D-Rock wrote on Jan 11, 2021, 08:42:

Saboth wrote on Jan 10, 2021, 14:14:
If we go that route, then I'd also argue Fox, Newsmax, OANN, and the others need massive oversight and regulation. If you purport to be news, you should employ journalists with actual degrees and experience in journalism, be held to some kind of journalistic standards, have to provide at least some kind of sources for your "stories" (other than "some people believe"), etc. Hell, we also need to bring back the Fairness Doctrine that Reagan scrapped that paved the way for these political propaganda outlets.

What you've described is an issue that applies to all media. Prior to the election the left media constantly cited 'anonymous sources' for their big 'stories'. An anonymous source is not a source. That's just one example of the left's integrity issues. If you want to regulate it has to apply to everyone.

Good luck finding actual fact checkers that are not biased though...

There is nothing wrong with anonymous sources, they are a career check for the journalist, the editor and fact checking. There is a process involved and it is one we have trusted for a long time. The reputation of the organization is on the line and it is taken seriously by real news organizations. Your distrust of it is unreasonable unless you getting your information from places you do not trust and if that's the case, I think you need to ask yourself where the problem really lies.

You talk about integrity issues on the left as well which is kind of disingenuous when most of the right wing media in this country has descended into fantasy fiction. As a nearly lifetime Conservative I am very careful where I get my news. I tend to pay for reputable news from real organizations like the New York Times. I don't go there expecting my ego to be stroked or my opinion to be coddled, I read it for the news. People cry about bias but I see opposition editorials in every reputable newspaper I read. And if I am really feeling sensitive I just avoid the op-eds. I get very little news from television. Fox News has few reputable journalists on staff and is mostly a glorified op-ed/propaganda machine. Likewise I find CNN to be a glorified entertainment network. I don't even need to mention OAN or Newsmax, if you think those are reputable sources of information then you need to further educate yourself. The idea that "conservative news" is somehow even different than regular news is silly to me. News is news.

We've allowed the demonization of journalism which has destroyed trust in an institution that is a critical pillar of society. We also have too many people in this country who do not use their critical thinking skills or lack them entirely. I get relatives sending or telling me the most ridiculous things that do not survive even a cursory credulity check, let alone a fact check. The overwhelming majority of the time when I ask them where they heard it, it is from right wing media sources. Most of them never bother to source what they hear which is also distressing. People claim they don't have time to look things up yet they always seem to have time to endlessly regurgitate crap online.