Media = Propaganda How the Media Created a Monster and Hurt the American People

     I remember the days when the “News” could be trusted to be honest, factual, and reliable.  BREAKING NEWS was something that might affect every life, or was truly a spectacular moment in history.  TV programs were only interrupted for historical things like the death of a President, the First man on the moon, a devastating earthquake, a horrendous plane crash, or War. 

     I remember when an “opinion” stated on the news always had a disclaimer at the beginning and end of it, telling us that it was an opinion, and perhaps not even the opinion of the very news program that was expressing it.  I remember when you could repeat something you saw on the news, and KNOW that it was the truth; that it had been fact-checked and verified by more than one person before permitted on the air. I remember when, in those rare instances when the news got something wrong, they corrected it, several times, to make sure everyone knew. And then, they apologized for “letting us down”.

     I am a person who believes in progress, but I also acknowledge that not every change is a change for the good.

     News 24/7/365 seemed like a great idea at the time. You could get your news any time you wanted, rather than having to wait for a specific hour.  But with progress, came more channels, and more competition for each channel. Ratings became more and more important to a news organization, rather than getting the facts right. It became more important to be the “first” to report an incident, instead of being the one with the true story. Then the news channels needed more and more information to fill those 24 hours.

• What happens to a society when truth takes a backseat to fame, fortune, and ratings?
•  How can justice prevail in a country when news channels jump to conclusions, offer misleading or incorrect information, give their own opinions, and don’t verify before reporting?
•  Who suffers when the “News” oversimplifies a situation, fails to correct misinformation, reports opinions as facts, or reports false information because it suits the reporter’s opinion?
•  What good is a news source if it creates a divide within its viewers by reporting biased views, and ignores the opposite view? 
• What happens to a country when the news is complicit in not only sharing a lie, but perpetuating that lie to the point that it is believed by the majority of its viewers?
•  What happens when the very word News becomes synonymous with gossip, when a news channel perpetuates lies, refuses to separate fact from opinion, does not allow the views, or even facts, that don’t agree with their biased views? 
• What happens to a country that cannot trust the news to give the facts? What happens when the very same stories are completely different, depending on which channel you turn to?

     The United States doesn’t have NEWS stations any more. We have “spin doctors” and editorializing. We have whole channels devoted to serving one side of the political divide, and “to Hell with the Truth”!

We have a large population of people falling victim to the lies of a few, to raise support for their own desires, regardless of the consequences of their behavior. We have stations that call themselves news, who have become the  Department of Propaganda for a political party.

     What happened to the 5 Ws and H?  Who? What? Where? Why? When? How? And Why doesn’t’ every report follow that form? It is basic journalism 101.

     Did you know that there is actually a “code of ethics” for professional journalists? You sure couldn’t tell by watching the news. When did news anchors stop being journalists and start becoming “entertainment”? 
     If you were to read the journalist’s code of ethics, you would agree. Gossip has no place in the news. We have gossip channels. Sensationalism is not news. Again, it is entertainment, but sadly, because of the very channel it is viewed on, people accept it as gospel.

Here is just one section of the “ethics”
Be Accountable and Transparent

Ethical journalism means taking responsibility for one’s work and explaining one’s decisions to the public.
Journalists should:

– Explain ethical choices and processes to audiences. Encourage a civil dialogue with the public about journalistic practices, coverage and news content.

– Respond quickly to questions about accuracy, clarity and fairness.

– Acknowledge mistakes and correct them promptly and prominently. Explain corrections and clarifications carefully and clearly.

– Expose unethical conduct in journalism, including within their organizations.

– Abide by the same high standards they expect of others. 

     When was the last time any channel could claim to have followed this section of their ethics for even one day??

Now, the day that the Media started to create a monster:

     Donald Trump announced he would run for President of the United States. Two years earlier, he had explained how he would do it. He told the news media what he would do. He followed his plan, and they fell for it, EVEN THOUGH he had warned them.

     Donald Trump is a “reality show” star.  We all know that even “reality shows” are badly manipulated and faked, but for some reason, they get great ratings. Donald Trump has turned our nation's primary season into a reality show, and the Media has been the willing participant in it. 

     Donald Trump announced he would “self-finance” his campaign, just like he had said 2 years earlier.  So the very first day, he came out saying outrageous, ugly things, and, in the name of ratings, the news channels RUSHED to report it. Over and over and over again. For days, his comments became THE news. Every movement the man made was watched. And he knew he had them hooked. He KNEW that he could get free publicity - all he had to do was keep the Media on the hook.

