Critical Thinking Skills

[Duckshot]

As I wander round the newspaper and magazine racks leafing through the occasional article I'm starting to see that most all "news articles" these days are in fact editorial pieces. I'm wondering if anybody else noticed this?

It is frightening to me that many people in today's society cannot seem to tell the difference between a news article and an editorial article in a news item. It used to be when the press was interviewing people they might say, "Just the facts please". Not anymore. Facts are objective statements like who, where, when and what. These facts are comprised of nouns and verbs. Subjective opinion statements on the other hand always employ words that modify nouns and verbs. These modifying words are called adjectives and adverbs. Adjectives and adverbs are NOT objective. They are always subject to interpretation.


If the news says "A man robbed a well known local business man today. The bumbling thief was quickly picked up by police." Well that's not news, such statements employing adjectives and adverbs are editorial in nature.

Just tell me who, what, when, and where please. We can form our own opinions, thank you.

 

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[TooManyHobbies]

The press/reporters/journalists don't want to tell the news, they want to be the news, or put their opinion/spin on it. Usually agenda driven, IMHO.

 

[smokeythecat]

I noticed that also. It's all opinions, not news.

 

[Mackaydon]

Follow the money. Cold facts don't sell; flashy commentary does.
Don.....

 

[Duckshot]

Follow the money. Cold facts don't sell; flashy commentary does.
Don.....

Flashy commentary does seem to sell. But I'm not buying it.

 

[Clad2Silver]

As I wander round the newspaper and magazine racks leafing through the occasional article I'm starting to see that most all "news articles" these days are in fact editorial pieces. I'm wondering if anybody else noticed this?

It is frightening to me that many people in today's society cannot seem to tell the difference between a news article and an editorial article in a news item. It used to be when the press was interviewing people they might say, "Just the facts please". Not anymore. Facts are objective statements like who, where, when and what. These facts are comprised of nouns and verbs. Subjective opinion statements on the other hand always employ words that modify nouns and verbs. These modifying words are called adjectives and adverbs. Adjectives and adverbs are NOT objective. They are always subject to interpretation.


If the news says "A man robbed a well known local business man today. The bumbling thief was quickly picked up by police." Well that's not news, such statements employing adjectives and adverbs are editorial in nature.

Just tell me who, what, when, and where please. We can form our own opinions, thank you.

My local "news" paper is no longer readable. It has turned to the extreme left, replacing moderate or conservative journalists with ones that for the last few years did nothing other than bash Trump. The so called "news" items are more and more articles about why we need to be locked down and wear masks. No longer worth the paper it's printed on.

 

[Duckshot]

Same here, the yellow rag we call a local newspaper ain't even fit for wrapping fish.

 

[malenkai]

As I posted in another thread, I think the Wall Street Journal is the best as a news source, and the rest you just aggregate and for a composite truth.

The worse form of bias is what you don't see. The news the editors choose to print, and the news they choose to leave out.

A good example of this is the violent summer riots. Some news sources did not cover them at all, or lied about their existence, while others covered them 24x7. You need multiple sources.

 

[CoinFetcher]

Broadcasters are openly ‘editorial journalist’. - is is different than a regular ol’ journalist.

This is a wonderful time to exercise your critical thinking skills!

 

[Clad2Silver]

As I posted in another thread, I think the Wall Street Journal is the best as a news source, and the rest you just aggregate and for a composite truth.

The worse form of bias is what you don't see. The news the editors choose to print, and the news they choose to leave out.

A good example of this is the violent summer riots. Some news sources did not cover them at all, or lied about their existence, while others covered them 24x7. You need multiple sources.

The news media treated those riots and lootings like they didn't exist. Idiot Governors and mayors let them go on.