Searching for decent news sources

[midlifebear]

Sorry, I should have been more clear. Yes, CBC is the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, somewhat similar to and originally based on the BBC, and is government owned (though not directly operated by the government). CTV (the initials don't actually stand for anything, and just refer to Canadian Television)) is Canada's largest private network, owned by the Bell Globemedia conglomerate.

Good to know, considering I don't know much the older I become. I should have also added I listen to the CBC radio broadcast -- not television. But there is certainly a bit more civility among the commentators and news reporters than what currently passes as "news" in the USA. If Amy Whinehouse, Brit-knee Spears, and Paris Hilton were to all die in the same plane crash, I'm quite certain the USA news media would go silent for about a week.

I've never in my lifetime seen a nation more primed to do nothing but watch "Kittens Doing Stuff" and "That's My Cat!" 24/7 and being told it's breaking news than the current situation in my native land. Way sad. :frown1:

 

[sbat]

I get BBC America as well as Sky News, which I have been watching a bit of since I got DirecTV. I notice no one mentioned Al-Jazeera. I got into Al Jazeera english when I lived in England circa 2005-06 - now I really really like that station, but I'm not sure if its simply the completely different perspective (kind of cliche way of saying, I know), the novelty, or what, but that's become my favorite TV news source

 

[maxcok]

The several bright parts of my day happen when I'm driving the 150+ miles to Elko and listening to National Public Radio. I forget to check their podcasts when I'm not in the USA. But NPR and the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) are truly living news fossils: year after year the Senate and House continually cut their public funding to almost nothing, yet they both continue to crank out relatively unbiased "what's up" news. And when they have a conservative commentator they make sure everyone knows it by introducing the commentator as such and when he or she is through they announce with the liberal commentator will be on to counter balance the debate. Regardless, it's amazing the ultra christianist right conservatives haven't found a way to put fatal bullets in NPR and PBS. For the benefit of us all, they continue to suck in air and survive.

I gotta say, I've noticed a disappointing trend even on NPR over the last few years to sometimes interview ultra conservative commentators without taking them to task for misstatements or providing an alternative commentator for balance. I wonder if this is a deliberate overcompensating attempt to appear more "fair and balanced". Also, an annoying trend to air more public interest entertainment "lite news" stories, a la TV newsmagazines like Dateline, and particularly stuff aimed to increase their "youth audience", e.g. interminable reviews of the latest obscure (corporately produced) grunge rock band phenomenon with requisite obnoxious cuts from their CD. I'd like to sit in on a programming meeting to tell them, "Guess what, the 'youth' of America aren't tuning into NPR to learn about the latest (corporately produced) rock band. Furthermore, unless they were raised in an NPR household, there's a snowflake's chance in hell they're ever gonna tune in anyway. They're too busy texting, tweeting and twiddling to pay attention to substantive news reports."

" . . . and now for the rest of the story." (Does anybody else miss Paul Harvey?) Despite my bitchin, NPR is still the best source anywhere for comprehensive, unbiased, balanced reporting, bar none. Thank god it's survived.

 

[sbat]

That's too bad. I discovered Phillip Glass and Kronos Quartet thru NPR's Sunday music program (forgot the name, naturally). Although I was raised in an NPR household. I think I stopped listening to NPR because of the encroaching "liteness" you mention. And honestly, after a while, listening to too much NPR makes me feel 40 years older and like my hip will shatter if something so much as bumps into me.

I gotta say, I've noticed a disappointing trend even on NPR over the last few years to sometimes interview ultra conservative commentators without taking them to task for misstatements or providing an alternative commentator for balance. I wonder if this is a deliberate overcompensating attempt to appear more "fair and balanced". Also, an annoying trend to air more public interest entertainment "lite news" stories, a la TV newsmagazines like Dateline, and particularly stuff aimed to increase their "youth audience", e.g. interminable reviews of the latest obscure (corporately produced) grunge rock band phenomenon with requisite obnoxious cuts from their CD. I'd like to sit in on a programming meeting to tell them, "Guess what, the 'youth' of America aren't tuning into NPR to learn about the latest (corporately produced) rock band. Furthermore, unless they were raised in an NPR household, there's a snowflake's chance in hell they're ever gonna tune in anyway. They're too busy texting, tweeting and twiddling to pay attention to substantive news reports."

" . . . and now for the rest of the story." (Does anybody else miss Paul Harvey?) Despite my bitchin, NPR is still the best source anywhere for comprehensive, unbiased, balanced reporting, bar none. Thank god it's survived.

 

[maxcok]

That's too bad. I discovered Phillip Glass and Kronos Quartet thru NPR's Sunday music program (forgot the name, naturally). Although I was raised in an NPR household. I think I stopped listening to NPR because of the encroaching "liteness" you mention. And honestly, after a while, listening to too much NPR makes me feel 40 years older and like my hip will shatter if something so much as bumps into me.

Oh seriously, it's not like that at all. Unlike most news and infotainment it's intended (for the most part) for an intelligent, discriminating adult audience, but it's not staid, and they still have all that other great stuff as always. [Terry Gross rules! Ira Glass rules! Planet Money rules!] It was actually my Mom who turned me onto Pink Floyd when I was a child via some psychedelic experimental PBS television special, no lie.

:240:

 

[sbat]

Oh seriously, it's not like that at all. Unlike most news and infotainment it's intended (for the most part) for an intelligent, discriminating adult audience, but it's not staid, and they still have all that other great stuff as always. [Terry Gross rules! Ira Glass rules! Planet Money rules!] It was actually my Mom who turned me onto Pink Floyd when I was a child via some psychedelic experimental PBS television special, no lie.

