Part of the problem is pay-gating fact based media, while right wing propaganda is wide open.
https://intpolicydigest.org/how-paywalls-are-making-us-dumber/
“The truth is paywalled, but the lies are free”
I’ve often wondered what can be done about this. It’s accepted that good journalism is expensive- crews need to document, reporters need to travel, interview and investigate, writers have to write and editors need to edit. Nobody works this hard for free.
But now we’re also collectively showing we don’t want to pay for subscriptions, we don’t want to see ads, and we definitely want the fourth column to remain independent from government funding. Effectively there are no revenue streams available that work for these organizations.
Meanwhile AI slop, propagandists and trolls are more than happy to keep publishing because they don’t have the overhead of investment in truth. It seems like the ultimate lose situation and truthful, fact based reporting will eventually die completely.
we definitely want the fourth column to remain independent from government funding
“among rich countries, the United States is a biiiiiiiiig outlier [in per capita spending on public broadcasters]”
“Germany spends $142.42 per person on its public media. Norway spends $110.73, Finland $101.29, Denmark $93.16. Leave Scandinavia for Western Europe and you see the U.K. at $81.30, France at $75.89, and Spain at $58.25. Heading a bit east? The Czech Republic’s at $60.08, Estonia $55.70, and Lithuania $32.71.
Only trust the Anglosphere? Try Australia $35.78, New Zealand $26.86, or Canada $26.51. How about Asia? Japan spends $53.15, South Korea $14.93. Africa? Botswana’s at $18.38, Cabo Verde $15.22.
And then there’s the United States — which spends $3.16, per person, per year, on public broadcasting.”
Fund PBS and NPR.
Damn, I donate $5/m for PBS Passport but had no idea the US general funding was that relatively low. Appreciate the perspective.
Canada could do better, and is tumbling down the right-wing shit hole as we speak.
Man, thanks for these numbers. It just confirms my stance that America is not a country. It’s a for-profit company that hates its employees.
I think public funding with independent editorial control is the way to go. It’s not perfect by any means but it’s the best we have.
Funding should be tied to ethical journalism practices. Editorial content clearly separated from news, sourced facts, clear conflict of interest statements, equal time for opposing views, and corrections should be prompt and obvious.
equal time for opposing views
Regarding this you have to be careful to avoid false balance. Someone posted this image recently:
https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/pictrs/image/4f42cdbc-ca5e-4327-9237-3d6278e43dc3.webp
Sometimes one side is not equal to another.
Yeah, it’s not a clear cut policy. It could also force a news org to dig up a crazies that support racial segregation or ethnic cleansing. I would only expect “equal time” to apply to more op-ed type pieces, so someone like Tucker Carlson wouldn’t get an entire hour to himself. Those programs could still exist just not as a community-funded venture.
I have no journalism background so I’m just spitballing.
I’ve wondered the same thing. I never minded ads on news articles as long as they were along the side and out of the way of what I was reading. After they started pushing the ads that spring up in the middle of the text I was reading and click-jacked a few times, I switched over to an ad blocker and never looked back. Good journalism needs to be monetized in some way, but I’m not adding another monthly subscription for a single news source and I’m not reading articles from a source that prioritizes the ads over their content the way they have been. I don’t know how we go back from here.
It’s accepted that good journalism is expensive
No. It isn’t.
Even on The Left we are full of people who shit on news outlets endlessly and “help” by pulling stuff out of ad walls or to reproduce everywhere.
And the moment they see something they don’t want to? Personal attacks, accusations that journalists are shills, etc. Let alone if a news outlet decides they don’t want to risk persecution when they know nobody has their backs.
This battle is more or less lost. But the only hope is to push back against all the “all of this is just clickbait” stupidity and discourage people from pulling those articles out of the ad and pay walls.
Might?!
a hug majority of americans refuse to learn of how people like murdoch have been fucking over the anglosphere; so you have to be patient with people just now starting to question this decades long anticipated conclusion.
