POLITICS: Internet Replacing Mainstream Media: Update 16-3-05

The mainstream media is fast disappearing, says Paul Harris, a reporter for The Observer stationed in New York. Plagued by scandals, charges of corruption and distributing covert government propaganda, the mainstream media is being replaced by internet bloggers and independent media sites. Describing internet sites as a "vital political tool," Harris says the Bush administration knows "a partisan and atomised media can be controlled, manipulated and used to an unprecedented degree" - and is keen to foster the transformation.





Personality-led and opinion-based news is the new game, pioneered by FOX and now copied by other networks like CNN and MSNBC. Many people no longer are able to perceive bias; it is so common that it is taken for granted, and overlooked.

The partisanship trend is reflected on the internet, and obviously encouraged by the Bush administration. Those of us who have been around a while have seen a number of good sites go down, split apart by politically motivated red herrings and personality-led disputes. Now, the Democrats have finally decided to jump on the bandwagon and fight fire with fire.

The new ATSNN appears to seek balance at least, and now offers the opportunity of equal time to each "camp." Still, the partisan split is largely synthetic - fostered at risk to real debate and the search for truth.



Related News Links:
www.ilcaonline.org
www.denverpost.com
www.antiwar.com

Related AboveTopSecret.com Discussion Threads:
Jeff Gannon the "Journalist" involved in Scandal, Resigns.
Pro-Bush reporter outed as an Administration plant

[edit on 21-2-2005 by soficrow]

[edit on 16-3-2005 by soficrow]

Originally posted by soficrow


Personality-led and opinion-based news is the new game, pioneered by FOX and now copied by other networks like CNN and MSNBC. Many people no longer are able to perceive bias; it is so common that it is taken for granted, and overlooked.

Exactly Sofi. Every Democrat-moderate-Liberal here bashes Fox for thier known biased, but we will rarely ever admit that our own CNN is just as bad. It is very hard to get news that is unbiased and not spun to fit someones agenda these days. Excellent article Sofi, keep it up

[edit on 2/21/05 by Kidfinger]

Originally posted by Kidfinger

Originally posted by soficrow


Personality-led and opinion-based news is the new game, pioneered by FOX and now copied by other networks like CNN and MSNBC. Many people no longer are able to perceive bias; it is so common that it is taken for granted, and overlooked.

Every Democrat-moderate-Liberal here bashes Fox for thier known biased, but we will rarely ever admit that our own CNN is just as bad. It is very hard to get news that is unbiased and not spun to fit someones agenda these days.

Thanks Kid. ...I'm still wondering - where will this partisanship lead?

Most of it isn't real - seems to me like there's just a minority of professional pot-stirrers keeping the split open, and the bitterness active. ....But how can we know for sure? And what can we do?

If we don't play the game, are we forfeiting the field?



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Originally posted by soficrow
seems to me like there's just a minority of professional pot-stirrers keeping the split open, and the bitterness active. ....But how can we know for sure? And what can we do?

I dont think there is anything we can do but not watch. Even the News stations depend on ads. I agree that it is only a few pot stirres ruining the whole thing. Alot of the news that comes out is probably news worthy, but the few who veer towards reporting with thier agenda are undermining any integrity these news stations have left.

Media, it's main goal to make money. The TV has never be a source real news. The very need to make people tune in makes its content less than real. The new news station are doing a geat job selling a bais and filling the needs of the uninformed. Worse Fox and the like are a souding board for the GOP. It's not just a pasifier for the dull masses but a test kit too. The internet has the same problem too. But at least people are forced to read. Anything to kill the TV is a good trend.

I gave up my cable TV a long time ago. I found there was too much brain washing in the media and TV commercials. I got sick and tired of TV land telling me what to buy and what to believe. Right now I get about 95% of my information from the Internet. I do still have a TV and I get the local antenna channels.
I don't buy news papers either, but thats because I don't want to have paper delivered to my house. Waste not want not. I pick up a free copy of a local independent paper called FFW. It comes out every Thursday and covers local stories as well as national, and global concerns. I usually read it from back to front.

