Some people may believe my occasional forays into the topic of news and media is diverging from our mandate of brave new travel. But when you think about it, the issues actually quite related.
Our view of the world and other cultures is largely coloured by the lens of big newspapers and television. In the past, diversity of opinion is what kept the multitude of lenses from swinging too far from reality. You could pick a few sources, and find your own truth in the middle.
These days the tentacles of big media have largely enveloped these once independent sources. And they’ve been spewing toxic sludge instead of thoughtful reporting ever since.
Case in point: the two largest newspapers in Vancouver this week carried front page stories about Paris Hilton’s jail sentence (and I’m sure the coverage was even more thorough in the US).
How to combat this noxious pollution? Support alternative news sources. Stop reading big media. And turn off your TV.
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I couldn’t agree more. At least there’s still those undeveloped corners of the internet.
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ourman – that’s an interesting point about media freedom in other countries. perhaps a good question to ask is: what’s better? media control or media sludge? it’s possible the latter is a version of the former, only glittered up with a fancy toy dog.
john – that’s the beauty of the net. there’s always room for more corners ;-D
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Freedom of the press is definitely better than the alternative, although I do sometimes wonder what they choose to cover. What does it say about people in general that Paris Hilton’s jail time is worthy of front page coverage?
At least we have the option to click away or change the channel, and thanks to the web, we can choose our sources of information.
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Good article, good point, and yes the media is important to travel. On a slightly unrelated note, look at how far it’s gone here in the UK:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,2218528,00.html↵
