What are your sources for news?


Bruette

Bruette

Well-Known Member
The topic of magazines came up in a conversation in the coffee shop and it got me thinking. Am I old fashioned or do some of my train buddies share my ways.

When I say news I don't mean only train news. I'm referring to local, national and international news.

My sources in order of use are:

1. The Baltimore Sun (print and occasionally the online edition) I love my news paper most of all!
2. NPR (National Public Radio)
3. PBS News Hour
4. CBS/NBC evening news
5. CNN
6. New York Times (online edition)
7. BBC World News
8. Local TV news. No one channel, they are all equally bad.

I use other online news papers but only if I feel the need to further research a story.
 
I use the following:
1. Fox Business News
2. CNN/Money (Online)
3. CNN (Online)
4. Fox News
5. ABC News (Occasional)

I also use an online site http://www.fark.com/ that gathers stories from all sorts of news sources and lists them under specific headings like Business, Politics, Sports etc.

Willie
 
TV, both public (ABC) and private
Internet
Newspapers only occasionally

I have one older neighbor/friend who regularly, every morning walks down to the local shops for his newspaper.
 
Hi, Louis;

it is getting to where I am beginning to shy away from the news anymore. Aside from the Baltimore sun, I visit pretty much the same list you do.

What is getting under my skin is the way things are being judged with only one side of the story being heard. That just happened here in Minnesota, the Governor reaching a verdict on the police officer before even getting all of the facts.

I used to live in Falcon Heights, where the crime was committed. I feel bad for all involved. No one is happy when this type of thing happens.
 
I use to work for a TV station and the news director once told me that news have to be negative so that people will feel better about themselves to the detriment of others. For example, glad it wasn't me that got shot, glad the tornado wasn't in my area, glad the fire wasn't in my area, glad my company didn't shut down, etc. He said that a good number of negative news should be around 95%.

Now that I moved in the country, I barely listen or watch the news and when I do, I find them so bias. I will watch comedy news such as Jimmy Fallon and use to love John Stewart. Laughter is better than stress.

If I do watch, it will be CTV, CBC and CNN
 
Interesting questions, Louis... Before I give my answer... I ask a similar question each semester of my feature/magazine writing students. The answer I got puzzled me the first time I asked it, but I quickly came to understand that they were answering a different question than I was asking.

"Facebook" and "Twitter" were their most common responses. I was taken aback at first, but then probing more deeply I realized they were answering the question literally (imagine that!)... Social media are their primary link to information. That doesn't mean they stop there -- most of them could follow up with where they went from those sources for details... My favorite answer was from the guy who said "Yahoo News, but they really suck."

My sources -- The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, New York Times (on the Web; I subscribe), a little bit of NPR, and then a lot of other stuff that I usually find my way to via... Twitter.

We cut out the TV part of our cable/Internet/Phone package a couple of years ago when we realized we could save $100 a month, that we rarely watched any of it, and that we could see our favorite stuff via Netflix and Roku (mostly public broadcasting stuff, and mostly entertainment, not news/documentaries). DairyStateMom listens to NPR driving to and from work in Milwaukee. I don't much because in the rhythm and tasks of my day, reading allows me to absorb news/information much more efficiently and effectively than listening.
 
logandsawman said:
Hi, Louis;

it is getting to where I am beginning to shy away from the news anymore. Aside from the Baltimore sun, I visit pretty much the same list you do.

What is getting under my skin is the way things are being judged with only one side of the story being heard. That just happened here in Minnesota, the Governor reaching a verdict on the police officer before even getting all of the facts.

I used to live in Falcon Heights, where the crime was committed. I feel bad for all involved. No one is happy when this type of thing happens.
Click to expand...


Hi David, I only know what read and seen on the news about the tragedy that happened in your state. It seems to me to be a combination of things. First and foremost I believe it was a lack of tanning and or experience that led to the officer panicking and pulling the trigger. He may have misread the situation, but we won't know until all the facts are in.

I believe in our justice system and we should reserve judgment until the courts have ruled. It is one thing for individuals to speculate, but public officials and the media should not be making judgments.

My heart goes out to the victim's family and friends. Having lived through the unrest in Baltimore I also feel for the people of MN. Violent protests don't solve anything, but I understand the frustration.
13567453_10105383278803602_5874865800702793994_n.jpg


Now more than ever we need to come together, not be pulled apart.
 
