plamdi Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 Anything is better than spreading those ridiculous allegations of sexual misconduct - if Jackson was a paedophile then I'm Santa Claus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neon_git Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 It's not worth getting offended over, it's just human nature, for better or worse. Racism is a product of human nature, is that not worth getting offended over? Yeah, I know, that's not even close to a fair comparison. Racism has caused the needless suffering of millions - people being overly upset about the death of a celebrity doesn't hurt anyone. I was just being facetious above, but I do have a serious problem with the news coverage of this. Not just this, but in general, journalists are going for the emotional, human interest side of the story when they should just be reporting the facts. I can't really prove this, but it is my suspicion that the media is far more responsable for manufacturing this ludicrous reaction than human nature. Basically I'm angry because I feel alienated. Anything is better than spreading those ridiculous allegations of sexual misconduct - if Jackson was a paedophile then I'm Santa Claus. Asserting that he defininitly wasn't is just as absurd as asserting that defininitly he was. You don't know and you have no way of knowing. He was never convicted and we should assume his innocence, but that's not the same this as calling the allegations ridiculous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haggis Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 I was just being facetious above, but I do have a serious problem with the news coverage of this. Not just this, but in general, journalists are going for the emotional, human interest side of the story when they should just be reporting the facts. I can't really prove this, but it is my suspicion that the media is far more responsable for manufacturing this ludicrous reaction than human nature. I do believe there is some truth to this. I was just thinking what is going on around the world today: - Unrest in Iran - Pirates in Somalia - War in Afghanistan and Iraq - Economic crisis - Mexican flu - And the usual diseases, famine, kidnappings, murders, etc. And what's on the news? What's on the bloody entire news bulletin?! Michael Jackson. Now, I'm not saying the media should just bring doom and gloom, but I watch the news to keep up with what's happening around the globe. When pretty much an entire news bulletin is dedicated to the death of a singer, there's something wrong with the news editors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s-island Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 They write what they think people are most likely to read, and gossip sells well. On the Internet this translates into ad revenue from people clicking on articles and so they have hundreds of articles about every minutiae detail surrounding Jackson's death. News organizations exist mainly to make money, not to provide news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sven_Q45 Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 - Unrest in Iran - Pirates in Somalia - War in Afghanistan and Iraq - Economic crisis - Mexican flu - And the usual diseases, famine, kidnappings, murders, etc. Terrible! But humanity! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fealiks Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 I do believe there is some truth to this. I was just thinking what is going on around the world today: - Unrest in Iran - Pirates in Somalia - War in Afghanistan and Iraq - Economic crisis - Mexican flu - And the usual diseases, famine, kidnappings, murders, etc. And what's on the news? What's on the bloody entire news bulletin?! Michael Jackson. Now, I'm not saying the media should just bring doom and gloom, but I watch the news to keep up with what's happening around the globe. When pretty much an entire news bulletin is dedicated to the death of a singer, there's something wrong with the news editors. Why do you want to hear about that stuff? I think it's funny that some people spend their 80 years on this Earth enjoying complaining about how bad it is I keep hearing people at the moment moaning about politics and how this country (England) is a police state, and how bad the government is, and how the state of the country drives them mad... but this is actually a brilliant country. For me, though, ignorance is bliss. Actually, having said that, ignorance is not bliss. It's the people who seem to think we're living in a world made entirely of poodle poo who are ignorant Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neon_git Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 They write what they think people are most likely to read, and gossip sells well. On the Internet this translates into ad revenue from people clicking on articles and so they have hundreds of articles about every minutiae detail surrounding Jackson's death. News organizations exist mainly to make money, not to provide news. I understand why it is, but that doesn't make it ok. The medical industry, for example, also exists for the purpose of making money yet they also have a clear and detailed code of conduct and acknowledge their ethical obligations. It's the people who seem to think we're living in a world made entirely of poodle poo who are ignorant I, like everyone else, am ignorant of many, many things. You must surely agree, though, that news outlets dumbing everything down into emotive human interest stories, rather than rational, well informed, in depth reporting, can only exacerbate the spread of ignorance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickelstein Posted June 28, 2009 Author Share Posted June 28, 2009 Billy Mays just died today. That guy from the infomercials who kept on talking about OxiClean and Orange Glo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fealiks Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 I understand why it is, but that doesn't make it ok. The medical industry, for example, also exists for the purpose of making money yet they also have a clear and detailed code of conduct and acknowledge their ethical obligations. I, like everyone else, am ignorant of many, many things. You must surely agree, though, that news outlets dumbing everything down into emotive human interest stories, rather than rational, well informed, in depth reporting, can only exacerbate the spread of ignorance. I disagree; a lot of people aren't well informed enough by the news (as regards politics) to discuss it realistically - instead, a lot of people just talk about the "police state" and "political correctness gone mad". And as for news of murders and abductions, they just makes people worried to walk the streets. As a result, people saying "hello" to strangers in the streets are now regarded as weirdos. It just makes people paranoid :/ And it's not like it ever gives anything other than an interesting topic of discussion - why is anything in the news really relevant to our day to day lives? That which is relevant probably makes up about 10% of what is reported. Lol, sorry for the rant Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neon_git Posted June 28, 2009 Share Posted June 28, 2009 I disagree; a lot of people aren't well informed enough by the news (as regards politics) to discuss it realistically - instead, a lot of people just talk about the "police state" and "political correctness gone mad". And as for news of murders and abductions, they just makes people worried to walk the streets. This is essentially what I'm talking about. It's far cheaper and quicker to provoke an emotional response such as fear or anger than than to go into any detail and actually explain a complex issue. it's not like it ever