We were watching NBC nightly news, but it could have been any of the networks. They all cover the same stories in the same way. They went from the suffering women and children in Ukraine to a puff piece about women in cryptocurrency. The “reporter” asked a woman, “Why should women like you invest in cryptocurrency?” Women like her being white middle-class mothers. She spends 10 hours a day online involved in cryptocurrency – with kids at home. The reporter was urging her to proselytize.
There was actual news that day about a lawsuit filed in Florida against the “Let’s Go Brandon” cryptocurrency pushed by right-wingers like Candace Owens and Madison Cawthorn, the GOP orgy guy. But the broadcast didn’t mention that.
Local NBC news that night featured a “consumer report” that was just a list of expensive appliances that are supposedly good deals, with stores and prices listed along with photos. Thanks for the extra ads, broadcasters.
The COVID stories, as usual, gave us numbers without context, which makes them meaningless. Up 50% from when? No charts or graphs to help us visualize what’s happening. No comparisons between states or countries or vaxxed vs. unvaxxed. Another spike is starting, but the stories never used that word, far less illustrated it.
Broadcasters lease the public wavelengths for almost nothing. In return, they’re supposed to serve the public interest. People are getting little in exchange besides corporate propaganda. We should take away their broadcast licenses. But we’re not even talking about what has happened to the news, except on Fox, which is so twisted it makes the rest of them look good.