Posted by Racer on June 29, 2004, at 19:13:29
In reply to Opinions vs. Fact, posted by Snoozin on June 29, 2004, at 15:24:53
You said a couple of very powerful things in a very short post!
Yes -- facts can be juggled to support opinions, which Michael Moore (at least in my opinion) has been known to do in the past. (I haven't seen the movie yet, but will. Sure, he's expressing his opinion using the facts and footage he's selected to do so -- but I happen to agree with him in general principles, so I'm interested in seeing how he does it.) Then again, the same is often true of most newspapers, television and radio news programs, etc. Some of the cable news channels make me grind my teeth, because they present such an insular view of the world and such a paucity of Actual News. Info-tainment style news, and in my opinion that style of presentation encourages people NOT to think about what's going on in the world, or even in this country.
Of course, I'm of two minds about who should take responsibility for correcting the problem. On the one hand, if enough people COMPLAINED enough -- or shut off their televisions or changed channels to a more balanced newscast -- it would probably change. My other hand, though, is trembling with the fear that many people simply do not recognize that they are not getting the whole story. So many people I've come into contact with just don't seem to think of questioning what they hear from any one source. (Don't let me get on my education soapbox here, but that's where I think the fundamental problem begins. Then the employment picture feeds a bit more fuel into that fire -- if you're working extra hours and still trying to find enough slack to make ends meet, you're not likely to have much energy left over to seek out more information.)
I think the news and information problem mirrors the whole obesity debate, too: who should change first? McDonalds or The People?
I don't know. I hope I'm still around, though, when someone finally figures it all out.
(And I think the idea of encouraging Congresspeople to send their own sons and daughters into the military is a great one -- and to public schools, too, for that matter.)
poster:Racer
thread:361665
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20040626/msgs/361753.html