gives anything other than an interesting topic of discussion - why is anything in the news really relevant to our day to day lives? You cannot be serious. That is a ridiculously naive attitude. Firstly, just because something happens on the other side of the world doesn't mean it doesn't affect you. The Somalian pirates, for example, have a direct impact on the cost of imported goods. This is a pretty simplistic causal relationship, other relationships may be more convoluted but almost everything that is considered "world news" has an affect on some aspect of your life. Second, just because a news item doesn't have even and indirect affect on your life doesn't mean that it's not worth knowing about. Watching how situations across the globe unfold, and why the the turn out the way they do, gives you an understanding how the world works and what the consequences of tackling different issues in different ways are. That understanding can be applied to domestic issues and inform your opinions on all sorts of problems that are relevant to your day to day life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickelstein Posted June 29, 2009 Author Share Posted June 29, 2009 They're not called Somolians they're called the Somali. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haggis Posted June 29, 2009 Share Posted June 29, 2009 I disagree; a lot of people aren't well informed enough by the news (as regards politics) to discuss it realistically - instead, a lot of people just talk about the "police state" and "political correctness gone mad". And as for news of murders and abductions, they just makes people worried to walk the streets. As a result, people saying "hello" to strangers in the streets are now regarded as weirdos. It just makes people paranoid :/ I'm sorry, but it doesn't quite work like that. You could argue that it makes people paranoid... but on the other hand, it could equally be argued that people who are already paranoid tend to watch news like that to confirm what they already believe. As for why to watch the news, neon_git already explained it very well. Things that happen elsewhere have an impact on what happens here. That said, I'm definitely not just spending my 80 years here looking at depressing stuff - I love watching cartoons, I love playing games, I'm a child at heart, really. But when I do decide to watch something serious like the news, I expect to get serious stuff, not just banal nonsense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nickelstein Posted June 29, 2009 Author Share Posted June 29, 2009 I agree with neon git. The news effects our everyday lives. Like when the Iraq War started I remember all they had on the news was propanganda and advertisments telling us to join the army. The reporters were incredibly baised. They kept talking about how successful the war effort was and I remember George W. Bush had said the Iraq War was an American victory on the FIRST day of the invasion. A couple months afterwards the news media slowly trickled to the US casualities. The casualities just got higher and higher as time went on. One of the things I remeber as a little Nickelstein was how they made us all afraid. America was in a state of fear. If you looked Middle Eastern people would stare at you on the train. If it was 2003 and you were Middle Eastern don't even think about getting on a plane. On the news things just got more paranoid. The reporters were talking about how terrorists could use PENS to kill people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fealiks Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 This is essentially what I'm talking about. It's far cheaper and quicker to provoke an emotional response such as fear or anger than than to go into any detail and actually explain a complex issue. So? Just because it's cheaper and simpler doesn't mean it's not better. In fact, some principals suggest that the simpler the better. Some suggest otherwise. You cannot be serious. That is a ridiculously naive attitude. Firstly, just because something happens on the other side of the world doesn't mean it doesn't affect you. The Somalian pirates, for example, have a direct impact on the cost of imported goods. This is a pretty simplistic causal relationship, other relationships may be more convoluted but almost everything that is considered "world news" has an affect on some aspect of your life. Yes, the Somali Pirates did have an effect on the cost of imported goods for me. But why do I need to know that? How could that possibly benefit me in any way? Knowing that imported goods are more expensive is helpful, knowing why is trivial. Second, just because a news item doesn't have even and indirect affect on your life doesn't mean that it's not worth knowing about. Watching how situations across the globe unfold, and why the the turn out the way they do, gives you an understanding how the world works and what the consequences of tackling different issues in different ways are. That understanding can be applied to domestic issues and inform your opinions on all sorts of problems that are relevant to your day to day life. That's a good point. I'm sorry, but it doesn't quite work like that. You could argue that it makes people paranoid... but on the other hand, it could equally be argued that people who are already paranoid tend to watch news like that to confirm what they already believe. That's true, but it isn't a case of either/or; both of these cases are true. People do watch the news to confirm their paranoia, but others are simply made paranoid by scary news stories that hold no realistic threat (like reports of knife crime). That said, I'm definitely not just spending my 80 years here looking at depressing stuff - I love watching cartoons, I love playing games, I'm a child at heart, really. But when I do decide to watch something serious like the news, I expect to get serious stuff, not just banal nonsense. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that taking an interest in the news is a bad thing at all. I'm just saying that the news seems to incite pessimism. I agree with neon git. The news effects our everyday lives. Like when the Iraq War started I remember all they had on the news was propanganda and advertisments telling us to join the army. The reporters were incredibly baised. They kept talking about how successful the war effort was and I remember George W. Bush had said the Iraq War was an American victory on the FIRST day of the invasion. A couple months afterwards the news media slowly trickled to the US casualities. The casualities just got higher and higher as time went on. One of the things I remeber as a little Nickelstein was how they made us all afraid. America was in a state of fear. If you looked Middle Eastern people would stare at you on the train. If it was 2003 and you were Middle Eastern don't even think about getting on a plane. On the news things just got more paranoid. The reporters were talking about how terrorists could use PENS to kill people. That's a pretty strong argument for what I'm saying. The examples you used were of the exaggeration of the news making people paranoid, which is what I'm talking about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blix Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 Record sales are through the roof though, guess his family has that at least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fealiks Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 lol they already had that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
purple_tentacle_ Posted July 3, 2009 Share Posted July 3, 2009 lol they already had that Ya but I guess he was broke. Well he doesnt have to worry about that anymore... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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