[boots]

Who do you trust for accurate news reports that are put into context without being "spun" into propaganda?

I know there will be some I miss. If you find one, vote other and tell us what it is.

[Logic]

BBC

[theolein]

BBC

[eklipse]

FOX

no......wait.......BBC

[lil'babykitten]

BBC

[Millennium]

Other.

The best news source is multiple sources with multiple biases. All media is biased one way or another, so the best way to go is to get your news from different sources, while being aware of the bias each one has. It's not perfect, but with a little thinking you'll get a better overview of the subject than any single source could ever provide.

Among those who do this, CNN and the BBC seem to be popular choices. FOX and commondreams.org could also work, though the bias is somewhat more extreme either way. If you really wanted extreme bias, I suppose you could go with rightwingnews.com and yellowtimes.com, but that's going just a bit far in both directions.

[Joshua]

My vote would be either "all of the above" or "none of the above" depending on how you take the question. No single news source is going to give you an unbiased look at current events. I think you're better off, generally speaking, reading as much as possible from a variety of sources (both the current reporting and the broader, historic context) and then applying your own reasoning to draw out the so-called truth.

[Face Ache]

I agree with Millenium. As many sources as possible helps reveal bias (or outright propaganda).

Watch Fox. Know your enemy.

I like www.cursor.org. Check them out. Left of centre but gee they find great articles.

[villalobos]

Theonion.com of course.

[lil'babykitten]

Originally posted by villalobos:
Theonion.com of course.

[boots]

Originally posted by villalobos:
Theonion.com of course.

*forehead slap* Doh! How could I have left that one out?

[djjava]

Fox.

all the others are leftist garbage.

[Sherwin]

Channel 4 in the UK. Good and unbiased.

BBC are so left-leaning I'm surprised they haven't fallen over. Oh wait. They did.

[daimoni]

.

[mydog8mymac]

The mix is the best bet, I also try to catch the BBC World News at least once a week, to see that the world really doesn't revolve around the US—and sometimes, sadly it does.

[vmpaul]

First of all the cable 'news' channels have nothing to do with actual news. They are mostly Op-Ed pages in multimedia format. Just because they have a 5-minute news update at the top & bottom of the hour doesn't make them a news channel anymore than it makes MTV one. CNN is but it has too many 'shouting match' shows as well. I find them all generally worthless. They don't cover ANY topic in depth enough to appreciate various angles.

That goes for the morning shows as well. Worthless. Worthless. Worthless. They like to project themselves as news programs with journalistic values but it's nothing but an entertainment show. I bet if the Lord God Almighty came down from Heaven he wouldn't get more than a 3-minute segment on the Today show. Right in between 'Where in the World is Matt Lauer?' and 'Willard Scott's Smuckers Centenarian Birthday' listing. Pure drivel.

I actually get more out the debates here, when you read links & references, than watching those channels and shows.

I think the most informative American news program is The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. A place where the stories and guests are more important than the host's ego. No fancy graphics or catchy slogans. Jim Lehrer, Gwen Ifill, Margaret Warner, Ray Suarez ask intelligent questions and never get in the way of the answers. You hear both sides of an issue in a time frame that, while still too short, is more ample than anywhere else. My only complaint is they do have an occasional off-beat story that has nothing to do with current events. To be fair, I distinctly remember being on vacation in London and watching the BBC News do a useless lengthy piece examing milk production in Surrey so I guess even the best lose their way sometimes.

And I think there needs to be a distinction between NPR and PBS news. NPR has the reputation of being left-leaning but I think that's changing. I think they've made a real effort to have both sides of an issue lately. Too bad the reputation takes so long to die.

The consensus here seems to be the BBC which I haven't seen enough of. I'll have to make the effort to find it in the cable listings.

[Lerkfish]

Originally posted by djjava:
Fox.

all the others are leftist garbage.

Lerk's Law:

The reason people tend to think the news media is too liberal or too
conservative is because of Lerk's patented Theory of Relative Extremism, to
wit:

The further one travels to any extreme, the more anything else in the
spectrum APPEARS to shift to the other extreme, even if it doesn't move at
all. Even things which strike a perfect balance, when viewed from an
extreme, appear to unbalanced in the opposite direction.

In fact, if one is an extremist, the only way the media will appear fair is
if they completely agree with the extremist view, which of course, means
they've become completely UNfair to the rest of the spectrum, but the
extremist in question will interpret it as TRUTH when in fact it is only
presented one extreme facet of the truth.

For example, if one hates Bush/Clinton, and the news presents a report that
is neither favorable nor unfavorable to Bush/Clinton, then BOTH extremes
sides will view that report as slanted to the opposite camp because it
doesnt denounce/laud the leader ENOUGH to satisfy the extremist view held by
the observer on either end.

[thunderous_funker]

The only TV news I consider to be news (rather than cheap entertainment) is The News Hour w/ Jim Lehrer. They pick 2 or 3 stories that they cover in considerable depth and they almost never rely on a single biased "expert", but rather a reasonably balanced panel to show several sides. They consistantly give a clear and reasoned accounting of important issues.

I don't really listen to radio much, but NPR seems to choose stories that matter to me, even if their coverage isn't as detailed as I'd prefer.

I read several sources online for 90% of my news and only pay attention to the TV "news" if I'm curious what disinformation is being peddled to the majority of the public.

[clarkgoble]

The best news source are the documentaries done for Frontline. Without a doubt. They aren't so worried about being first and provide thoughtful analysis.

Of course for real news people ought to go to print (or their internet counterparts). Look at the Economist, New Republic, Foreign Policy, even Atlantic Monthly!

[BlackGriffen]

news.google.com

That and the Beeb.

I really like textual news. That way I can sit and digest, or reject at my leisure.

FWIW, I would trust the PBS News Hour the most, but it's just so darn boring that I'd rather read it.

BlackGriffen

[osiris]

I use all news sources, but enjoy FOX for the sheer laughs.

[zigzag]

PBS News Hour is pretty good - the closest thing we have to old-fashioned, straightforward news and analysis, without all the glitz and personality cultism and cutesy stuff.

NPR also has intelligent, thorough news coverage. Unfortunately I find a lot of the human interest and arts coverage that they mix in to be overly precious. I could start a whole thread about NPR personalities that I hate.

ABC, NBC, and CBS are good for a quick run-through but that's about it. Nightline is often worthwhile.

I watch Fox for the same reasons I watch train wrecks, which of course is exactly what they want. Like vmpaul said, there's really very little in-depth news on it - it's mostly ranting and sneering at Democrats/liberals, which can be fun but gets tiresome.

PBS is dull for the right reasons. CNN is dull for the wrong reasons - it often seems like a morning show that runs all f*cking day and night. They should do 2 hours of solid news in the evening and show The Three Stooges the rest of the time.

CNN does, however, have Rym Brahimi, whom I could watch reading the phone book.

[boots]

Originally posted by zigzag:
NPR also has intelligent, thorough news coverage. Unfortunately I find a lot of the human interest and arts coverage that they mix in to be overly precious. I could start a whole thread about NPR personalities that I hate.

I think this is one of the reasons NPR has the reputation of being National Propaganda Radio. The news that they provide is actually quite excellent...from both side. The other fluff is generally of interest to the more liberal side.

I can't get PBS right now (no cable, and can't get anything through the air), and I much miss NewsHour. Good stuff.

I also liked watching Meet the Press. We get a satellite dish next weekend, so I'll be back getting my fix soon.