Soficrow
In answer to your question of what to do about the problem, whether we're doomed to play by their rules; that all depends on your personal perspective. I prefer to remain in the role of observer, others are destined for leadership, others for war. You just have to ask yourself, what is your role in the conflict?

Partisanship is the resolve of the weak minded. People on both sides use words like values and integrity, but they are hollow and without meaning. Everyone I've talked to knows politicians lie, they accept that as a foregone conclusion. They don't even seem fazed by it, they just keep rooting for their team. The system in America is a farce, and that has been well established for some time now. I know I'm not the only one who feels that way. Partisan weenies take heed, "your denial is beneath you, and thanks to the use of hallucinogenic drugs, I see through you." (Thanks Bill Hicks) The problem is, people feel there are no other options, and so they pick the closest one and go with it.

If people can't have their own individual opinon, that's fine, but don't legislate conformity! If you let me legislate my opinion, anyone with an opinion so bland and countourless that it can fit in the republican or democratic mold, in my perfect world, they'd be doing manual labor and getting issued coloring books.

Every person is responsible for their own destiny. When we control others they must be beneath us, and that creates a master and a slave. Slaves rebel, masters are cruel, masters die, slaves become masters and pick up the whip, it's a cyclical process. Persecution is a disease passed down from generation to generation. There will always be order and chaos, government and rebellion, yin and yang.

The internet news is unreliable now, simply because of its volume. There are so many sites that screening them all would be impossible even if there was an index system enforced on web pages. The volume is simply astounding, and no one person has the capability to search through it all. Every story is heavily biased, every fact is suspect, which means those who brave the seas of information often run aground on half truths and spin.

The mainstream news media are now getting their news from the internet. The problem is, they're not presenting all sides of the story, they're cherry picking. I still go to them for the party line, but all the contrast in my picture of the world comes from alternative sources, usually individuals and small communities.

I could talk for ages on this topic..I won't, I promise.

I just want to say one more thing. Film immitates life, and I've been watching a lot of zombie movies lately. Between The Matrix and a handful of zombie flicks, I'd say you have a pretty good parable for modern life in America. Partisan politics develops cult like obedience in people, it was designed to do just that. The only real solution for somebody who has been brainwashed is deprogramming. There is no other way to help them. They can always help themselves, if they can see a way out.

I guess, like always, it comes down to individual merit and the capability of each person to decipher the many faceted lie for themselves.

Maybe the real reason that the internet is replacing the mainstream media is because, as possibly indicated, people are simply growing weary of the bias that is presented in the mainstream media, be it liberal or conservative.

What ever happened to "just report the facts" and let the people decided what their take, slant, or bias will be? Nope. Now the mainstream media is continuing in their philosophy of thinking the average reader is stupid and has no real understanding and clue to a new level: they are giving their facts and then their take, view, and guided opinion.

I will almost assert that the Internet will also get to be the same way. The mainstream media knows this. Why? Because they have their own under the table agendas for the Internet and how the Internet is perceived: the search for a younger, groovier audience. That is why the Blogosphere is doing is well as it is. But even in the Blogosphere, you will have the continued political divide and it will and is carrying over into reporting the news, etc.





seekerof

I think people need to be more concious of the difference between partisanship and blind obedience. Seekerof, we've argued about impartiality in the media before, and we both agree that in an ideal world there would be an objective media. However, reality is not so comforting, every story has been crafted to deliver a message, an arrow to the target. The message is invariably one of competition.

From organized sports in middle school, to cliques in high school, debate clubs in college, and then afterwards there's grad/undergrad rivalry, office politics, politics, politics, politics. We've been trained, and now we're uncomfortable with the programming.

