Fox is consumed because people want it, and it shows the tremendous divide between social viewpoints and values in our society. They were the only "news" channel that successfully defended their product to the FCC as "entertainment" so they would not have to tell the truth.

Entertainment ...yeah they are a laugh a minute <sarcasm>

Reminds me about a propaganda story i read recently, about Germans in WW2 still flocking to the theaters as the world was crumbling around the third reich. Cities are bombed level, millions dead on both sides and they still loved their "official newsreels" because it told them what they wanted to hear. Everything was ok...the bad people on the other side were responsible for all the trouble and uncle Adolf was about to save the day.

So if Murdoch had not created Fox someone else would have. Look at the Newsmax channel and site some time if you want another view into their world. Simply supply filling demand.

yea, supply and demand, educational vs entertainment, a magnificent technology properly utilized or foolishly wasted.

Quote from: RobynD on June 24, 2016, 07:40:46 PM
Reminds me about a propaganda story i read recently, about Germans in WW2 still flocking to the theaters as the world was crumbling around the third reich. Cities are bombed level, millions dead on both sides and they still loved their "official newsreels" because it told them what they wanted to hear. Everything was ok...the bad people on the other side were responsible for all the trouble and uncle Adolf was about to save the day.

There was some of that no doubt, but also remember the popular German phrase at the time, "Enjoy the war.  The peace is going to be terrible."  The reality the Germans were motivated to avoid was so much worse than anything Americans have to worry about that I'm not really sure bringing Godwin's Law down on yourself is even productive here.   

Quote from: RobynD on June 24, 2016, 07:40:46 PM
So if Murdoch had not created Fox someone else would have. Look at the Newsmax channel and site some time if you want another view into their world. Simply supply filling demand.

Newsmax is pretty...different.  Then there's Breitbart, and that's without even mentioning Glenn Beck or the Rush Limbaugh/Mark Levin/Sean Hannity radio cash cow.

Also, it's probably worth keeping in mind that Fox does absolutely own the cable TV ratings game.  I'm actually fairly convinced ratings generally have nothing to do with quality at this point, but Fox owning that market is really about demographics.  How many young liberals do you know who get their news from TV?  For that matter, how many young conservatives?  Cable TV news is an old person's game now the way newspapers were a couple of decades ago, and older people skew conservative.  Now, assuming for the sake of argument that old people continue to skew conservative, in another decade or two they'll get their conservative news from obsolescent technology like the internet or something after TV has joined the newspaper in oblivion.     

Quote from: Colleen M on June 24, 2016, 09:30:32 PM

Also, it's probably worth keeping in mind that Fox does absolutely own the cable TV ratings game.  I'm actually fairly convinced ratings generally have nothing to do with quality at this point, but Fox owning that market is really about demographics.  How many young liberals do you know who get their news from TV?  For that matter, how many young conservatives?  Cable TV news is an old person's game now the way newspapers were a couple of decades ago, and older people skew conservative.  Now, assuming for the sake of argument that old people continue to skew conservative, in another decade or two they'll get their conservative news from obsolescent technology like the internet or something after TV has joined the newspaper in oblivion.     

I think that is a really good point and one that is not talked about. Fox is driven my your "Uncle George" that has been dragged kicking and screaming into social media. TV itself is in some trouble. Demographics are against it and the audience of Fox News.

The problem with Fox news or any other media group, for that matter, is that they alter, deflate, inflate, lie, etc. to get more attention to their story. The end result, more money for them. They only care about what sells, not what hurt they put on people. The LGBT community has the same rights as anyone but there are those that don't see it that way. It will always be like that. Bigots are a dime a dozen and the world would be better without them. We must stay strong and united and fight for the rights that our ours!

sensationalism is used to describe the US news media

I don't think there is a single quality unbiased news outlet in the US. At least nothing comparable to CBC, BBC or the German Public TV.
Aside from the fact that the majority of the time US News is "soft" news (if you can even call that news) each one has some level of agenda. Be it more to the left or the right.
In many cases you get better balanced news about the US from foreign news sources than what you can get here.
At least the newspapers in the US are still doing a decent job in long form reporting with background analysis. Still - to get a balanced view multiple sources would be necessary. I have certainly given up on TV News :-(

End of rant...

Quote from: sarah1972 on June 30, 2016, 04:08:18 PM
I don't think there is a single quality unbiased news outlet in the US. At least nothing comparable to CBC, BBC or the German Public TV.
Aside from the fact that the majority of the time US News is "soft" news (if you can even call that news) each one has some level of agenda. Be it more to the left or the right.
In many cases you get better balanced news about the US from foreign news sources than what you can get here.
At least the newspapers in the US are still doing a decent job in long form reporting with background analysis. Still - to get a balanced view multiple sources would be necessary. I have certainly given up on TV News :-(

End of rant...

I pretty much agree with this. This is why i choose the BBC as a source often. Our news is all about clicks and paydays from advertisers. I'm a pretty big fan of NPR as well.

Quote from: RobynD on June 30, 2016, 04:15:06 PM
I pretty much agree with this. This is why i choose the BBC as a source often. Our news is all about clicks and paydays from advertisers. I'm a pretty big fan of NPR as well.

me too!