When I was growing up, I wanted to be a journalist. The travel, writing, news, it all interested me. One of the first things I learned was you have to be able to prove your story. Facts outweigh any Constitutional rights you have. Can't be slander if you have facts.
That's why I have such a problem with news outlets of today. Journalistic integrity no longer exists, or has just taken a backseat to sensational reports.
Rolling Stone just backtracked on the story about rape on the UVA campus, saying the girl's story had too many inconsistencies. Shouldn't her story been verified before publishing the article? Seems like the rush to report negated the first rule of news - fact checking.
What about the shit storm in Ferguson the media created? Using interviews with people who later admitted to the Grand Jury they weren't even there? Not bothering to interview witnesses who supported Officer Wilson? There were 8 witnesses that backed his story. I fully believe the riots, looting and law breaking in Ferguson is the media's fault. Providing false information in a highly-emotional situation is extremely dangerous.
I honestly believe we have reached a point where the media is no longer informative. It is worse than the National Enquirer - at least I know not to believe anything in the Enquirer.
The media has turned into something so far beyond it's original purpose it is sad. Facts are good things, even if we don't always like them.
Sunday, December 7, 2014
Thursday, December 4, 2014
Bad Ideas
When things in my life aren't going great I get really bad ideas in my head.
Add in a trip back home (the one place I run to during hard times) and stupidity takes center stage.
I did not do anything stupid, fortunately. What I found out after my trip makes me so very happy I didn't get drunk enough to actually act on my bad idea.
I will probably never be able to stop dreaming that things were different. Nor will I stop hoping that maybe, just maybe, things will work out in the future. While I know with all of my heart and mind that it's a horrible idea, I still hope.
I'm a shrink's dream come true.
Add in a trip back home (the one place I run to during hard times) and stupidity takes center stage.
I did not do anything stupid, fortunately. What I found out after my trip makes me so very happy I didn't get drunk enough to actually act on my bad idea.
I will probably never be able to stop dreaming that things were different. Nor will I stop hoping that maybe, just maybe, things will work out in the future. While I know with all of my heart and mind that it's a horrible idea, I still hope.
I'm a shrink's dream come true.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)