Remember always the first rule of war - Divide and conquer. The powerful are a small minority, and they seek to control the weak, a great majority. They must divide us and pit us against each other in order to remain in power. If the people ever united against their masters, well, you remember the French Revolutions..

At this point politicians are just lying to survive. They have done some really rephrehensible things, and now are afraid of the consequences. They should have thought of that earlier, but didn't, and now they're willing to do anything to keep their secrets secret. They even leak small details about insignifigant scandals to keep the pack distracted and off of the real scent. The news is the primary way the powerful distract their slaves. They use it to direct attention away from them at all times.

The internet is just another tool in their toolbox. Thankfully they still don't know how to use it.

Originally posted by WyrdeOne
I think people need to be more concious of the difference between partisanship and blind obedience.

Remember always the first rule of war - Divide and conquer. The powerful are a small minority, and they seek to control the weak, a great majority. They must divide us and pit us against each other in order to remain in power. If the people ever united against their masters, well, you remember the French Revolutions..

At this point politicians are just lying to survive. They have done some really rephrehensible things, and now are afraid of the consequences. ...They even leak small details about insignifigant scandals to keep the pack distracted and off of the real scent. The news is the primary way the powerful distract their slaves. They use it to direct attention away from them at all times.

Two well thought through and presented posts. Excellent WyrdeOne. ...I happen to agree with your points.

Except for this one:

The internet is just another tool in their toolbox. Thankfully they still don't know how to use it.

Yes, the internet is just another tool to "them," but unlike you, I do think they know how to use it. ...I have observed numerous sites go down over the past 3-4 years, buried by dirty tricks. I've watched the same crud here at ATS - narrow perspectives, carefully chosen facts, reducing discussion to partisan name-calling, building personality cults, character assassinations, distraction - and burying good threads with frivolous drivel... The list does go on. Some of it's standard net community stuff I know - but much is orchestrated IMO.

...? You think maybe it's conspiranoia?



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Soficrow
You're absolutely right, there have been casualties in the information war. The government pays a lot of people a lot of money to try and control the flow of information. The thing is, it's impossible. They're fighting a waterfall while we're taking a bath! Anyone who stands up to them has a chance of getting knocked down, in fact it's almost assured. The thing is, if enough people stand up, even though some get knocked down, there will always be someone standing at any given time.

Hacker is a dirty word, synonomous with terrorist, even here on ATS, and it never used to be like that. I'm not even going to get into it, but rest assured there are 12 year old kids out there who can out-code their best turncoat. There are double agents, just like in the cold war, and the powers that be can't afford a purge because they don't have access to enough highly trained replacements. A purge would be tantamount to suicide. They are a juggernaut, no doubt, but termites are thick amidst the woodwork.

The powers that be think they have it all on lockdown, but they're delusional (too much power will do that to a person). They are building a tower without concern for the foundation, and that practice has historically led to the crumbling of empires and towers both.

There are some really good data security guys out there, they WILL maintain the availability of your data if it's that important. If something like the cure for FMD or AIDS is being supressed, and it breaks free, the technology and the expertise now exists to make sure it stays that way; free to all.

If cyberspace is the wild wild west, there should be no doubt who's running the show. Why do you think there is so much information available? There are a lot of talented, dedicated people in the world who think it's worth the risk of persecution to maintain the flow of information.

Never let the bastards get you down! And if you do get knocked down, get right back up and keep firing those tiny, truth coated poison darts at the rampaging elephant behemoth. We pygmies will always prevail, it's just the way of things.

One mans defiance can be inspiration enough for thousands.

To me, Fox is sometimes opinionated and CNN's a repeater that takes Saturdays and Sunday PMs off (After late edition).

Its like well its Saturday we'll just run People in the News 5 times, running Dr Gupta 2-3 times in between.

Sunday afternoon CNN mixes In The Money between People in the news a few times, or was it the other way around..?

When you do catch the news CNN seems to repeat the same old- the same old every 15 minutes - every 15 minutes. The only thing that advances is time itself..

