Tag Archives: Media

If You Trust the Government,
You May Need Therapy

By Rob Meyne

Jan. 27, 2024
4-min read

The portion of Americans who trust the government to do the right thing has plummeted to historic lows. Less than 20% of us trust the government. The other 80% might ask “are you not paying attention?”

It takes a willingness to ignore facts, and reject common sense, to believe much of what the government tells us. This is true for all levels of government, but particularly nationally.

This is not the same thing as saying the government never tells the truth. Sometimes it does. But every sentient creature in America should view governmental messages with skepticism and do their own homework before determining what is true.

Pew comments on the lack of trust in government:

“Public trust in the federal government, which has been low for decades, has returned to near record lows following a modest uptick in 2020 and 2021. Currently, fewer than two-in-ten Americans say they trust the government in Washington to do what is right “just about always” (1%) or “most of the time” (15%). This is among the lowest trust measures in nearly seven decades of polling. Last year, 20% said they trusted the government just about always or most of the time.”

The real question, today, is why WOULD you trust the government?

The Gallup survey shows, unsurprisingly, that Americans trust their local government much more than the federal.

This is a fairly good rule of thumb. If all politicians should be viewed with skepticism – all PEOPLE should be viewed with some healthy skepticism – certainly, it is easier to learn about your local office holders than those who work in area code 202 and spend their nights at places like the Capital Grille.

A related, and hugely important, question is what media should we trust? The quick answer is “not many.” But here is another good rule of thumb: you should put more trust in people who encourage you to personally learn about issues than those who discourage it. You will likely never hear someone from MSNBC or CNN telling you to learn about things for yourself. That is the mark of a news outlet that is more interested in propaganda than truth.

Continue reading →

Please share!

You’re Living in a Different World Than Everyone Else

By Rob Meyne

May 20, 2023
4-min read

If you ever feel like you are living in a different world than your friends, neighbors, or work mates, it is because you are. We may reside on the same planet, but the specifics that make up our “worlds” are distinct in infinite ways.

Our opinions on political issues are often in conflict because they are based on a completely different understanding of the facts. It is hard to overstate how much this contributes to national division.

Constructive policy can be developed through collaboration and compromise. But it is difficult to do that when you don’t even agree on the facts. Since we’re not making decisions based on a common, agreed upon set of data, it is inevitable there will be huge disagreements.

A variety of dynamic factors have led to this.

For one, the way we get information has changed more dramatically in the past two decades than at any time since a guy named Guttenberg was doing his thing. Newspapers, broadcast TV, and radio are still around, but their influence is waning. Cable and streaming services exert tremendous influence, as do podcasts, social media, and various subscription services.

Mainstream “corporate” media is still powerful, but its role has been largely usurped by digital communications that are accessible wirelessly. This diversification in communications – the way information is conveyed – is unprecedented and getting more complex.

Two, governmental agencies, mainstream media, tech companies, political organizations, and NGOs are very good at coordinating their activities, suppressing speech, and promoting only those messages that meet their preferred narratives. If you don’t believe this, spend ten minutes looking at the “Twitter Files.” It is no longer deniable that the CIA, FBI, and even the Democratic National Committee are able to censor stories on Twitter and other platforms on an ongoing basis.

As artificial intelligence gets more pervasive, it will become the source of editorial direction that impacts everything we see. It will make it easier to censor even accurate information long before it has a chance to enter your newsfeed or inbox.

Continue reading →

Please share!

Media Bias Threatens Our Republic

By Rob Meyne

April 12, 2022
3-min read

There are countless times, in any given day, you are likely to hear references to “two Americas.” Depending on the speaker, issue, and occasion, one person may not even be picturing the same two Americas as another.

Americans get their information from different sources and in ways that didn’t exist not that long ago. Whatever you presume to be a “fact” depends on where you get news, who you trust, and what they believe.

People also believe something a friend or family member tells them more easily than information from another source. Whether it is true has nothing to do with it. Countless Americans think Donald Trump said, “Nazis and white supremacists are fine people” or that a new bill in Florida prohibits people from saying the word “gay,” or that Republican-sponsored state laws restrict voting rights of black Americans. None of these three beliefs is true. But people have heard it and assume it is true.

The digital age has increased the amount of information we can access, but its reliability isn’t what it once was. Most people don’t have the time, interest, or expertise to check key facts in every story they come across. It is understandable. People are busy.

Continue reading →

Please share!

Two Questions for Biden

NY Post says President Biden is “Glazed and Confused”

By Rob Meyne

Jun 9
5 min read

The past few days have presented a cornucopia of examples of precisely how different things are in the still relatively new Biden Presidency. A couple of examples, with more to come.

First, consider the events of June 6. The anniversary of D-Day. This is a good time to remember – it can be argued it was the most important military action in world history – the events that began to turn the tables in WW II.
[DISPLAY_ULTIMATE_SOCIAL_ICONS]
Continue reading →

Please share!

If His Lips Are Moving, He Is Lying

Dr. Anthony Fauci

By Rob Meyne

Jun 4, 2021
4 min read

How many times do we need to learn this lesson? When an important story hits the news, our first impressions are often wrong. Sometimes, it takes months for full and accurate information to come to light. This is especially true if it is a politically charged story involving partisan discord.

The situation has been exacerbated by the willingness of social media outlets to censor information. Also culpable is the mainstream media, as they have largely abandoned of any pretense of objectivity. Most major media outlets today openly champion one political viewpoint or another, and few even make an effort to appear unbiased.
[DISPLAY_ULTIMATE_SOCIAL_ICONS]
Continue reading →

Please share!

America Won’t Agree on Solutions if We Don’t Share a Common Understanding of the Problems

Rob Meyne

Dec. 3, 2020
4 min read

The discussion about 2020 vote fraud mirrors, in many ways, the status quo on public affairs more broadly. And that isn’t a good thing.

If you are reading these words, you are more than likely a very well-informed citizen. That isn’t a compliment to us. It’s a compliment to you. And not because our site is special. But if you have found your way here, in a maze of thousands of options, you must be fairly interested in the health of our nation. It also means you must not take much of what you see on tv or read in the papers at face value. Again, good for you. Our intention here is to raise questions, invite scrutiny, and offer opinions with which you may or may not agree. We are all about free speech, even as one of our major political parties no longer champions it.

Continue reading →

Please share!