What Should Be Done After Virginia Tech?

[ts]

I dont see that TS. News is news they print wat bleeds and that has no bearing on color or social status. I live in the bay area and every nite there is another story on the news from someone in Oakland or Richmond getting shot. Just because it happens so often it does not mean its not news or less horrible. It just makes you numb. The news caters to us and our need for the unbelievable. The reason they make a big deal when it happens in a wealthy neighborhood is because its rare. Not because its any more horrible.
You seem to believe that there is some conspiracy to get you or your friends because they are darker or minorities. I say dont do anything wrong and you dont have to worry. I get pissed when people say " I was being profiled , if I was white they would have never found the weed", sorry quit doing illegal things and they can profile you all day long and it wont matter. You will not have any reason to be anything but inconvenienced.

I do have a chip on my shoulder, but it has nothing to do with my friends or I. I turn on the national news and all I hear about is white chicks dieing. I heard about John Bene Ramsey - she's been dead for 10 years, it should be on the History Channel, with "Histories Mysteries" not on Fox News or CNN. It's simply not news anymore, it is NATIONAL GOSSIP. Just like in high school. If a fat ugly kid fell down no one cared, but if the head cheerleader ate sh*t then the whole school was talking and laughing about it. That's the way human nature is. It just get so old after a while. Talk about what's happening in the wold - not white chicks getting killed. I caught my parents watching Paris Hilton going to jail on Fox News a few nights ago. Disgusting what our society has turned into.

[M. Sage]

Ok, woah. Slow your roll. You're assuming that the job of news agencies is to inform us. It isn't. You've noticed half of it...

They really honestly are nothing more than gossip-mongers.

Is it right that they should be? No. But it's up to the individual to find out what's up in the world for him/her self, not to trust the gossip they get off teevee...

[ivanimal]

I do have a chip on my shoulder, but it has nothing to do with my friends or I. I turn on the national news and all I hear about is white chicks dieing. I heard about John Bene Ramsey - she's been dead for 10 years, it should be on the History Channel, with "Histories Mysteries" not on Fox News or CNN. It's simply not news anymore, it is NATIONAL GOSSIP. Just like in high school. If a fat ugly kid fell down no one cared, but if the head cheerleader ate sh*t then the whole school was talking and laughing about it. That's the way human nature is. It just get so old after a while. Talk about what's happening in the wold - not white chicks getting killed. I caught my parents watching Paris Hilton going to jail on Fox News a few nights ago. Disgusting what our society has turned into.

What would you have them do Tony?

[ts]

What would you have them do Tony?

Report on real news. No more "assault weapon" this and that. No more "pretty upper class blond girl got killed again." No more "Rosie and Trump said ___ to each other." Maybe some real NEWS. By news I mean news. I don't mean some biased a-hole giving us his version of current events. No more national gossip. It's a time of war right now, Americans are dieing over seas fighting for our country and all the public hears is "Paris Hilton is going to jail" and "Anna Nicol __________." Could you think of anything more disrespectful?

Personally I find it disgusting. People die, that's not news unless they have a major effect on the world. That should be left to the local papers. I don't care to hear about it regardless of there stature. It's not like we have a lack of real news to report. It's the fact that Fox News and CNN now are basically the same as the E channel.

[mth]

It's not like we have a lack of real news to report. It's the fact that Fox News and CNN now are basically the same as the E channel.

That's a winner of a quote.

Anyways responsible journalism has, of course, been out the window for some time. I'm not even sure there was a time when news was impartial; I guess it has just waxed and waned.

What I would like to see in the news media are the ethics they taught back in high school journalism - report significant events as they happen, with full context and no omissions or slant. Opinions, slant, and interpretation should be left to editorials. There should be no need to read between the lines to figure out the actual events. It still leaves some play as to what people decide is important enough to report on, but it would be orders of magnitude better than today's average where every report is an opinion piece. Local news sources should cover local news, and the bigger ones should cover global events.

Of course as everyone knows, news is just entertainment. I have a much higher respect for things like the Daily Show that don't try to hide that fact, in contrast with poseurs like CNN, Fox, BBC, etc.

[jdberger]

Nope.

The uncomfortable fact of life is that the vast majority of folks aren't interesting.

They live boring little lives, spend their days at boring little jobs, eat boring little meals, watch boring TV, have boring sex and ultimately, if they die, the world won't end.

But all the people that Tony is mentioning, those folks are "interesting" or at least "popular".

Their lives contrast so radically with ours, we're interested. And interested people watch TV and advertisers who pay for your free TV want the most people to watch their ads. Thus, the TV news carries the stories about the cool kids.

You can look down your nose at it all day, call it droll and feel superior - but the uncomfortable fact is that you've bought into the Great American Myth that "everyone is special" and has "something to offer".

Fortunately, you'll probably grow out of it. With family and kids and a mortgage you don't have time to wear berets and smoke Gaulouises and rant about the lack of "culture" in America. You'll be too busy at your boring little job.

Nice cheery thought for you.

