Tag: Both Sides Do It
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Every Story May Have Two Points Of View, But It Doesn’t Necessarily Have Two “Sides”
“Both Sides Do It” journalism (an oxymoron really) wants to insist that truth & lies have the same weight; it’s not for them to tell their readers which to believe — lies or truth. That’s not journalism, it’s malpractice justifying its intellectual laziness and lack of moral conviction. A thief and his victim both have…
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When Is A Fact Not A Fact?
Let’s start with basic math. We can all agree that one plus one equals two, right? We can all agree that the moon revolves around the earth and the earth revolves around the sun. Keep in mind — we can’t actually “see” the moon revolve around the earth — or the earth revolve around the…
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Yes, There Are “Two Sides” To Most Stories But The Two Sides Aren’t Necessarily “Equal”
The most galling problem with “Both Sides Do It” brand journalism is that it takes itself out of the “weighing things” business. Like whether something is “true” or not. “Both Sides Do It” insists it’s entirely “just-the-facts-ma’am” neutral. That sounds ideal, doesn’t it? No editorializing, just straight reporting. Too bad it’s living a lie —…
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At The Core Of Every Story Is The “WHY”? Why Did It Happen? The Trump Story Has A Core “WHY?” Too
At the core of every story is its “WHY?” Why did this thing happen? The story itself may be a detailed recounting of all the “WHAT?” that happened, but without the “WHY?” the “WHAT?” and the “WHO?” and the “HOW?” lacks context. Nobody does anything for no reason or “just because”. Donald Trump, for instance,…
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Dear CNN & MSNBC – “Previously On” The Donald Trump Story – He Was A Traitor & A Criminal… Oh, Weren’t You Watching?
It’s like watching a TV show where the audience is always miles ahead of the storytellers because the audience has been keeping track of the story while the tellers keep going back to “fade in”.
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The Failure That Is “Both Sides Do It” Journalism
When we get to the “How the HELL did this happen?” phase — after the bad actors are all safely in prison — we’ll need to turn our focus on the American news media and the myriad ways they failed us and their own Constitutionally mandated obligation to be our final check on power. American…
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Dear American News Media: Please Get This Straight — Both Sides Do Not “Do It”
And both sides don’t do everything for political reasons either. Let’s put that out there straight away. I’d love to know where exactly — at which Journalism School — “Both Sides Do It ” journalism was born. Surely something as pernicious, as stupid, as poorly thought out sprang from one confused human mind, manifesto-like. I’d…