This article talks about how prevalent fake news has become. It also says that 70% of Americans rely on TV as there primary news source, so a problem arises when the news people are receiving are paid for by companies and created by PR firms. The use of VNR’s are rarely ever disclosed so people people aren’t realizing the news they are receiving is really fake news.
This article, “The Real ‘Fake News’”, from The Nation, discusses the accusations of Fox News’s conservative bias. The article says that Fox “functions like a cog in the Republic message machine,” giving evidence that during the 2004 election, only 13% of panelists’ comments for John Kerry were positive as opposed the 50% of positive comments made about Bush. Also, many of Fox’s guests only criticize liberals and Democrats. The article addresses the issues of bias media’s detriment to society. By reading this article, we can gain perspective into the news we see daily and become more critical consumers.
Here’s a thoughtful essay on fake news and its discontents. This essay is part of an innovative media studies blog–in media res–that you might find of some interest. I’ve got an essay appearing sometime next week–stay tuned.
Here is an article that is trying to say that television newsrooms are shying away from using VNRs because of their “reputation” with the general public. The article is short but tries to sway the reader by saying VNRs are not as bad as one might think. Read here to view the article.
This website explores some of the PR industries tactics. Much of the discussion includes how PR firms suppress dissenting voices by identifying activist, trying to turn them into “realists”, and the co-opting them. Check out the section on managing the media. Because the media is much easier to “handle” than the public, they are the main target of PR firms.
Last night, Bill Moyers Journal returned to public television after a prolonged absence. Here’s a clip featuring his first guest, Jon Stewart.
The 2008 presidential election is a long way off. But this fact doesn’t keep news outlets from using inappropriate measures to “gauge” American public opinion. The media watchdog group FAIR has issued a media advisory on the faulty logic of such reporting–and the consequences this has on one of our most fundamental democratic processes–our right to vote. Read the advisory here.
This article talks about the criticism PR firms are receiving for creating VNR’s or Fake News. While lobby groups are fighting to get rid of VNR’s, PR firms have formed their own lobby group, the National Association of Broadcast Communicators, to fight for the production of VNR’s.
A group called Comparative Insights conducted a research analysis on VNRs, evaluating how VNRs are generally covered by media and how it is generally portrayed. It goes further to discuss the benefits of VNRs and stations can use them correctly. This document takes a fairly biased side in delivering the facts about VNRs.
In an article from 2003, it was reported that a fake CNN blog that had been running for 4 months was taken down. The blog shared stories such as the Olsen Twins’ college plans and an apparent death of Dave Matthews. The blog generated a lot of attention as colleges were forced to deny claims of the twins’ attendance and Dave Matthews had to issue a public statement on his blog. This article relates to the current state of fake news, because the information of the fake blog was used by over 30 television stations and newspapers, thus causing the information to be believed as true. You can read the article here.