:240:

Oh that's the truth. I recall some pretty psychedelic stuff on Sesame Street too, which was part of my Saturday morning PBS lineup

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ch-R1aIM-C0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzF4FJIpxJg&feature=related

 

[D_Wally Walnuts]

Terry Gross rules!

This cannot be overstated. I was a fan of Diane Rehm, but it seems she's really getting bad about cutting people off mid sentence.

I also really like Think with Krys Boyd. It's a local NPR show here in Texas that has a "Fresh Air" feel to it.

 

[D_Wally Walnuts]

Oh that's the truth. I recall some pretty psychedelic stuff on Sesame Street too, which was part of my Saturday morning PBS lineup

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ch-R1aIM-C0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzF4FJIpxJg&feature=related

I forgot all about those two, but this was the funkiest.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNDAts3XxuM

 

[sbat]

I forgot all about those two, but this was the funkiest.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNDAts3XxuM

Why oh why didn't Sesame Street do world news? I'd have no reason to watch anything else on TV. That funky beat would make a cool news show signature jingle. Bert and Ernie as head anchors, Elmo as the star field reporter. It would be like the Daily Show. But for kids.

 

[Sergeant_Torpedo]

It occured to me the other day that I had stopped watching tv news. Pressure of work; no time? No, even the BBC is propaganda fed these days. We have to accept that the ruling elites and their well rewarded supporters caught on early to the potential of freedom of the air, and (the occupation of Afghanistan for example) constructed an elaborate system of checking and approving what we should be told. British televison promo for upcoming documentary yesterday announced,"the disaster that ruined the USA and divided nations" as an introduction to a programme about the Gulf catastrophe. The wilful neglect by BP has certainly ruined many peoples lives in the Gulf region, but can hardly be said to have destroyed the US economy. Dividing nations? What utter tosh. If these are the people who are servicing our news disemination then they are doing harm to democracy.

 

[maxcok]

^ Amen.


All in greedy pursuit of the almighty dollar (or pound).

 

[sbat]

^ Amen.


All in greedy pursuit of the almighty dollar (or pound).

So...does that mean Chomsky is more than just a paranoid pedagogue?

 

[maxcok]

So...does that mean Chomsky is more than just a paranoid pedagogue?

Either you repeat the same conventional doctrines everybody is saying,
or else you say something true, and it will sound like it's from Neptune. -- Noam Chomsky

 

[sbat]

Either you repeat the same conventional doctrines everybody is saying,
or else you say something true, and it will sound like it's from Neptune. -- Noam Chomsky

Chomsky's declarations of a corporatocracy controlling our newsmedia, Zeitgeist, and all that other New World Order global conspiracy stuff is pretty mainstream nowadays. I mean, the argument itself is credible. Just that it wasn't even original in his pioneering days. An entire political philosophy was deployed as a means to counter that force (or co-opt it, in the case of Mao and Lenin)

 

[maxcok]

Chomsky's declarations of a corporatocracy controlling our newsmedia, Zeitgeist, and all that other New World Order global conspiracy stuff is pretty mainstream nowadays. I mean, the argument itself is credible. Just that it wasn't even original in his pioneering days. An entire political philosophy was deployed as a means to counter that force (or co-opt it, in the case of Mao and Lenin)

hmm . . . you threw out a whole lot of "stuff" there, not necessarily all on the same page. I wouldn't say much of it is "mainstream" either, in the sense that it involves rather esoteric subjects the general public is mostly oblivious too. At any rate, not really up for going off on those tangents here and now. However, in that vein I guess I could mention a place for very alternative information is the wildly popular late night AM radio program "Coast to Coast". BIG caveat: there's lots of chaff in the wheat, but if you can sort that out, you may occasionally even find gold. It's often thought provoking, to say the least (depending on guest and subject). Back when it was hosted by Art Bell it was an institution. George Noory pales by comparison, but Ian Punett, who last time I checked handled weekends, is quite good. I believe there's a podcast or a stream too. I haven't been there in quite a while. Listen at your own discretion. :wink:

 

[sbat]

Coast to Coast ain't bad:smile: But you are right, a lot of chaff to sort through

 

[maxcok]

And on the subject of great music programs on NPR: Echoes, and best of all, Music from the Hearts of Space - Steven Hill's still going strong after 37 years! Available to stream online too. If you can tap into it, Bluegrass Breakdown produced by Nashville Public Radio is pretty great roots music, from old school classics to NewGrass.

 

[sbat]

And on the subject of great music programs on NPR: Echoes, and best of all, Music from the Hearts of Space - Steven Hill's still going strong after 37 years! Available to stream online too. If you can tap into it, Bluegrass Breakdown produced by Nashville Public Radio is pretty great roots music, from old school classics to NewGrass.

Big Fan of Hearts of Space. Didn't know it was on NPR

 

[maxcok]

Big Fan of Hearts of Space. Didn't know it was on NPR

It's syndicated and on select stations, 200 or so.

 

[ColoradoGuy]

I tend to agree with this list. Regardless of where you get your news from, a more important consideration is that you actively listen to it or actively read it. I think our society has largely been lulled into a sense of dull complacency whereby opinion supplants fact and commentary trumps reportage. Anytime I read or hear a story that causes those little hairs on the back of my neck to stand up, I immediately seek out the same story from another source.