(props to Nicholai Hel for the philisophical kick in the pants)

[radioactivelego]

The silent killer in this case is breathing. It's what all school shooters seem to do until the damage is done. We should make breathing-free zones in every school across the nation.

[ts]

Nope.

The uncomfortable fact of life is that the vast majority of folks aren't interesting.

They live boring little lives, spend their days at boring little jobs, eat boring little meals, watch boring TV, have boring sex and ultimately, if they die, the world won't end.

But all the people that Tony is mentioning, those folks are "interesting" or at least "popular".

Their lives contrast so radically with ours, we're interested. And interested people watch TV and advertisers who pay for your free TV want the most people to watch their ads. Thus, the TV news carries the stories about the cool kids.

You can look down your nose at it all day, call it droll and feel superior - but the uncomfortable fact is that you've bought into the Great American Myth that "everyone is special" and has "something to offer".

Fortunately, you'll probably grow out of it. With family and kids and a mortgage you don't have time to wear berets and smoke Gaulouises and rant about the lack of "culture" in America. You'll be too busy at your boring little job.

Nice cheery thought for you.

(props to Nicholai Hel for the philisophical kick in the pants)

All that you posted is quite obvious to me and I am sure to everyone else - the fact of the matter is - it's not news. When the prom queen at a high school contracts AIDS from her HIV negative boyfriend that's called gossip. Not news.

For most people it is more entertaining hearing about Paris going to jail, Anna dieing, a bunch of upper-middle class kids getting shot, or some other national gossip. But what about the real news? What's really happening in the world? Or in the US? Or in our state? My only option is Canadian news channels that I don't even get.

I always thought the E channel was for national gossip. But it looks like the E channel now has more real news then Fox News or CNN - at least E is unbiased and tells you the facts. And another plus is there is much more attractive people on the E channel.

So now I think we've established that the E channel now equals news. The same way clip equals magazine. Sure it's not correct, but why shouldn't it be?

Bottom line: V-Tech killings had nothing to do with gun control, lack of psychological evaluation by the government, parental raising skills, video games, security on campus, or any thing of that sort. The reason why all those kids died was THERE WAS A CRAZY PERSON THAT WAS SET ON KILLING INNOCENT PEOPLE FOR NO REASON. Take all the guns away he would of stabbed everyone to death, if the government looked closer at his mental stability then he would of gotten a gun illegally or just got a C&R Rem 870. From what I gathered from glimpses on the news and online his parents were fine. Violent video games are booming and there were college killings wayyy before the XBox 360 came out (much more creative ones I might add, we have sniper video games now and no one thinks they can do better then the guy in Texas? Take down a few kids with an Assault Bolt Action Single Shot Rifle - just make sure there wealthy or you won't get any publicity). Give some guards some guns and they will hide - there going to really risk their lives for $10.50 an hour.

V-Tech is not news, it is national gossip. This kind of stuff happens all the time, sadly the only place you see it is Spike's Most Amazing Videos or YouTube. I remember one guy had a tractor converted to a tank firing AK-47's out of it and basically destroyed a whole town before they took him down (Please someone post a video of that). Yet that wasn't as news worthy as VTech.

[scootergmc]

TS, you spend plenty of time on the internet. There are plenty of "NEWS" sources, whether worldwide, nationwide, or statewide, to draw your "NEWS" from.

Here's a solution: turn off your TV. Drop the chip on your shoulder. It's tired. Nobody owes you anything. Quit acting like it.

[mth]

I don't think there's any question that there are legitimate news sources which may be easy to find -- if you are looking. Those who know about, and are dissatisfied with the problem, are capable of finding real news if they should so desire.

The real problem here, I think, is that the majority of the public is unaware that what they see on TV is not actually news. Where this all becomes relevant to us is where the irresponsible reporting-as-entertainment ends up giving the public a distorted version of things, like firearms. They watch CNN without being consciously aware that it's merely entertainment, see a bunch of gang members waving handguns around, and that's the image they get of gun ownership. They think that these large news sources are trying to tell them about Important Problems, not just playing a game for ratings and advertising dollars.

Another thing to consider regarding Paris Hilton/news-as-entertainment is that it's largely manufactured demand. The public likes hearing about Paris Hilton because they're told that they like it. Out of all the exciting, different people in the world, can you seriously say that, if given the choice, they would ask to hear about Paris Hilton? Even if you want to run primarily human interest stories, there are many better and more responsible choices for entertainment. Follow the daily routine of a LAPD officer in a high crime neighborhood, or a soldier in Iraq. Do a piece on what it's like to be a drug dealer, a gang member, or a doctor in Africa. Someone that lives in a Texas border town. There's lots of interesting stuff out there, with people leading edgy and 'exciting' lives. When you really look at Paris Hilton, her lifestyle is neither edgy nor exciting. It's really just sort of depressing. It looks like the cheapest bottom barrel entertainment they could find.

[boosterboy]

I know!!!! I know!!!!

we should ban all guns and violent video games. they are the reason why society is getting so violent!!!

[ts]

TS, you spend plenty of time on the internet. There are plenty of "NEWS" sources, whether worldwide, nationwide, or statewide, to draw your "NEWS" from.

