Last week I learned that America is not falling apart. I did it by metaphorically burying my head in the sand, ostrich-like. I stopped watching TV news for a few days. I missed it, the way I would miss a cup of coffee in the morning. A habit interrupted.
The first TV news-free day was difficult. I cheated a bit, by looking at Google News, which links to some video news posted on YouTube and other electronic media and by more thoroughly reading my newspaper. Determined, I made it through but decided to take my plan day-by-day. Basically, I substituted reading for watching the news. My goal was not to stop receiving news, but to get it from more accurate sources. Finally, rather than committing myself to a week or more of not watching news, I set the goal of abstaining from TV news for as long as I could.
It turns out that was only three days. Not long, but enough to convince me my idea had merit. That lifted my spirits. The news I got in print form, including news from the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, and The Economist, was different than that I was getting from TV. The same major events were covered, but less sensationalized. I didn’t get to see interviews with weeping parents of shooting victims, but I did learn more about the epidemic of shootings. I learned much more about the Israel-Gaza fighting instead of just seeing videos of bombed-out buildings and wounded children.
I also found that domestic politics is usually not covered unless there is news worth covering. Rather than learning about how Trump crashed a wedding at Mar-A-Lago, I read an analysis of why Republican congressional leaders believe Trump remains relevant to their efforts to win in 2022.
Reflecting on the change in the type of news I was receiving, I was grateful for no longer being bombarded with the worst, often exaggerated or false, bad news of the day. In its place, by reading the newspaper (including The Spy), I was reminded that this community, and the country, is mostly populated by decent people, working honestly to cope with the pandemic, economic downturn, and other challenges. I learned there is good news out there to balance out the bad.
Those who regularly read my columns may shake their heads and think, “He stopped watching MSNBC 10 hours a day.” I was not watching TV news for that long but confess to watching it for maybe two hours a day. If you watch MSNBC, you learn a lot about the threat to democracy posed by right-wing loonies and the problem of systemic racism. You also learn that the Republican party is rotten to the core. But sometimes that’s all you learn.
MSNBC’s focused news is not necessarily wrong. I agree with a lot of the opinions that are the mainstay of the channel. But it is no more “fair and balanced” than Fox News, NewsMax, and OAN. All these channels—those on the left as well as on the right–are a disservice to anyone interested in “the middle.” The middle is boring, so none of them spend much time covering it.
Watching one-sided news undermines our ability to talk to one another. If watching MSNBC or CNN convinces me that most Republicans are virulent racists, how likely is it that I will be able to exchange ideas with them? Convinced that they are beyond reason, I won’t get near them. Similarly, many conservatives, some of whom I would call right-wing, will not want to talk to me if they assume I am left leaning for the same reason.
What is to be done about the situation? Certainly not government regulation that would effectively control what is broadcast. That not only would be unconstitutional, but it would also be a disaster. It is next to impossible for any government agency to differentiate objective from biased news. Ultimately, the party in power would determine what we hear and see. Just like China, North Korea, and a few other places. No thank you.
To weigh in against government regulation of news content is not to say there is no role for government. In addition to the government itself ensuring that the information they share with the public is accurate, think PBS. While many of us occasionally disagree with a PBS news story or program, few of us would suggest PBS is as biased as Fox, OAN, MSNBC, and CNN. If PBS maintains its quality and independence, it will be worth watching.
Another “solution” I reject is the idea that I should be watching news channels promoting ideological perspectives different than my own. For me this would mean watching Fox and similar channels. No, thank you. I’m not a masochist. Listening to the likes of Sean Hannity isn’t going to make me smarter any more than watching Morning Joe will “cure” a Proud Boy.
One valid solution, at least for me, is to seek out trusted, unbiased news sources. In addition to reading magazines such as The Economist and reading newspapers I trust, I occasionally tune into C-SPAN and watch congressional debates directly. Doing so offers me an opportunity to listen to legislators debate. While the quality of the debate—on both sides of the aisle—is often lacking, you do hear both sides.
Finally, there is the option of talking to others with differing views from yours whenever possible. Such conversations can be especially educational. To make these conversations happen, all you need to do is to open yourself to them, find opportunities to engage in them, and be civil. If you are civil in conversations with others, you will listen to pretty much any differing point of view and remain calm. With a little luck, you learn something.
So, what happened when I stopped watching TV news? I became better informed, more positive, more engaged with others, and a bit happier. Since I returned to watching TV news, I now watch much less and consider it a strictly secondary source of news. For me, that’s progress.
J.E. Dean of Oxford is a retired attorney and public affairs consultant writing on politics, government, birds, and occasionally goldendoodles.
Stephen Schaare says
Why must you always revert to “systemic racism” “Republicans are virulent racists”, “republicans are rotten to the core”, why do you use such inflammatory language? Do you believe this is helpful to the core belief of “unity”, espoused by Joe Biden?
John Dean says
Thanks for reading the piece.
Please note that I was describing the impressions that one might get by watching MSNBC or CNN. I used inflammatory language to emphasize the point that those channels promote extreme views. While I suggested that I agreed with some opinions expressed on MSNBC, that the channel was not “fair and balanced.” My intention was not to say that the Republican party is rotten to the core.
Please also note that while I support much of what Biden has done or proposed as president, I didn’t write this piece to promote him or any of his policies. The piece was about bias in the media and my views on how it undermines our ability to talk to one another.
In any case, thanks for your comment and for reading the piece.
Stephen Schaare says
Thank you for your reply. I never intended to assign these words as your personal beliefs.
You see, I hear this inflammatory rhetoric every day, every single day. As Joe Biden said to a Fox reporter, ” you are a one horse pony”. These words, in my personal opinion, describe the left media.
Every day, the same mantra. The charges are without end. One little thing missing, Counselor-evidence.
I enjoyed your piece. Thank you again for “getting back”.
Jeff McGuiness says
Thank you for your valuable and balanced insight. We have sworn off nearly all TV news in our house for just the reasons you articulate. When we try to go back, we are so repelled by what we see, we immediately turn the TV off. You articulate one of the primary reasons our political discussion has become so ideological and unhinged.
I would throw Politico into the mix of media worth reading as well as some of the political newsletters by Axios, particularly Mike Allen’s twice daily emails. Still, while much more in depth, the print media is not without its flaws. Abetted by Twitter, reporters too often are opinion writers. Plus they tend to stick to narrow lanes established by herd consensus. I too spent my career in politics and was always amazed at the difference between how the issues we were working on were being reported in the media and what was actually going on and why.
John Dean says
Thank you for your kind words. I agree with you on Politico and Axios. I also regularly read The Hill. I am not familiar with Mike Allen’s emails and will take a look.
Joe Miller says
Just watch broadcast news, not the so-called news programs that are on cable TV. You will get largely unbiased news without opinion from these broadcast sources.