It predates Murdoch. Not to downplay him. There are plenty of valid criticism of Vladimir Lenin and acolytes, as well as their imperialistic annexation of much of eastern Europe. But the red scare was/is used to unjustly smear all the non Lenin aligned left. And set the groundwork for Murdoch. He’d be much lesser in its absence.
Feels like less people are questioning it, honestly. I’ve been politically observant for over 20 years now and this is as bad as I can remember.
As someone who’s got a little more than a decade on you in this instance. In some ways it’s worse. Some ways it’s better. A lot of the ways where it seems worse is just so much of it is out in the open. It’s not new. But people could ignore it.
It’s like all the rubes that think that since we’ve suddenly started being aware of autism. That somehow autism rates have exploded in recent years and it must be some nefarious plot. Rather than we didn’t have good definitions and diagnosis of it previously and a lot of it went undiagnosed.
All these fascists and Nazis didn’t pop fully formed from nothing. They’ve ALWAYS been here.
And while the right wing consolidation of mass media is worse now than ever. The internet has also given leftist spaces more reach and accessibility. Which is good. Though not without problems of it’s own. As many latch on to violent oppressive nominally left wing ideologies. Seeking simple solutions to complex problems.
It’s easy to become overwhelmed, numb, and detached. Make no mistake, we’ve got years of what should have been an avoidable shit storm coming. But the thing to consider. Whether you’re an easily manipulated, bigoted, or xenophobic right winger/conservative or a staunch lefty. We all agree that government isn’t serving us. And more and more of these manipulated conservatives are starting to realize that these corporations etc are the enemy. It’s why the recent assassination struck a chord. The more of them that break and wake up. The more we reach. The more perilous the wealthy’s position gets. The more possible change becomes. There doesn’t have to be violence. Unfortunately there will be violence. But once the wealthy think there is a real possibility. They could face repercussions. Change will happen.
agreed and it’s probably why this sort of slop has extended beyond the anglosphere into the rest of the european cultures as evidenced by france & germany’s lurch to the far right election victories.
Terminal means fatal, hopefully that’s not a certainty yet.
I’m aware of what terminal means, we’ve been that since 2016
Do not despair. Nothing in politics is permanent. It may be difficult but we can solve this together. Be sure to read this article to the end where it has the calls to action. Those are all good ideas. In addition I want to mention:
One thing everyone should do is vote in every election, even local elections.
Also specifically for when it mentions public funding try calling your representative and asking for this. It does matter.
In addition also work to defund right wing propaganda by calling advertisers and urge them to stop advertising on Fox and other right wing stations. Also if you have a TV subscription make sure the package doesn’t include Fox News. If it’s impossible to remove Fox News call the company and ask for a no Fox option. If enough people call they may one day offer it. This step is important because Fox News gets most of its money from carriage fees.
In addition boycott Twitter/X and also Meta (Facebook/Instagram/Threads) and switch to Mastodon and Bluesky. Make sure your friends do the same.
might beisRussian Oligarchy: 1991-present
American Oligarchy:
Media literacy defeats propaganda, and that’s why we’ll always have to fight to get it, or even hear about it.
It’s been a problem since Van Buren
Quality article. Worth the read
Honestly if you fall for right wing propaganda I consider you a lost cause as a human. It’s really not hard to see through even as a child. If you don’t have the cognitive reasoning to figure it out I don’t trust your day to day decision making.
America’s left wing propaganda is right wing propaganda and the greatest trick foisted on us since the 20s is thinking we’re not.
Oh say can you see By the dawn’s fading light
The remains of your land
And the cruise missiles fly Through the ---------- sky
You stood up to the commies While the rest of us died
Oh say can you see by the star spangled banner
This is not a test
Wake up America and Be a good American and Buy American Pledge your next car to be American
Oh what a bunch of shit Nazi propaganda Thanks to crap like that I’ve got a cruise missile in my backyard
Wake up America and Be a good American and Buy American Pledge your next car to be American
Oh what a bunch of shit Nazi propaganda Thanks to crap like that I’ve got a cruise missile in my backyard
And the land of the free And the home of the brave