Here's a solution: turn off your TV. Drop the chip on your shoulder. It's tired. Nobody owes you anything. Quit acting like it.

I get my local world events, I don't watch TV besides Comedy Central, History, and Discovery. It's not that someone owes me something - it's the fact that they owe society something. Because of this "news" our rifles are "assault weapons". Misleading biased information. It affects us all. Why are a good majority of people anti-gun? Mass media tells them to be. They don't give them the facts, the don't give them the real story - if they do give them a story at all it will be incredibly biased.

For anyone with loved ones in Iraq or any other places of war time - can you think of anything more disgraceful then having Paris Hilton going to jail overshadowing the hero's that are fighting for our country?

I remember when Mother Teressa died. Someone else died around the same time and her death was barely noticed. Really sad, such a wonderful people who did so much to try to change the world for the better and her death was over shadowed by someone who didn't do anything. (Don't remember who - if you do post it)

I don't think there's any question that there are legitimate news sources which may be easy to find -- if you are looking. Those who know about, and are dissatisfied with the problem, are capable of finding real news if they should so desire.

The real problem here, I think, is that the majority of the public is unaware that what they see on TV is not actually news. Where this all becomes relevant to us is where the irresponsible reporting-as-entertainment ends up giving the public a distorted version of things, like firearms. They watch CNN without being consciously aware that it's merely entertainment, see a bunch of gang members waving handguns around, and that's the image they get of gun ownership. They think that these large news sources are trying to tell them about Important Problems, not just playing a game for ratings and advertising dollars.

Another thing to consider regarding Paris Hilton/news-as-entertainment is that it's largely manufactured demand. The public likes hearing about Paris Hilton because they're told that they like it. Out of all the exciting, different people in the world, can you seriously say that, if given the choice, they would ask to hear about Paris Hilton? Even if you want to run primarily human interest stories, there are many better and more responsible choices for entertainment. Follow the daily routine of a LAPD officer in a high crime neighborhood, or a soldier in Iraq. Do a piece on what it's like to be a drug dealer, a gang member, or a doctor in Africa. Someone that lives in a Texas border town. There's lots of interesting stuff out there, with people leading edgy and 'exciting' lives. When you really look at Paris Hilton, her lifestyle is neither edgy nor exciting. It's really just sort of depressing. It looks like the cheapest bottom barrel entertainment they could find.

From what I gathered from your post - it's supply and demand. You're right. People don't want to hear unbiased news and make their minds up for them selves. They rather have Bill O'Riely tell them what they should think. Or just be dumbed down by watching gossip.

This is my plan; I am going to wait 20 years and then turn on the History Channel and then I can have a conversation about 20 year old events - that's the only way to get news via the mass media. That's another thing that separates news from national gossip. In 20 years - if it is on the History Channel it's most likely news. In 20 years if it is on E True Hollywood Story then it is national gossip.

[jdberger]

TS - You're an elitist.

You're the guy who insists that if you aren't reading Proust or Faulkner, you aren't reading 'real literature'.

You're the guy who insists that if you aren't watching Igmar Bergman films, you aren't watching cinema.

You're the guy who insists that it isn't art unless it's classicist. You're the guy who looks down at the plebes and their pedestrian pleasures, their commonplace foods, banal art, declasse television, uninspired film, mainstream music...........

It's become clear that you hold yourself up as some sort of sophisticate.

Which, I guess is fine. But, the mantle of cultured elite is in itself awfully boring. It misses some of the finer things in life.

The Dirty Water Hot Dog, Jerry Bruckheimer movies, Three Stooges, bubblegum pop, The Price is Right, Levis, the .38 special, nacho cheese and other classic instances of the American Experience.

I see this affliction mostly among college students who are struggling to define themselves as interesting. They rail against America's "lack of culture" and "lost sense of history". They play this nihilist post-modernist martyr that really is quite tiring. Fortunately, they often grow out of it.

News, is what you make of it.

[racko]

Can we all agree that live sucks?

[ts]

TS - You're an elitist.

You're the guy who insists that if you aren't reading Proust or Faulkner, you aren't reading 'real literature'.

You're the guy who insists that if you aren't watching Igmar Bergman films, you aren't watching cinema.

You're the guy who insists that it isn't art unless it's classicist. You're the guy who looks down at the plebes and their pedestrian pleasures, their commonplace foods, banal art, declasse television, uninspired film, mainstream music...........

It's become clear that you hold yourself up as some sort of sophisticate.

Which, I guess is fine. But, the mantle of cultured elite is in itself awfully boring. It misses some of the finer things in life.

The Dirty Water Hot Dog, Jerry Bruckheimer movies, Three Stooges, bubblegum pop, The Price is Right, Levis, the .38 special, nacho cheese and other classic instances of the American Experience.

I see this affliction mostly among college students who are struggling to define themselves as interesting. They rail against America's "lack of culture" and "lost sense of history". They play this nihilist post-modernist martyr that really is quite tiring. Fortunately, they often grow out of it.

News, is what you make of it.

No not really, you are mistaken.