News/Media Sources: Ideology, Credibility, Popularity

I want to open up this thread to a more general discussion about news and media, but let's start with this:
The Left has a post-truth problem too. It’s called comedy.
Can people like Samantha Bee, Trevor Noah, and John Oliver actually be equated with fake news?

Also worth at least skimming through:
Political Polarization & Media Habits
(I saw someone on FB say "You can't trust The Washington Post" and I was like "Wait, what?")

Other questions I've been considering:
How has Twitter changed the landscape in recent years? Has it been for the better?
What about writers who specialize on racial issues, like Shaun King or Angry Asian Man?
What are your personal news habits? Do you subscribe to newspapers, or do you just check social media?

 

I can't believe I missed this. @armistice @Wharf Rat @Dominick @Spencer Control would love to know your thoughts. I'll post later.

 

the article headline is a bit confusing - they're not saying comedians put out fake news, just that it's the left's "thing" like fake news is the right's "thing" - but yeah, broadly speaking, this is about what we know. i had a study i posted in politics that found that Stewart's satirization of Bush didn't change his approval ratings, too. it's important for the people that it does educate - even if they were always going to agree with it, someone finding out about Standing Rock or whatever, you know, that's still a good thing. i think the key is to supplement your news intake; don't just watch late night thinking it's anything besides nutritious fluff (or fluffy nutrition). thankfully, Sam Bee and Oliver have both made moves to push the activism side of things a bit, raising money for good causes - i think it's worth critiquing, but not taking down. or, eviscerating, as it were.

 

Yea, so speaking to that last point, when joliver was on TDS last week they touched on it. It's at about 3:45 and I'm too lazy to try and figure out how to embed it.

John Oliver - How "Last Week Tonight" Accidentally Eviscerates Its Targets-The Daily Show with Trevor Noah - Video Clip | Comedy Central

But I think as we've said before, it's less the fault of Oliver and Bee as it is our susceptibility to clickbait titles. That being said Oliver, Bee, and Noah have all lost me for months on end at different points either for shitty jokes, placating Dems, or pandering to the right. Like I wasn't planning on going back to Noah after his shite trans joke, but then I saw Laura Jane Grace was going to be on and he did handle that interview (relatively) well. If we want to talk about "left" news sources though, I honestly wouldn't consider anyone with a show right now part of the "left", but rather bourgeois reactionaries that we let slide because we need humor sometimes.

Switching gears to social media, because they are free platforms it obviously invites a much wider spectrum and can thereby be a better source for more actual "left" news, but that also comes without producers and editors checking personal bias. I've become very careful about who I follow and very mindful of the fact that on the other side of a tweet is a person who is posting within the context of their life and experience.

I don't want to talk over anyone wrt racial issues, but I will say that there are some brilliant writers and speakers that are active on social media. I do still follow Shaun, not for his politics, but because he doesn't miss many stories involving injustice for minorities. Following BLMChi and then listening to and following the people they give their platform to as well as others who have been recommended here and by other followers I trust has been my process for finding good sources.

In general I mostly grab stories and articles and essays from follows on twitter and that tends to fill my news quota, but I will scan BBC, Independent, teleSUR, and a few others from time to time. I have a couple other thoughts, but this is long as it is and I'm curious to hear more opinions before going on.