[ SECRET POST #2097 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #2097 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 06 pages, 129 secrets from Secret Submission Post #300.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 - not!secrets ], [ 1 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ], [ 1 - posted twice ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[fscom]

03. http://i.imgur.com/DCsTT.png

[(Anonymous)]

I...think that's the case with a lot of people, actually. I don't know whether it's sad (in the sense that folks get their info from two comedians rather than from actual news) or good (in the sense that folks are informed who otherwise wouldn't be). It's probably a combination of the two.

[visp]

Yeah, it's surprising the whole "make the news interesting" thing took so long to catch on and become the primary information source for so many people.

[elaminator]

I LOVE Colbert and Stewart and have no problem admitting that before them I wasn't as interested in politics. I do try to keep up with things outside their shows, but the way those two sum everything up is very convenient as well, so I can understand wanting to come to them for the news. And even if you're only interested because of a couple of comedians...that's better than not being interested at all, imo.

[sensualcoco.livejournal.com]

this

[(Anonymous)]

"I do try to keep up with things outside their shows, but the way those two sum everything up is very convenient as well,"

But... they don't sum up. They present one very specific vision of events with one specific understanding of what's important - mostly, the same priorities and mental blind spots that cable news has (understandable, since they're mostly devoted to mocking cable news). They sum up a very specific subset of news: news that is deemed important to American politics by the cable news networks. Now, usually they're a little smarter than people on the cable news networks, but the focus is the same.

It's good that people are more interested in news now, and I really don't mean to come at anyone for only following fakenews. It's more that I worry about the extent to which American cable news serves the function of informing the people. I worry about the extent to which a very specific ideological understanding of the world is the only one that most people have access to. And I worry about the fact that people weren't interested in the news before Stewart & Colbert made it funny. It's not the fault of anyone watching the news, it's more the fault of the media culture that we have in America that created these effects.

[elaminator]

IDK what to say to this other than I don't believe watching Stewart & Colbert makes me well informed about the world at large. It's one hour...they could never fit everything there is to know in one hour, even if they were inclined too (and they aren't). That's why we have 24 hour news networks, even if those channels are specific in what they cover too. However, if you want to know what's going on in America, I think Colbert and Stewart do a damn good job of covering some of the more important topics.

And lets face it, not everyone has oodles of time to watch the news/scour the web for news every day. And even if they did, would they? An interest in politics is a very healthy thing imo, but just because someone starts watching these shows for the lol's doesn't mean they can't gain some deeper curiosity about politics that they might further pursue.

And I worry about the fact that people weren't interested in the news before Stewart & Colbert made it funny.

Some people. I personally said I wasn't as interested, which is different. I do get what you're saying, but the fact is for many people politics are intimidating and they don't know where to start; they can quickly become overwhelmed. (Not saying that should necessarily stop people, but it can be an issue.) And, some people just hate the vitriol that political conversations seem to bring. Again, I'm not saying it isn't good to stay informed, because of course it is; but everyone has their own reasons for doing so or not doing so, and what are you going to do, force them to get involved?

Colbert and Stewart might be far from unbiased, but from what I've seen they do as good a job of bringing facts into their programs as real news networks. (Maybe better, in some cases.)

[(Anonymous)]

Yeah and let me be clear here - I really wasn't trying to get angry at people or call anyone out, and if that's the way it came across I apologize. What I'm trying to say is that it's kind of worrying that a pair of comedy shows are legitimately more thoughtful and better sources of news than most news programming in the United States, that it's worrying that politics is so depressing and so alienating and so full of hostility, and that even the more thoughtful popular news sources are still full of unconscious bias and present a very selective understanding of the world.

That shit is legitimately worrying to me. But it's definitely not the fault of any news consumer and I don't intend to try and make anyone feel guilty for not being better informed - I'm just saying, I guess, that these are legitimately negative things about the media culture in America that lead to people being poorly informed.

[elaminator]

No need to apologize! I seem to have misunderstood your intent, and am now realizing my comment sounded pretty hostile. Sorry about that!

What I'm trying to say is that it's kind of worrying that a pair of comedy shows are legitimately more thoughtful and better sources of news than most news programming in the United States, that it's worrying that politics is so depressing and so alienating and so full of hostility, and that even the more thoughtful popular news sources are still full of unconscious bias and present a very selective understanding of the world.

I agree. Not going to say I don't ever enjoy programs where there's a clear bias (some of MSNBC's coverage) because I'd be lying, but you're correct in that most news media is biased in one way or another. Of course I can see how that can be troubling, but at this point it just seems impossible that anything is ever going to change that. I suppose I've gotten used to the idea.

[(Anonymous)]

I'm not from the US and (I don't mean to be offensive) I don't really care about american politics, but I still watch both TDS and TCR, just because I enjoy Stewart and Colbert. So yeah, go shallow me.

I think it's safe to say you're not the only one whose news source they are, anon.

[(Anonymous)]

Not OP

That's really not that offensive - you're not from here, so it really makes sense that you wouldn't be that interested in the internal politics.

Plus Stewart and Colbert are just freaking awesome.

[(Anonymous)]

Same here. I'm not American, but they are both SO entertaining.

[(Anonymous)]

I get my news from Have I Got News for You, Mock the Week, or The Now Show or News Quiz. I think it's better than ignoring all current affairs completely.

[(Anonymous)]

Well, I've done the student variety of politics and I discovered I wasn't cut out for the frustratingly prevalent backstabbing and rhetoric. And that's mild compared to the big stage by all accounts. Maybe you should do a bit more research.

[(Anonymous)]

Interest in politics for the sake of humor is a hobby. However, people who can't grow their knowledge by looking at more than one source (the Colbert Report is not a 'second source') have no business in politics or in critical discourse of any kind.

[maverickz3r0]

Ehh. Not American but I love those shows. (Colbert did reports from my city during the 2010 Olympics, though!)

Honestly, if you're only picking one news source to watch, you could do a lot worse.

[(Anonymous)]

Jon Stewart was rated the "most trusted newscaster in America" last year or the year before. So you're clearly not alone.

Pursuing a career in the media, you should check out other sources, but there's nothing wrong with having favorites.

[(Anonymous)]

Idk, the issues are intelligently presented on those shows, comedy or no, I wouldn't rate either as a bad source of information. And both Stewart and Colbert sometimes get into very in-depth conversations with their guests that aren't strictly satirical at all. I'm not American but I learned a whole lot about US politics from Daily Show and Colbert Report, for example how some of the institutions work and the names of notable politicians that aren't necessarily in the international news.

[(Anonymous)]

Pretty much this. I didn't know where to even start with politics (sorry social studies, you tried) until I started watching them and now I've expanded out from that point.