Is Credible Media Left in the US?

[Cyrus]

I was over a friends house today and I flipped through the TV and saw this bum. My my my, what an idiot.

http://img440.imageshack.us/img440/4681/untitled9cp.png (I[/URL] put that text in there)

He was talking about Iran's nuclear program and was saying "people want to treat iran like a little penguin. Awww, look at the little penguin. Isnt he cute. UNTIL HE POKES YOUR EYE OUT WITH HIS RADIO ACTIVE BEAK!"

What, an idiot. And this guy has a news show!

So I changed the channel and who do I see? This bum...

http://www.seespanrun.com/cloning/sean.jpg

Apart from Charlie Rose, is there ANY credible media left in this country??

 

[Evo]

This is so depressing.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I've recently complained about that guy, Katie Couric, and the news in general as well.

I think The News Hour on PBS is still pretty good. Meet the Press and This Week are good. But it is getting worse by the day.

I don't understand you considering Rose as a great news source. He is so heavily slanted towards the artsy fartsy stuff that I often turn him off. I would guess that on the average he only does hard news a couple of times a week.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I also love that how the news was reported, is a news subject. You know, the "How did we the media cover this or that?" coverage. It's not enough that we are starved for reliable news sources, now the bad or irrelevant reporting is news in itself as well.

Infotainment: There was a recent observation made by one analyst that, ironically, satire like http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/the_daily_show/index.jhtml can be more hard hitting than the allegedly real news shows.

 

[Cyrus]

I like Rose becuase he has various people come in that I would not normally know or watch. People like Artists, CEO's, World Leaders. He always has the best of the best. And he listens to what they have to say. He does not cut them off mid sentence and argue.

For example, right now I am watching him interview Peter O'toole.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I agree that Rose is very good. And, I do see your point; his guests are almost always top notch.

 

[Math Is Hard]

For example, right now I am watching him interview Peter O'toole.

He's still alive?! God, I love Peter O'Toole!:!)

 

[siddharth]

IMO, the *only* credible TV news channel available for viewing in my place is the BBC. The rest are either owned by the ruling party or opposition. It's so completely biased, one wonders if the channels are reporting the same event.

 

[brewnog]

I'm beginning to wonder even about the BBC. They seem to be just as willing to jump on the latest media bandwagon and provoke mass hysteria, be it bird flu, global warming, school dinners, or Beckham moving to the US.

 

[verty]

There is always bias, and one should always attempt to identify it.

 

[physics girl phd]

PBS is still pretty good... But it is getting worse by the day.

I agree. I was watching some PBS this week with my husband and an expert fom the "Congressional Quarterly" made some of the house bills that passed under the leadership of Nancy Pelosi into "laws" just to make the news more interesting. Since when is something only passed by the house a "law"?

Where's the good old:
I'm just a bill.
Yes, I'm only a bill.
And I'm sitting here on Capitol Hill.
-- http://www.school-house-rock.com/Bill.html ?

 

[SticksandStones]

Glenn Beck is an idiot (and that's an insult to the idiots of the world).

Remember when he asked the first Muslim congressman to prove that he wasn't a terrorist? Ugh, I'm ashamed to be in the same species as this tool.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I agree. I was watching some PBS this week with my husband and an expert fom the "Congressional Quarterly" made some of the house bills that passed under the leadership of Nancy Pelosi into "laws" just to make the news more interesting. Since when is something only passed by the house a "law"?

Where's the good old:
I'm just a bill.
Yes, I'm only a bill.
And I'm sitting here on Capitol Hill.
-- http://www.school-house-rock.com/Bill.html ?

Heh, I remember that song!

Did you watch the http://www.debates.org/pages/trans2004b.html moderated by Gwen Ifill? She was terrible!

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I have always been a fan of Face the Nation, but ever since Rather was taken down, Bob Schieffer - a long-time friend of the Bush's - has been throwing softballs.

Oh yes, I do still like the BBC, which is carried by PBS. What do you think of BBCA?

 

[russ_watters]

What, an idiot. And this guy has a news show!

News show? No, he has a talk show. Big, big difference.