Thank you everybody for all the responses, very interesting in deed!

tootnkumin said:
...I have one older neighbor/friend who regularly, every morning walks down to the local shops for his newspaper.
Click to expand...

My wife manages a large convince store and she tells me "It's mostly old man buy the new paper"

Count me in!

Hawkesburytrain said:
I use to work for a TV station and the news director once told me that news have to be negative so that people will feel better about themselves to the detriment of others. For example, glad it wasn't me that got shot, glad the tornado wasn't in my area, glad the fire wasn't in my area, glad my company didn't shut down, etc. He said that a good number of negative news should be around 95%.

Now that I moved in the country, I barely listen or watch the news and when I do, I find them so bias. I will watch comedy news such as Jimmy Fallon and use to love John Stewart. Laughter is better than stress.

If I do watch, it will be CTV, CBC and CNN
Click to expand...

That is sad to hear why the news has so many negative stories.

My oldest daughter is always telling me about Jimmy Fallon. It's on too late for me and my DVR is full of old TV shows; Laramie, Get Smart, Hogan's Heroes, Kojak the Rockford Files and sports. I watch a few new shows too. Gotham, Game of Thrones, Elementary and others.

DairyStateDad said:
Interesting questions, Louis... Before I give my answer... I ask a similar question each semester of my feature/magazine writing students. The answer I got puzzled me the first time I asked it, but I quickly came to understand that they were answering a different question than I was asking.

"Facebook" and "Twitter" were their most common responses. I was taken aback at first, but then probing more deeply I realized they were answering the question literally (imagine that!)... Social media are their primary link to information. That doesn't mean they stop there -- most of them could follow up with where they went from those sources for details... My favorite answer was from the guy who said "Yahoo News, but they really suck."

My sources -- The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, New York Times (on the Web; I subscribe), a little bit of NPR, and then a lot of other stuff that I usually find my way to via... Twitter.

We cut out the TV part of our cable/Internet/Phone package a couple of years ago when we realized we could save $100 a month, that we rarely watched any of it, and that we could see our favorite stuff via Netflix and Roku (mostly public broadcasting stuff, and mostly entertainment, not news/documentaries). DairyStateMom listens to NPR driving to and from work in Milwaukee. I don't much because in the rhythm and tasks of my day, reading allows me to absorb news/information much more efficiently and effectively than listening.
Click to expand...

Interesting response DSD :) Being retired/disabled I could never give up my cable TV! In addition to the shows I mentioned my wife and I have all the premium movie channels because we enjoy watching movies together. On Demand is a fantastic feature and it has spoiled me forever!

My youngest daughter would probably have answered Facebook, but after she came to me with several silly news stories and I showed her how far off they are when compared to the Baltimore Sun Online and the New York Times online she was shocked.

hirailer said:
CTV
Internet

Do not use Facebook or twitter or any other social media site
Click to expand...

montanan said:
I'm with you hirailer. I have no use for "Social Media" at all.
Click to expand...

hirailer and Chet I do use Facebook. It's great to keep up with the young people in my family. God knows my nieces and nephews don't have time to visit me! On the other hand as a news source I think it is almost useless. I don't have twitter so I can't comment on that.
 
Out here ... Verizon carries a channel called OAN (One America News).
I believe that their headquarters is in San Diego. They give a mixture of International and Domestic news. They seem to be less biased with opinions than Fox and certainly CNN.
The only newspaper I look at when I can see a free one is: 'The Press Enterprise' which is a paper covering mainly the "Inland Empire" - the surrounding area within about a 50 mile radius. Once you get past the front page it gives all the surrounding towns' news and sports.

Louis -- Your thoughts are commendable; however, Jesus loved everyone and they crucified him.
 
Sirfoldalot said:
...Louis -- Your thoughts are commendable; however, Jesus loved everyone and they crucified him.
Click to expand...

It did not work out very well for Martin Luther King Jr. either. The patriots who signed the declaration of independence knew they were signing their own death warrant. They stood against tyranny in the name of freedom and equality. Their legacy gave us the freedom to protest peacefully and to exercise our right to vote. In this great country there is no reason to resort to violence. Good men have a responsibility to speak out against hatred.

