Journalism: Quest For Solid News - What's Underneath Underneath - Get Above It All!

in #journalism7 years ago (edited)

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Some folks are unable to distinguish when main media plants or slants a story and perhaps have no clue when matters of importance are outright omitted. A network’s man or woman at the White House or Pentagon-kind of report, is an example getting fed news.

Consider also how main media became complicit with the Clinton Campaign, especially during the early primaries. Trump and Clinton (see Wikileaks-Clinton) got intense coverage but hardly any coverage was assigned to Bernie Sanders who actually was pressing on issues and filling sports stadiums widely across the country, this while Clinton drew thin crowds and shied from press conferences.

What to watch for with today’s media? Lies, distortions, omissions and perversions of truth!

WARNING: Attention Span is Short -- Do Not Obey! READ: Warning!!!

What’s best for getting solid information? Follow Twitter accounts of investigative journalists. Determine what they and their colleagues write about or what they reference. You’ll find leads and links on where to further research. The main media has become so bad I now only view it when it is excerpted as a reference by someone else or I discover it from online trending.

When Reagan took office there were 50 major media companies. Today, only five control 90 percent of all media in America. Budgets to investigative journalism have severely been slashed; repeat/copycat reporting has become a norm; and advertising, marketing and the consultant class now rule over the public’s genuine right to know. Sadly, all major publications have eliminated the ombudsman (people advocate) position which traditionally has long critiqued a journal’s manner and accuracy of reporting.

The monopolized media today controls the news rather than covers the news!

Politically, when you factor in obscene political campaign spending it becomes easy to understand how members of Congress with 15% approval ratings maintain a 95 percent re-election rate? It’s also why voting for president becomes the choice between the lesser of two evils rather than a quality choice related to important and needed issues.

Inherently, due to expansive internet access, social media exploded with alternative news reporting sites. Main media, hunger only for profit and under the wing of oligarch control, now goes way beyond professionally-accepted journalistic standards.

These days the corporate media defensively invokes smear campaigns and pegs many social media sites as fake news. How ironic given what it reports is often fake news. Some sites are indeed fake news. But many others are not.

Today’s reality, shows us the smaller social media sites are actually digging deeper and fact checking what the main media is now reporting. This is especially true on important issues the monopolized main media outright and intentionally ignores.

No question that censorship has even followed the fact of media consolidation:

https://www.facebook.com/notes/michael-weddle/best-topic-for-table-talk-on-christmas-day-censorship/1512787958806047/

Anyway, it’s up to us to distinguish the difference! Referenced verification becomes our quest for true knowledge.

Adorn the truth!

Recommendation:

Below is a list of investigative journalists and social media perspective shows. I respect is their research, their reporting and the communications they share among colleagues.

If you don’t have a Twitter account, you should open one. Once on Twitter I recommend you click “follow” to the below-listed names. When you follow their daily postings on Twitter and keep up with the social media trends, you’ll never need to read another daily newspaper or watch a television network. The establishment pundits can all go to hell for choosing money over the truth in journalism.

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With these names, you’ll be up-to-date and, most importantly, you’ll get high quality, informative and accurate information!

Investigative Journalists & Analysts:

Serena Shim (RIP), Julian Assange, John Pilger, Greg Palst, Abby Martin, Robert Fisk, Pepe Escobar, Robert Parry (RIP), Richard Wolff, Amy Goodman, Chris Hedges, Seymour Hersh, Noam Chomskey, Glenn Greenwald, Oliver Stone, Lee Fang, Shaun King, Justin Raimondo, Nafeez Ahmed, Bill Moyers, Jamarl Lamont Thomas, Vanessa Beeley, Robert Sheer, Paul Pillar, William Blum, Jeremy Scahill, Rania Khalek, Juan Cole, Lee Camp, Sarah Stillman, Jesse Ventura, Mike Whitney, Benjamin Dixon, Patrick Cockburn, Gareth Porter, Jonathan Cook, Naomi Klein, Carl Bernstein, The Saker, Ralph Nader, Tim Black, Ben Norton, Max Blumenthal, Elizabeth Lea Vos, Paul Jay, Michael Moore, Norman Soloman, Eva Bartlett, David Sirota, Jimmy Dore, Randy Credico, Aaron Maté, Nomi Prins, Eric Zuesse, Israel Shamir, Paul L. Williams, Adam Carter, HA Goodman (on non-Trump subjects), Webster Tarpley, Thom Hartmann, Gerald Celente, Mike Papantonio, Alex Christoforou, Tyrell Ventura, Matt Taibbi, Maureen Dowd, Ben Swann, Ghassan Kadi, Mark Crispin Miller, Peter Kuznick, Charlie Pierce, Garland Nixon, Elijah J. Magnier, James Fallows, Caitlin Johnstone, Luke Rudkowski and David Kay Johnson. One must also credit George Webb, right or wrong, who keeps on digging, and also Defango for being creative.

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News sites, YouTube journals and independents offering wide-ranging perspectives:

Consortium News, Redacted Tonight, Jimmy Dore Show, Progressive Soapbox, Off-Guardian, Gray Zone Project, VIPS, Telesur, France 24-English, Al Jazeer-English, RT, Asia Times Online, RT-CrossTalk, RT-On Contact, Moderate Rebels, Veterans for Peace, Wikileaks, Moon Over Alabama, Empire Files, Ring of Fire, Anti-War, Watching The Hawks, We Are Change, New Eastern Outlook, The Real News Network, HA Goodman (for Clinton/Wikileaks updates not on Trump) Humanist Report, Secular Talk, Lionel Nation, Brave New Films, Southfront and when fantasy meets reality nothing beats Stan Lee’s Marvel Comic research staff.

One of the best interviews I’ve seen:

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[NOTE: I’m sure there are many others I haven’t mentioned. If you know a journalist or a perspective show or journal you think should be included, please note in the comment section and I’ll check ‘em out -- thanks!]

Good Luck, Folks -- Fare Ye Well!

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We need more journalust eager to find the truth than journalusts serving an agenda.

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