2017 has been an exceptional year for so many reasons, but especially for social-political speculation and awakening. My last post asked for input from others regarding finding legitimate, trustworthy fact-checking news sources. Eleven months later, I fully realize that it takes much more WORK than I expected to find truth. There is no one-stop "fix" for streaming and receiving all the news that one needs to be a vigilant, active and informed citizen. Not even in alternative news media.
Perhaps I'm detoxing from a lifelong dependency on "quick" and direct solutions. The moniker "microwave generation" for generation Xers fits me. We grew up learning that food heats up instantly in a microwave, headaches go away by taking a pill, and all of your shopping needs get completed at one Super Wal-Mart. I naively hoped for an alt media site equivalent to CNN (the older CNN from 1980s/90s) for a one-stop around-the-clock trusted news source. But then again, that's what led to foggy knowledge in the first place! What to do ...
I understand more fully now that when it comes to local, national, and world news information, there is NO one-stop shop. Like school studies, deep understanding requires multiple reading sources and analysis to gain "mastery" of any subject.
GETTING NEWS IS MORE CHALLENGING THAN EVER. WHY?
- overload of information from past and present
- bureaucratic barriers to accessing data
- silos of information obscuring the big picture
- information streams flooded with disinformation, false flags, spins, fake news, & partial truths
- language/cultural barriers to receiving and understanding world news
- risk and danger associated with deep dive investigative journalism and whistleblowers
- loose and unbinding code of journalistic integrity
- censorship around the world ranging from small and seemingly insignificant to full outright civil rights violations
The path of least resistance to getting reliable news information does NOT exist. Just like losing weight, it takes dedicated time and focus to achieve goals. Getting informed (free of gimmicks or propaganda) is a continuous process that demands diligence. It's essential to cross-reference multiple sources from various mediums, reporters, and outlets.
FINDING RELIABLE INFO
Prioritize news information like you would health or finances. It's uncomfortable and vexing at first, but with ongoing commitment, you strike a rhythm for taking in, verifying, absorbing, and understanding information while integrating it with other known bits of data.
To answer my question from January of this year, the source that is most trustworthy for informing me is myself. I can't rely on ONE source. Even the most well-intended sources have some degree of bias - it's human. Therefore, we must review and pull information from a variety of sources and outlets.
The real challenge lies in sorting, connecting, and understanding collective information. Try following a foolproof 4D's approach:
- Data - collect every detail available
- Deliberate - debate within your mind and amongst others (includes reading others commentary)
- Decide - what do you keep? All, some or none of the info?
- Direct - deepen and widen your understanding in the direction that step 3 leads you
The informed citizen investigates, compares, calibrates, ... investigates some more, compares again, and recalibrates ... over and over again. You may say, "That's not my job, that's why reporters exist." Journalists stimulate our search and understanding, but it's up to every individual to fill in gaps of information and fine tune fuzzy details. Our democracy is threatened by every single person that doesn't attempt to fully understand our news.
I aim to spark your knowledge enthusiasm, not guilt you into a laborious self-study. Even if a utopian one-stop news portal existed, learning comes from hitting the pavement on our own, not by others dictating what to think or know. Just because everybody "knows it" doesn't make it true. Question and test the answers. Honest, ethical practices can and should withstand inquiry, even under veils of state security. Now ...
Wash. Rinse. Repeat. Put your investigative hat on and go get your news!