Bias in the media is nothing new. Robber Barons once owned the media and used it freely to sway public opinion. Some are still trying. I have faith in my fellow Americans to seek out the truth.

This thread began with my curiosity to know if others read the news paper. What it has shown me is my faith in my fellow Americans to seek out the truth is well founded. :) Thank you everybody!
 
Louis, it was a very interesting and thoughtful thread you started here. As one of those who works in the much maligned (sometimes deservedly, sometimes not) media, and also plays a small role in teaching the next generation of professionals in that field, I found the responses interesting and thoughtful as well.

One aside, to Hawkesburytrain... It shames me -- though doesn't surprise me, which is in its own way even more shameful -- that there are practitioners as cynical as your former news director.

I will say, with great relief, that was not anywhere close to the philosophy of the people who have taught me in this profession, whether in journalism school some 35 years ago or in the publications I've had the good fortune to write and edit for since then. Consider yourself fortunate -- as I suspect you already do -- that you have moved on from what I suspect was an environment that was toxic in other ways, too.

And now back to the trains!
 
Erik, just to let you know that this didn't happen to only where I worked, but it's a common practice for most news.

Just today, they were talking about when will the market crash because it's been up for the last 5 days, WHY? They could of just mentioned that we've reached a 5 consecutive positive day and just have positive news about it, but nooooooooooo, we are doomed, market is going to crash, people will loose lots of money. (they said the same about Brexit and the markets are better.)

Doesn't matter what news channel you listen, try timing the positive news out of the entire broadcast and see how often they are positive. I surfed a bit on different TV stations today to find out that most were talking about how bad each VP candidates for Trump are, don't those VP candidates have any good things that could be mentioned?

If you want to be happy, enjoy life and have less stress, surround yourself with positive people and forget about the news.

Yes, back to trains
 
Bruette said:
That is sad to hear why the news has so many negative stories.
Click to expand...
There's hope, if you think about it.

"News," by definition, is something different, rare unusual, etc. That means that bad things happening is comparatively unusual. That, in turn, means it's unusual for white cops to shoot peaceful black men, it's unusual for black men to be criminals, and it's unusual for the electorate to vote for the wrong candidate.

This isn't to say there aren't things to worry about, only that the better part of ourselves is greater than the darker part. To my mind, that's something to hold on to.

Sirfoldalot said:
Louis -- Your thoughts are commendable; however, Jesus loved everyone and they crucified him.
Click to expand...

Somewhere, I've got a copy of Beady's Laws of Social Harmonics I once wrote. One of them runs, "If you love everything and everyone, you're sure to come down with a nasty disease."

Now I'm off to Hobby Lobby to get another grass sheet or two. With luck, I can get the first module of track up and running this evening.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk
 
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Our free press is like our great country. Much maligned and far from perfect, but still the best the world has to offer.

Not even the UK can boost to have a completely free press. Here there is always some young reporter looking to make a name for him or herself exposing something the government would rather keep quite. I believe and hope just the threat of exposer keeps them in line. Of course as we know greed has a way of superseding caution. The press is kind of like our conscience. We all have one, but some are good at ignoring it.

My worry is that the news papers won't be able to fund these investigative reporters. If we are left with social media for our source of news God help us. No editors to vet the stories would only lead to more and more lies and misinformation. Kind of like one of the networks we know of. ;) You fill in one, we all see them differently.
 
Beady said:
There's hope, if you think about it.

...Somewhere, I've got a copy of Beady's Laws of Social Harmonics I once wrote. One of them runs, "If you love everything and everyone, you're sure to come down with a nasty disease."...
Click to expand...

Beady I am hopeful as well, I'm glad to hear you are too!

My definition of love is not as broad as yours. Mine is inspired by the golden rule, in simple terms "treat people as you would have them treat you" almost every religion and culture since ancient times has a similar rule.

As for physical contact I'll keep that to a hand shake. For my family and very close friends a hug or kiss on the check, any more is for my wife only.
 
All news is biased. Every bit of it. IF you want balanced news you have to (1) go to a news source that has no skin in the game regarding the story (BBC for a story about the American midwest) or, more accurately, pick sources with opposite bias and carefully, very carefully, pick out the real in the story.

I don't care that much anymore, so I listen mostly to those who agree with me. :)
 
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