the shallow content we're fed.

If you think those who point out how worthless and detrimental this is to the concept of self government by an informed citizenry, then you have been effectively brainwashed.

[femmocrat]

7. K & R +1000

MSNBC has become unwatchable. Dredging up the ghost of Vince Foster? REALLY???

[Different Drummer]

10. I started watching them much less

when they let Olbermann go and gave them up totally when they let Uygur go. Comcast has just about killed them.

[Shandris]

11. No it isn't. It's just worthless TO US. It's worth quite a bit for the people for whom it exists.

The biggest myth still prevalent today is that politicians and media are just 'stupid', 'out of touch', or 'just useless'. They're none of the above. They just aren't playing the game everyone else thinks they are.

Once you find the real game being played, everything else suddenly makes perfect sense.

[GreatGazoo]

13. The MSM isn't ours. They sell audiences to advertisers.

eg they sell us.

If we were chickens, the MSM would be KFC.

[jillan]

14. I turned on CNN earlier and they were talking about Vince Foster, blow jobs & Whitewater. So

I turned them off and turned on some music.

[rurallib]

21. playing the oldies

they can probably lay some folks off and play tapes from the 90s.
their audience probably couldn't tell the difference.

[Dont call me Shirley]

15. And their owners.

[oldandhappy]

16. well said Mr. Clown.

And some of the comments were good, also. I am off MSM and do not miss it. Consider it to be pollution.

[TIME TO PANIC]

18. K & R!

[ReRe]

20. ........... And

I


Totally



Agree

[AlbertCat]

23. Watch Democracy Now!...

.... now!

http://www.democracynow.org

[truedelphi]

78. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^n/t

[ChiciB1]

25. It Has Been Bad For So Many, Many Years... But NOW I'm NOT SURE

why they call themselves media! I NEVER watch any of them anymore and haven't for a very long time. I AM MUCh HAPPIER, and I'm more well informed because believe it or not, there's a LOT of real news that get covered.

Anytime I post RT America some nitwit comments that THEY DON'T WATCH RUSSIAN TELEVISION!! Tells me everything I need to know, and basically it's that THEY know NOTHING! Some great shows on many different subjects and of course Thom Hartmann and Ed Schultz, Lee Camp, Farron Cousins Joe Pappatonio and much more! Then of course there's FSTV and Democracy Now with Amy Goodman, Stephanie Miller and Thom Hartmann again... and much more!

Yeah, you do get a YUUUUUUUGE variety!

[Warpy]

26. Have you turned them off yet?

I switched off in 2004. The funny thing is that I haven't missed them a bit.

[d_legendary1]

27. A-Fucking-Men!

[elmac]

28. They are not worthless!

they are corporations worth billions and in a capitalist society money TRUMPS news every time

[Fast Walker 52]

30. actually they are criminal

[Nye Bevan]

52. Which law are they breaking? (nt)

[Fast Walker 52]

56. crimes against humanity for not covering climate change properly

and for shilling for the 1%. War crimes for incitement to war.

Probably racketeering too.

[Nye Bevan]

57. So you would like to send the CEO of NBC (for example) to prison,

because he is guilty of "crimes against humanity" since his network has not "covered climate change properly"?

How many years should his sentence be? Or is capital punishment warranted?

[Fast Walker 52]

68. I would like him/her to face trial, yes, as well as the CEO of the cable new channels

and heads of the news divisions.

Not sure about the punishment. I'm against the death penalty.

[Brother Joe Observes]

32. That. Is. True.

[retrowire]

33. But hold on they need to focus on this empty podium that Trump is about to walk up to. nt

[ancianita]

34. Yup. It's a propaganda/bullshit narrative machine for its owners.

[sorefeet]

84. If we brought back the fairness doctrine

politics in America would be totally different. The idiots on the right would have to hear the truth and after enough truth and facts they would come around to reality, hopefully It would be hard to promote the propaganda with equal amounts of facts and truth. It is one sided right now which is no more than propaganda. Bring back the fairness doctrine because humans need to be held accountable. Too many nuts have access to a venue to spread the lies, hate and anti peace rhetoric.