Its like Headline News and CNN cable news network switched programing.

Dallas

Originally posted by WyrdeOne
Soficrow
You're absolutely right, there have been casualties in the information war. The government pays a lot of people a lot of money to try and control the flow of information. The thing is, it's impossible. They're fighting a waterfall while we're taking a bath! Anyone who stands up to them has a chance of getting knocked down, in fact it's almost assured. The thing is, if enough people stand up, even though some get knocked down, there will always be someone standing at any given time.

If cyberspace is the wild wild west, there should be no doubt who's running the show. Why do you think there is so much information available? There are a lot of talented, dedicated people in the world who think it's worth the risk of persecution to maintain the flow of information.

Never let the bastards get you down! And if you do get knocked down, get right back up and keep firing those tiny, truth coated poison darts at the rampaging elephant behemoth. We pygmies will always prevail, it's just the way of things.

One mans defiance can be inspiration enough for thousands.

O wow. Got goosebumps and tingles reading that post.

If I had any way aboves left, you'de get them all.

You say, "There are a lot of talented, dedicated people in the world who think it's worth the risk of persecution to maintain the flow of information." So we CAN do it. Together. Bloody marvelous.

I love pep talks.


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Soficrow
Thanks, great to hear a response like that! I'm Glad I inspired someone so early in the day, now I can kick back and take the rest of the afternoon off.

I was just thinking about the irony of government being brought down by the internet. Their own offspring will destroy them, since the internet is pretty much considered the brainchild of the NSA. There is a LOT of bad information on the internet, but there is some truth, and a lot of people are out looking for that little bit of truth. If nothing else, it causes people on opposite sides of the globe to bump into each other while looking for the same thing, and that's worth a lot.

Now, every tyrant with too much to hide has the rest of the internet capable world to worry about, not just the people in his own country. Every decision is scrutinized, every policy is debated, and across the globe no less. People all over have been unified by the internet, even as powerful rulers seek to use it to divide the populace. I just love the law of reciprocity..

It's not just in the movies, evil schemes backfire in real life too! That's so comforting to know.

I'd like to see the internet used as the basis of government. For the first time ever, the realization of a true democratic republic is just around the corner. Imagine real time voting on county, state, and federal issues..

Originally posted by WyrdeOne

There is a LOT of bad information on the internet, but there is some truth, and a lot of people are out looking for that little bit of truth. If nothing else, it causes people on opposite sides of the globe to bump into each other while looking for the same thing, and that's worth a lot.

Now, every tyrant with too much to hide has the rest of the internet capable world to worry about, not just the people in his own country. Every decision is scrutinized, every policy is debated, and across the globe no less. People all over have been unified by the internet, even as powerful rulers seek to use it to divide the populace.

True! All true. ...But people still need to be aware - and realize that the internet is not immune to political dirty tricks. It's the new frontier, and getting a LOT of attention.

...So - we deny ignorance, seek information and celebrate knowledge. Yeah team!

Great thread sofi (as usual).

Personally I agree with WyrdeOne in that the Internet makes the world entirely different now. I have posted about this in other threads.

The Internet essentially makes all government obsolete. All we need to do is defend the integrity of the TCP/IP network from the corporations and the administrators and we can eventually do away with Congressmen and Senators. These guys were only needed because the farmers couldn't take time out from their farming to run the government. Now, with the internet, the government can be run by the people.

As for disinformation on the net, that is why it is so important to choose the best message forums in which to post. I've seen some tough moderators here at ATS but I have not seen any censoring of posts or mandate-deletion of users so I am feeling very good about participating on ATS right now. Boards like this are the crucial part because within a matter of 30 minutes we can collectively suss out if something is true or not. If something appears on the web, it will be acid-tested here, I am sure.

The Internet was created by the Military Industrial Complex and yet it is the very tool that can end war entirely. To me, this fact is amazingly profound.