     Every time Trump saw that he was no longer #1 on the news cycle, he would say or do, something outrageous, and the cycle would start again. The media, who has been entrusted to bring Americans the important news of the day, was being played and they fell for it. Remember, he warned them, and they still gave him hours and days of free publicity. The American People deserve to be repaid for all of that. We were manipulated, too, because the media turned attention away from the important things happening. 

     In the meantime, other candidates were ignored. Speeches were being made, and no one heard them, except those in attendance. All the news was about Trump.

People complained, in large numbers, but the news media was hooked. They couldn’t get enough of this man’s antics. They were appalled by his comments and actions, but, like a car wreck, they just couldn’t turn away. They were being drawn like a moth to a flame.  Donald Trump had the media wrapped around his little finger, and they were trapped. They could not pull away. Why?  Because of ratings!!  The almighty dollar overtook the “responsibility” of honest journalism. Donald Trump knew this, and used it to his advantage. 

     Donald Trump said he would ban all Muslims, even shut down mosques. But, instead of pointing out that 

1. This is not within the power of a President   

2.  It is Constitutionally illegal   

3.  It would be Dangerous for international relations    

4. Technically impossible to do; 

the news channels played his speech over and over again, without any reminders to their viewers that these statements were immoral, unethical, and illegal.

Another article of the Ethics in Journalism is to DO NO HARM

-Balance the public’s need for information against the potential harm or discomfort. Pursuit of the news is not a license to arrogance or undue intrusiveness.

     Did the NEWS follow this ethical standard?  NO!! And how do we know this? Mosques were burned, or vandalized. When he spoke negatively about Mexicans, Hispanics were beaten. 

Violence at his rallies became a ‘normal’ part of them. The news picked up on the story, and yet, the actions of violence were never condemned. When Trump stated that maybe a protester “deserved” to be beaten, the news reported it. And ACCEPTED this kind of behavior from a man running for the most powerful position in the world!!!

Another code of ethics violation:-Avoid pandering to lurid curiosity, even if others do.

     News agencies decided to moderate political “debates”.
      I remember when a debate meant that the viewers would get to learn about the policies and ideas that each candidate wanted to implement, and for the candidates to point out where they differed. 

     The first debate this season started out attempting to hold a candidate accountable for his previous comments, and the candidate attacked back. Instead of continuing to maintain control of the debate, it became a circus. It should have been an embarrassment to the party being represented, but nothing was done. Rules weren’t changed, and each debate ended up turning into shouting matches, and mud-slinging. No candidate was asked the HOW of their plans.  And rarely was a candidate asked to return to the topic. If a candidate won’t answer the question at hand, maybe their mike should be turned off and their time up!! They aren’t there to make stump speeches, they are supposed to be there to inform the voters of their platform.

      Apparently, the Media loved the ratings this circus brought, so they did nothing to prevent it. They could have threatened to turn off mikes, refuse to ask questions of those who refused to follow the rules, and stood their ground. 
        I once ran a daycare and if my two year-olds acted like these candidates, they would have been sent to “timeout.”  Instead, every moderator has become a laughingstock, and the political party has lost credibility.  In the meantime, primaries have started, and voters still have no idea what the candidates stand for.  What happened to those 5 Ws and H????

     The place where the Media REALLY let down their viewers is when the media, itself has been censored.  Donald Trump has shattered the First Amendment Rights of EVERYONE that doesn’t agree with him, or those who could expose him, and that has NOT become the number one issue of news about his campaign.

•  Reporters are confined to within a small, area of his rally. Actually forced to stand within a barricaded section, AND beaten if they try to film something other than what Donald Trump wants!!  So much for Freedom of the Press!!!
•  Protesters are beaten, forced out, and in the dead of winter, with extreme temperatures outside, protesters’ coats taken from them and forced them outside without them.  AND THE NEWS REPORTED IT as a something funny!   So much for right to assemble.
•  A Muslim woman did not say a word, and was forced out of his rally. So much for freedom of religion.
• A young Black woman protesting was physically manhandled by the crowd, called names, spit on, jostled out the door, while Trump, himself, encouraged the behavior

     This man is violating Constitutional Rights of the American people and the News is NOT holding him accountable, and they keep flocking to report his antics as “entertainment”.

Once again, a violation of their code of ethics:
-Be vigilant and courageous about holding those with power accountable. Give voice to the voiceless.