[ancianita]

88. So why hasn't Obama had Tom Wheeler reinstate it? Here's some background, for anyone

who's interested in the history of "fair and balanced."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairness_Doctrine

[cer7711]

35. I disagree: They serve the oligarchy well.

But I take your point, sir.

[UnFettered]

36. What's said is some people...

Actually buy into this garbage. I can't watch any of the news networks these days without the strong urge to

There is no longer real reporting or journalism. The only thing they show is glorified reality tv or the issues there handlers want to bombarded us with.

I guess that's what happens when main stream media is monopolized by a hand full of individuals.

If they actually focused on the issues and policy. There would be a lot less low information voters out there, but I guess that's the point.

[valerief]

38. It's not worthless to the oligarchs who own it and control its message. nt

[LovingA2andMI]

39. That's Enough...

They Are WORTHLESS!

[spanone]

41. worth a shitload to this guy>>>>$2 Billion Worth of Free Media for Donald Trump

NYTimes: $2 Billion Worth of Free Media for Donald Trump

Of all the ways Donald Trump has shocked the political system, one of the most significant is how he wins primary after primary with one of the smallest campaign budgets.

He still doesn’t have a super PAC. He skimped on ground organization and field offices. Most important, he spent less on television advertising — typically the single biggest expenditure for a campaign — than any other major candidate, according to an analysis by SMG Delta, a firm that tracks television advertising.

But Mr. Trump is hardly absent from the airwaves. Like all candidates, he benefits from what is known as earned media: news and commentary about his campaign on television, in newspapers and magazines, and on social media. Earned media typically dwarfs paid media in a campaign. The big difference between Mr. Trump and other candidates is that he is far better than any other candidate — maybe than any candidate ever — at earning media.

No one knows this better than mediaQuant, a firm that tracks media coverage of each candidate and computes a dollar value based on advertising rates. The mentions are weighted by the reach of the media source, meaning how many people were likely to see it. The calculation also includes traditional media of all types, print, broadcast or otherwise, as well as online-only sources like Facebook, Twitter or Reddit.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/16/upshot/measuring-donald-trumps-mammoth-advantage-in-free-media.html?_r=0

[Chasstev365]

43. I have always refered to Fox News as Goebellsvision

Sadly, CNN has always been 2 steps behind Faux News and MSNBC, which held my sanity together during Bush and Cheney's reign of terror, is now as bad as CNN.

[Rex]

44. A priceless gem for the plutocracy, total crap for the working poor. nt

nt

[JEB]

45. Shoot the damn TV. eom

[mhatrw]

49. It's worth a lot to those who feel they can do whatever the fuck they want just because they

totally control it.

Please unplug yourself from the corporate noise machine.

[Scuba]

50. I wish that were true. They're actually much worse than useless.

[Bad Dog]

51. The American media's supine nature was clearly on display,

in the run up to the illegal war in Iraq. If they'd actually told the truth it might have saved a lot of lives, although Dick Cheney wouldn't be nearly so wealthy today.

[islandmkl]

53. I believe you have slightly over-estimated their true value...(other than monetarily)...

barnyard zen: "Is 10 pounds of bullshit twice as valuable as 5 pounds of bullshit...to the person shoveling?"

[The2ndWheel]

55. Any media is worthless when you don't agree with it

Every human being puts their own subjective values onto facts, and the internet only amplifies that ability. There aren't too many "objective" sources of news.

[FighttheFuture]

58. There are good TV sources... Larry Wilmore, Samatha Bee, RT News, John Oliver, Daily show...

Late Show with Stephen Colbert (he still does satire on the real events), and the occasional BBC News.

On RT I find a very good lineup with Thom Hartmann at 6pm CST, Lee Camp's Redacted tonight on Fridays (it may be called "Headline News at 7pm (CST)), Headline News with Ed Schultz (M-Th, 7pm CST). Excellent sources all.

[Jack Rabbit]

59. Gee, Stinky. Why don't you just tell us what you think?

And yes, you're right.

[HughBeaumont]

60. Two pretty prominent Republican propaganda arms speak volumes.

Even MSNBC isn't even remotely in the same league on their side (they strike me as more left-moderate than anything) as Faux and CNBC are with the Republicans.

