“Journalism” is not some universal and unchanging ideal, sometimes reverently called “the 4th estate” because it theoretically sits outside the three branches of government in order to hold them accountable.
But in fact there are many “journalisms,” and “the media” in which they work has come to us through many historically contingent iterations that could be described as byproducts of the technology, business, and politics of their time, and but for a few accidents of timing could look totally different than they do today.
If your only move after hearing a claim is to look into the source of that claim, you might be guilty of a version of this absurd scenario: you’re fact-checking the mailman, not the person making the claims the mailman is merely delivering. You’re fact-checking the information distributor, not the information manufacturer.
Polarization in the United States seems obvious—but what explains it, and is it as bad as we think? Perhaps understanding some of the mechanisms behind (1) polarization and (2) the perception of polarization can help us engage with today’s media in an informed and productive way.
When reading articles online, always ask: Is this outlet trying harder to inform the audience or promote a point of view? In the following example, most of the evidence supports “promote a point of view…”
If you use social media, this one’s a must: check out The Noisy Room, an interactive essay on the quiet social media majority from Tobias Rose-Stockwell, an author whose book, The Outrage Machine—How Tech Amplifies Discontent, Disrupts Democracy―And What We Can Do About It, is featured multiple times in our course on Media Literacy.
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