Where is the Media holding Donald Trump accountable?   While the media ignores other candidates, or worse, spread lies and “hints” at impropriety of others, they have given Donald Trump carte blanche. 

     I, personally, have taken to recording all news, so that I can fast forward through anything that has to do with this man, because I saw on the first day that he was incapable of being President. The man doesn’t even know what the Constitution says!! His behavior is an embarrassment and a danger to our image to the World.

   The media has controlled this Presidential election, deciding who can debate, whose rallies will be seen, which speeches are “worthy” of being viewed by those who can’t attend. The Media has reported “scandals” about some candidates, and completely ignored major campaign law violations and scandals, of others. They have failed to vet every candidate. They jump at sensationalism, and ignore candidates with a positive message. They do not explain that certain actions promised cannot legally be done. And when they report incorrectly, or edit a video to make it "newsworthy", they do not 'correct the record'.

     The Media is subtly telling the American People how to vote.  To keep things exciting, they have extended the primary season by picking and choosing who’s in the spotlight, and who is ignored. They have helped keep people in the race who might have fallen out long ago, had their campaigns been reported fairly. Some candidates might still be in the race, had they been given some coverage.

     Donald Trump has manipulated the Media, and received Billions of dollars-worth of free commercial time simply by being a carnival barker. He has turned the election for the next President into a reality show, instead of the solemn occasion that it should be. The media gained viewership at the expense of integrity and truth. 

     The Media has allowed the encouragement of bigotry, xenophobia, Islamaphobia, intolerance, and even violence, by making it “entertainment” instead of the abysmal ugliness that deserves to be reported just as harshly as a terrorist attack.  

     It is sad when Donald Trump’s latest “antics” have become so entertaining and exciting for the media to report, it has come to the point where they ignore mass shootings in Kansas (where a man’s trail of terror covered miles), several school shootings, and the return of an astronaut who has been in space for a year. They have ignored the death of several police officers killed in the line of duty, including an officer who has killed on her first day on the job, on a domestic violence call. How pathetic!!!  While they play over and over bad cops’ behavior, they won’t take the time to show what happens to real, heroic police officers, just doing their job.

     Donald Trump is a dangerous man, and the nation’s leaders know this. But the Media helped to make this man an idol in the eyes of those who have been waiting for a leader to tell them that their darkest thoughts and hate is OK, and that violence and violation of human rights is the way to handle those ugly beliefs. The Media released a monster among the people, and helped to catapult him beyond a reality star. They have legitimized him as a real possibility as The President.

     Once upon a time, the media would have done their job. They would have vetted his comments. They would have given equal time to all candidates. They would have kept “We the People’s” best interests in focus, and done the “right thing”.  Instead, today’s Media is controlled by politics, manipulated by sociopaths, completely ignoring the very ethics of their profession. 

     When are We, the People, going to DEMAND better from the Media? When are we going to hold them accountable?  When are we going to stop letting them divide us, as a country, by producing conflicting “facts”?  When will We, the People, stop letting the Media allow politicians to stand in front of their cameras and LIE to the American People?  When will it stop???? 

     People of the United States – We MUST stand together to DEMAND that the Media be held to the very ethics that they should have learned in school.  We must DEMAND that those who provide “news” to the American people take an oath to follow those ethics, and promise to be held accountable.  We must DEMAND that opinions be limited and EXPLICITLY labeled as such.

     When the Media allows politicians to say that our President has violated the Constitution of the United States, when they know it isn’t true (because if it WAS, they would have started impeachment proceedings, and we all know that), the media must be held accountable. When a politician makes such a statement, follow-up questions MUST be asked, and they MUST hold that person accountable. It is time to demand that if a politician is going to be in front of the camera, they be forced to answer the questions, not what they want to say, but actually answer the questions.

And let’s start with Donald Trump.  Demand he answer those ‘difficult’ questions, like “HOW are you going to do this?” Make him prove that he actually understands what a President is capable of. Correct him, and ask again. Stop the stupid phone-ins and make him look into the camera while he lies to the world.

And, finally:
To the Media:

The World is watching. They are not only mocking those you report, they are appalled at the unethical, immoral, harmful behavior of our “news”  Europe is watching, and remembering the last time the Media became propaganda and the leader was not held accountable.

“History repeats itself. As do the methods used by those specializing in the elimination of leaders who unite people into a strong force for dignity, justice and self-determination.” 
― S.M. Sigerson, The Assassination of Michael Collins: What Happened at Béal na mBláth?

Link to Society for Professional Journalism "code of ethics"