[lark]

61. I don't know about that.

The rich and MIC probably are quite happy with their paid for media.

[barbtries]

62. i don't call it mainstream anymore.

i call it corporate. that's who it's by and for. very sad time in the USA

[Martin Eden]

63. Damn Librul Media!

(neoliberal, that is)

[merkins]

65. Its Like Information Warfare

[DrBulldog]

66. I have nearly stopped getting any political news from TV in any form. It is a waste of time.

Only MSNBC offers occasional real news value, but it is getting worse and worse as it continues to fire or demote its most progressive and truthful people.

So my principal daily political news sources come from the Internet. I STRONGLY recommend them to you:

1. The Big Picture RT (Thom Hartmann)

2. Democracy NOW! (Amy Goodman)

3. The Young Turks (Cenk Uygur)

4. Democratic Underground (often the fastest way to get breaking news and often these news reports are NEVER reported elsewhere!)

5. The Ring of Fire (a consortium of top political news journalists and investigators)

And go search through Youtube for past presentations by these organization. Youtube has become a political encyclopedia for finding the truth!

[Stinky The Clown]

71. You know, so many people say things like that . . . .

. . . . no disrespect meant.

It isn't about me. I am as well informed as anyone. It is about the low information morons who get all they know from the media. THAT is where the harm comes in. Not for people like you or me.

[Jim Beard]

92. I listen to Bill Press and Stephanie Miller

by signing to dar.fm at $50 a year and you can record to your device for later listening.

[BigDemVoter]

67. Oh Yes.

Worthless as hell. No follow up, no verification of facts-- journalists act like stenographers and report as "fact" anything the Right Wingers tell them--

[Oneironaut]

73. You know those "Clinton bat boy" magazines at the grocery checkout?

That's the American news media. They're not above ditching all journalistic integrity to make a good story.

I don't trust anything CNN, Fox News, or MSNBC have to say. They're gossip rags on the world stage, and nothing more. Remember Don Lemon speculating on whether or not that Malaysian airplane was swallowed by a black hole? That's what it's become - a bunch of screaming barkers trying to outcompete each other in the most shameless ways possible.

[SalviaBlue]

74. I have completely given up on it.

Pure propaganda... and what would we expect when it is privately owned. They have their own agenda. They are corporations. Their purpose is to make money, not to inform or to help democracy function.

[LuckyTheDog]

75. I agree, but...

... trying to find money to build an audience for an alternative is pretty hard. I have tried.

[truedelphi]

76. I am certain that Donald and Hillary would disagree! n/t

[VOX]

80. CBS' CEO Les Moonves gave away the game...

...earlier this year. Cable "News" is now entertainment, designed to foment an addiction to anger over hot-button issues ...and ad revenues are everything.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/leslie-moonves-donald-trump-may-871464
Leslie Moonves on Donald Trump:
<snip>
Not that the CBS executive chairman and CEO might vote for the Republican presidential frontrunner, but he likes the ad money Trump and his competitors are bringing to the network.

"I've never seen anything like this, and this going to be a very good year for us. Sorry. It's a terrible thing to say. But, bring it on, Donald. Keep going," said Moonves.
<snip>
"It may not be good for America, but it's damn good for CBS," he said of the presidential race.
<snip>
Donald's place in this election is a good thing," he said Monday at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference in San Francisco...

"There's a lot of money in the marketplace," the exec said of political advertising so far this presidential season."
<snip>

[Rafale]

86. News Media Motto

Trolling for the Oligarchs.

[Paper Roses]

87. Agree! n/t

[madokie]

90. Have been getting worse as time goes by since the early '70s

when the republiCON party decided that if they wanted to win election and get their message out they'd have to buy up all the Press, Paper, TV and Radio.

I remember reading the story where they made that known but I'll be damned if I remember who it was that said it. The Heritage Foundation, AIE or a host of others but one of those 'think tanks' figured it out and proceeded to do exactly that. Today the republiCONs own about 90% of what we get as 'news.'

[UCmeNdc]

93. Agree!