 

[Cyrus]

Well, it is on CNN.

http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/glenn.beck/

Read the website, Headline News.

"Glenn Beck" is an unconventional look at the news of the day featuring Beck's unique and often amusing perspective on top stories from world events and politics to pop culture and everyday hassles. Like Beck's radio program, the show will be centered on current events and the opinions of Beck, all delivered in Beck's humorous, self-deprecating style.

 

[Cyrus]

Ughhh, what an idiot.

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/01/16/beck-oreo/

 

[Gokul43201]

He's scum, don't waste your time on him: http://youtube.com/watch?v=KuWsLyKySTY

 

[moose]

You guys are weird.

 

[russ_watters]

Well, it is on CNN.

http://www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/glenn.beck/

Read the website, Headline News.

I "look at the news" too - does that make me a reporter?

That description is pretty clear on what you are getting when you watch his show, even if it doesn't use the words "talk show". You're getting his perspective on the news (and whatever eles he feels like talking about). That's pretty much the definition of the term.

In any case, if you would prefer that they actually use the words "talk show", perhaps you can blame CNN for that because his personal website uses the words: http://www.glennbeck.com/about/about-glennbeck.shtml

Glenn Beck is the host and star of a nationally syndicated radio talk show as well as the fastest growing TV show in cable news. Known for his quick wit, candid opinions and engaging personality, Beck has attracted millions of viewers and listeners.
His radio show, The Glenn Beck Program, is heard on over 230 stations and is syndicated by Premiere Radio Networks. It is the third highest-rated national radio talk show among adults ages 25 to 54.

Beck’s self-titled topical talk show on CNN Headline News... [emphasis added]

Perhaps they simply don't like the term - maybe it implies a lower form of communication (ie, Oprah or Jerry Springer). They also don't call Larry King's show a talk show and he's pretty much the archetype.

 

[Cyrus]

Either way, the guy is a jackass.

 

[russ_watters]

Well, anyway, I haven't given my personal opinion on him...

I'm not a big fan of talk shows in general, but my boss is, so whenever I'm in his car I'm listening to either him or Rush (they are on back to back). Beck's ideas are actually generally better than Rush's, but he does present them in an over-the-top way that while entertaining and sometimes well pointed can be, well, over-the-top.

In general, I'd say he's somewhat less of a jackass than Limbaugh or Michael Moore or Al Frankin, but he can be a jackass every now and then.

The one thing that really turned me off to him, though, was flipping through the channels one day, I saw him interviewing John Edwards and he actually believes the guy talks to dead people. Apparently he had an experience himself a while ago. Not something well calculated to make him look rational...

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I think hate radio has contributed hugely to dividing this nation.

What gets me is that after six years of Bush and all that has happened, people that I know who listen to this nonsense are still passing around Bill Clinton jokes.

Talk about needing a life...

Oh yes, and apparently Hillary is actually "evil".

 

[turbo]

What gets me is that after six years of Bush and all that has happened, people that I know who listen to this nonsense are still passing around Bill Clinton jokes.

Yes, the thought of a sexual affair appears to titillate the Republicans, while body-counts in Iraq and Afghanistan leave them curiously uninterested, as do attacks on our privacy and liberties, many hundreds of signing statements "allowing" Bush to ignore laws passed by our elected representatives, etc. If Clinton had done even a fraction of the things that Bush has, he would have been impeached and driven from office. It seems our country has a tolerance for people who preach about their personal faith, while arranging the slaughter of innocents for no defensible reasons. 9-11 connections? No. WMDs? No. Saddam in bed with Osama? No. Control of Iraq's oil reserves? He claims not. Spreading democracy? Apparently not. Establishing Iraqi sovereignty? Not while Bushco dictates policy to the Shiite puppet government and blames them for failing to implement the policies. I cannot come up with a single reason why we should be demanding the sacrifice of our military personnel in the execution of this debacle. Not one. Tomorrow night, we will hear why we must "stay the course", "not cut and run", only settle for "victory" in Iraq, "move forward" etc, all without a single honest, rational justification for this war. I don't know if I can bear to watch.