Terrorists

[Jack Simth]

Atrocities said:
So our media is selling the negative war pill while costing US troops their lives? Personally I think it is high time to pass new laws that call for intergerty and honesty in the news. Force the media into abiding by ethics laws.

One problem is that pesky little "freedom of the press" ammendment.... and that it would be almost impossible to pass any such law (after all, the press is the ones that would be reporting on it.... what kind of a spin do you think they would put on something that could seriously hurt them, financially?).... and that they are already pretty much required to not lie (defamation of character laws, slander laws; and seriously, what you gonna do - require them to cover the stories the government wants them covering, in the way the government wants them covering it? Really, really bad idea, that).

[Atrocities]

It just pisses me off that people are exploiting the news to spew their own personal political and idological views as if that is the only point of view that I should listen too.

[Jack Simth]

And I find it quite worrysome when someone's first response to something they don't like is that it should be illeagle. Sometimes they are correct - it should be illeagle to randomly shoot people on the street, to name a fairly obvious example - but the vast majority of those are already covered, and more often than not such reactions are a step towards a totalitarian state.

It's surprisingly difficult to not do so when attempting to advance a viewpoint (of whatever sort), and trying will usually water-down the presented viewpoint to the point where people will complain that it is "wishy-washy" or that the presenter "isn't really trying to make his case", and will usually end up convincing fewer people. It is much easier and more effective (in most circumstances) to present only one side of an argument.

Sure, it's possible to get someone who espouses the opposing view on stage as well and have a debate, but again, with both sides present, not as many people will be convinced. Many who honestly believe that their position is correct will find that quite unpalatable.

If those signing a reporter's paycheck (by whatever method, with a rather loose definition of reporter - a buisiness advertising in a newspaper, say - the buisiness is signing the paycheck, the newspaper counts as the reporter) have a position to send forth and the reporter is harming the sending of that position, then they are unlikely to continue to sign that paycheck, if there is an option that would appear to work better.

If it's any consolation, the news was, at one point, balanced within reason. It's just that, over time, those news centers which were reasonably balanced didn't get quite the funding that those news centers which were not quite so balanced did. So now, the massive news outlets are almost exclusively slanted to the same side. It's even gotten to the point where something that is reasonably balanced appears to be horribly slanted the other direction.

You can still find some reasonably balanced news sources - the only problem is they don't have much in the way of recources to gather news....

[Leslie]

There's an old saying "the truth hurts".

A lot of merit in that.

The only real problem I have with most news media, is they have a choice to print a story about something positive, or a story about something negative. So what do they choose?

They print what sells.

People, its not their fault entirely. It is also partly the fault of the people that willingly support the media by buying the media.

Now, when the news is being spin doctored, that I have a problem with, because then it isn't news, its opinion.

Take for instance the London Bombing.
How many were killed how many were injured, who they were, gender, age, etc all just information details.
Where it happened, how it happened, when it happened. All just information details.

Now, the second people start explaioning reasons, and what should be done about it, that's opinion not news.
Who was suspected, who had claimed responsibility. All just information.

[Atrocities]

Who would have imagined back in 98 that seven years later we would be talking about the wholesale slaughter of an entire culture because of the actions of a few sick and twisted psychopaths with bombs and the knowledge and desire to use them? What’s worse is that our own media operations have sold us down the drain for nothing more than to sell us the news the way they want us to believe, and by extension the world, that American soldiers are evil and terrorists are good.

Case in point, the terrorist behead innocent people, blow up police stations, assassinate people, and kill innocent men, women, and children and our media, and the world, seem to careless about it. Yet one private accidentally farts near a Quran, and OMFG let loose the media storm! I ask you what is worse, accidentally peeing on a Quran or beheading an American with a two-inch pocketknife? What gets more new coverage? Yup, the Quran story. I ask you what in the hell is our news media doing? They are actively taking an anti win position and deliberately undermining any chance we might have at successfully winning the peace with their incessant addiction to reporting minor little infractions that US troops might happen to make thus blowing them hopelessly out of proportion while ignoring the true heinous crimes of the very people who are responsible for the war in the first place. In my humble yet honest opinion, the US news media, say for FOX, is actively participating in the aiding of terrorist and offering comfort to the enemy while betraying the sovereign security of United States and other great peace loving and supporting Nations such as Great Brittan.

Enough is enough; it is time to make those in the media who are responsible for supporting terrorism pay the piper. I say start charging them with treason every time they report negatively about stupid [censored] that undermines the success of our troops and gets our boys and girls killed. Protect the first amendment but lets also protect the lives of our troops. Its way past high time that we make those in the media pay for what they have done!

[Leslie]

I wouldn't go that far.

I recall the Koran story, and my first reaction was "who cares, just another fairy tale book anyway".

I hear about a terrorist beheading, and my initial reaction is, "yep, just another vicious religious fanatic at work".

The media can't really spin doctor either enough to make me feel influenced by those things.

What I find annoying, is the incessant over reporting of the latest days death toll of servicemen.
Yes, I care, but, I am not interested in being told daily.

Soldiers get killed. It's what being a soildier is about. They are NOT teaching grade 1 in some rural schoolroom.
Is the US drafting soldiers currently?
If not, then everyone of the US serving personel have gotten killed performing a task of a voluntary nature.

The only news I am concerned with, coming out of Iraq, is basically why is the US and it's supporters there. Really.
Not the public consumption reason, but the reason hidden under the surface.

Exactly what are the anti US and supporters forces in Iraq expecting to gain. What is it they are looking to achieve through their own sacrifices.

I think it's clear now, so long after the fact, that most of the WMD line of excuse for Iraq was extremely flawed thinking.
But with such incredible volumes of spin gone forward since, I don't think anyone is going to believe anyone about the original reasons, and if they were credible.

I am not sure there is any real tangible link with Iraq and 9/11. The only thing that appears clear, is Iraq is just a mess the US has gotten stuck in, and now is finding difficult to get unstuck from.
And the US's terrorist enemies know it, and are likely using it, simply because anything that hurts the US is an acceptible option.

I would wager, Bin Laden rather is enjoying the expense that Iraq has become to the US.

I think it's unfortunate, that during the last US elections, too many well meaning idiots were more interested in two men getting married, than what was happening in Iraq.

The media isn't responsible for the news. They just pick and choose what to report. That isn't a crime. What might be really the most tragic, is how people support opinions, based solely on the reporting that is offered.

[Atrocities]

I hate to be the one to point this out, but we loose more Americans in traffic accidents in a month than we have in the entire Iraq war to date. We don't hear about those people on the 11 O'Clock news now do we?