[edit on 21-2-2005 by smallpeeps]

I don't see how the internet is any different from tv, there is bias left and right, but from people, and groups, that do not agree with everything the government does, and these people and groups have their own agendas.

If anyone in here really thinks that there is no bias at all on the internet, you are truly asleep, as some members keep saying.
What i don't understand is how some people think that all the news media "are paid by the government" when many times it is that same media that brings up the skeletons in the closet of politicians and the government.

Soficrow
They are definitely up to their dirty tricks everywhere and everyway. They use the internet, and they certainly use the trust people have in the internet. I just know they don't own the internet, they don't write THE rules, they write their version of the rules (which go entirely ignored for the most part) and expect everyone to listen to their stolen authority; not likely in a country where rebellion is tradition.

That's what I love about the internet, its not about force of arms, or any measure of social control. The internet is a true meritocracy, where people are judged on the weight of their words and their actions, where reputations are earned the old fashioned way. Political or social status don't mean a thing in cyber space, nationality is irrelevant, along with skin color, beauty, body modification, etc.

There are drawbacks to the freedom from prejudice..never thought I'd say that. The problem as I see it; too many people feel their internet existence has no relevance to their real life. They carry on like fools, because they're not really themselves, they're acting. They have no fear of being judged, and sometimes a little fear of scorn is healthy, it keeps us from engaging in wanton jackassery. I think the internet news clearly suffers from overzealous reporters, and the pseudo-anonymity is no doubt at fault. There is a sort of intoxicating freedom that results from the perception, however misguided, that there are no RL consequences to the lives we lead online.

I overcame the urge to be different people by maintaining the same name throughout my online life. I've been WyrdeOne on three ISPs, dozens of forums and boards, and in chat rooms, MUDS, and online RPGs since I was in middle school. There are no doubt other WyrdeOnes out there, online, but anyone who knew me before will recognize me now, because it's still the same person. It's a pseudonym, but a fitting one, and one I've never felt the need to discard for fear of the reputation I earned with it.

I may have grown up a little bit, but there's no mistaking the syntax and wit.

If the internet can affect some people positively, it must be a good thing. The internet stands to revolutionize journalism, because it allows independent, guerilla reporters to avoid capture and censure while still dumping their reports to a large audience, almost instantly. The responsibility will be on us, the viewing public, to discern for ourselves what is real and what is not. In that regard the internet is no different than print or radio.

Unfortunately there are governments and NGOs that actually dump buckets of patently false information into the internet. They try to scatter the real gold amongst piles of reeking garbage, and for the most part their strategy is successful, at least in keeping laymen away from having enough pieces to form a whole picture of anything.

There is a plus to that however, there always is.

The fact that some information is now even more rare, combined with the vast quantities of 'unsorted' information available for perusal, crystalizes the desire with which 'gem' hunters hunt. On top of that, information junkies are no longer just getting their fix, they're saving all of mankind from a repetition of the Dark Ages. That's motivation for ya'.

Originally posted by WyrdeOne

Unfortunately there are governments and NGOs that actually dump buckets of patently false information into the internet. They try to scatter the real gold amongst piles of reeking garbage, and for the most part their strategy is successful, at least in keeping laymen away from having enough pieces to form a whole picture of anything.

Really?.... i guess you are one of the few that is not "owned or paid" by the government....everyone that disagrees with your views, or with other members who think like you must be paid of by the government right?..... Typical......

Originally posted by Muaddib

Originally posted by WyrdeOne

Unfortunately there are governments and NGOs that actually dump buckets of patently false information into the internet. They try to scatter the real gold amongst piles of reeking garbage, and for the most part their strategy is successful, at least in keeping laymen away from having enough pieces to form a whole picture of anything.

Really?.... i guess you are one of the few that is not "owned or paid" by the government....everyone that disagrees with your views, or with other members who think like you must be paid of by the government right?..... Typical......

WyrdeOne - you do turn a phrase. Especially liked that bit about "wanton jackassery."



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