Seeking Balance and Truth

Astroturfing is the act of creating a small organization and making it appear to represent something popular for the purpose of promoting a particular entity or cause. It is a play on grassroots in the sense of a popular movement originating among the common people versus AstroTurf which is a brand of artificial grass. The practice of astroturfing has become a widely used form of propaganda, as evidenced by the media coverage it receives. 

astroturf propaganda meme

Optimism bias, also known as unrealistic optimism, causes someone to believe that they themselves are less likely to experience a negative event. It is a common cognitive bias that transcends age, ethnicity, gender, nationality and even species.

So how do you tell the difference between biased propaganda and verified facts? 

STEP #1:  Distinguish between reliable and unreliable sources by utilizing fact check tools.  Even if you think a news story is plausible, it is still advisable to check sources. This can be done quickly and easily online.

Media Bias Fact Check (MBFC) investigates various media for bias as well as factual reliability, maintaining a comprehensive and easy to search database. Founded in 2015, MBFC is an independent online media outlet utilizing a strict methodology. Funding comes from donations and third party ads generated independently based on cookies and search history. 

FactCheck.org is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania funded by an endowment and donations.

Politifact is known primarily for fact checks, considered among the most factual and least biased sources though slightly left leaning. Their Trump-O-Meter also tracks campaign promises.

Snopes began investigating urban legends, hoaxes and folklore in 1994.

The Fake News Codex identifies “news” sites that are fake, extremely misleading, or satirical. They focus on truly fake news but do not list highly biased sources. I enjoy Mad Magazine, the Borowitz Report, and The Onion because satire is fun, but entertainment and infotainment should not be conflated with hard news.

STEP #2:  Verify by checking multiple reliable sources. Avoid known propagandists.  President Ronald Reagan was fond of a Russian proverb translated to “trust but verify.” Simple blind trust is risky; verification helps to mitigate that risk. If a news story is reported consistently by multiple trusted sources then it is more likely fact than propaganda.

In the Center:  AP News, Ballotpedia, C-Span, Congress.gov, Gallup, Knowhere, Law.com, Politico, Reuters, and Worldometers are among the least biased and most factually reliable sources. The Good News Network publishes only positive news, highly factual with minimal bias. The Hill and Wikipedia are mostly factual.

Left of Center:  NPR and PBS are very highly factual. ABC, Axios, Business Insider, CBS, NBC and USA Today are highly factual. Huffington Post and Vox are mostly factual. CNN and MSNBC are factually mixed.  

Right of Center:  Forbes is mostly factual with slight right center bias. National Review is mostly factual with strong bias. Fox News and One America News (OAN) are factually mixed, borderline questionable. Breitbart and the Drudge Report are questionable sources based on extreme bias and false claims.

Commentary from Both Sides: When I’m researching a specific topic or seeking something interesting to read and share, I go to sources that make concerted efforts to explore multiple perspectives rather than one-sided propaganda: 

• Braver Angels is curated by citizens uniting red and blue to depolarize America.
• Countable provides congressional updates and feedback tools to communicate with legislators.
• Flip Side offers concise summaries and analysis from both conservative and liberal perspectives.
• The Conversation is an independent, nonprofit publisher of commentary and analysis authored by academics and edited by journalists for the general public. 
• The Fulcrum aims to utilize news, debate, and community as levers for a better democracy.

Local:  The Winston Salem Journal is consistently reliable. Sometimes I check Greensboro News & Record, Raleigh News & Observer, and Charlotte Observer too. Spectrum seems to be the least biased and most factual regional tv news, followed by WFMY (CBS) and WXII (NBC). Kenny Beck is my preferred local news anchor in part because seems like a genuinely nice person. Also, he encourages his Facebook followers to share good news rather than dwell on the negative. Sometimes I watch Good Morning America with George Stephanopoulos or CBS This Morning with Gayle King. I typically don’t watch evening national network news though I favor NBC’s Lester Holt when I do. WFDD public radio for the Piedmont is my P1 and the only talk radio station on my car stereo presets. 

International:  United Press International (UPI) is considered least biased and highly factual. BBC is slightly left of center and highly factual. Al Jazeera, owned by the state of Qatar, is a left of center network with a mixed factual reporting history. Although British-Iranian journalist Christiane Amanpour is not typically neutral, I trust her to be insightful, thorough and truthful.

News aggregators combine syndicated content from newspapers, blogs, and podcasts in one location for easy access. Google News is highly factual yet strongly left biased. Bloomberg and Yahoo News are mostly factual with slight to moderate left center bias. The Righting offers a daily newsletter with headlines from the right curated to inform mainstream and liberal audiences.

Most news organizations rely on sponsors and/or donors for financial support. That’s why online news is plagued by annoying ads and pop-ups. Though I do not currently pay for news services, I am considering donations and/or subscriptions to support investigative journalism after reading about Vox Media furloughs.

Bottom line: There is an abundance of “news” content available through a variety of media. As American consumers we can choose how much news to partake and which sources to rely upon. People who willfully limit themselves to one or two echo chambers are not truly informed. Being aware of biases is one step on a path to enlightenment. The next step is consideration of multiple perspectives in order to critically evaluate information before forming opinions or drawing conclusions.

BleachGate is one recent example of how different news organizations have covered a specific story. During a briefing Thursday April 23, DHS official William Bryan shared information about lab observations, saying "the powerful effect solar light appears to have on killing the virus on both surfaces & in the air… we see a similar effect with both temperature & humidity."

Following Bryan’s remarks, Trump spoke about the possibility of injecting disinfectants into patients and asked Dr. Birx about UV light and heat as a cure. When reporter Phillip Rucker questioned Trump about his ideas, Trump responded “I’m the president and you’re fake news.”  

The briefing had been broadcast live and seen by millions of people in real time. The footage was not a deepfake; dozens of witnesses were in the room when it happened. Video clips were subsequently posted online. Clorox, Lysol, Tide Pods and a plethora of satirical memes rapidly trended.

Lysol Juul meme

Multiple news services including ABC, AP, BBC, CNN, Drudge, NBC, NYT, Politico, and The Hill covered the story from a fact check perspective, including commentary and disclaimers cautioning readers and viewers NOT to ingest cleaning products. The next day, White House representatives claimed Trump had been taken out of context. Trump himself said he had been sarcastic. Breitbart attempted to support the president with a “fact check” explaining the difference between what Trump said versus what he meant. Trump did say he meant sterilizing objects, but only after reporters challenged him about his earlier injection comments. 

After watching the video multiple times, as well as a close up of Dr. Birx’s reaction, I am convinced Trump, his staff, and Breitbart attempted to gaslight by telling the world we had seen and heard something different from what we had actually seen and heard. I have zero doubts about that.

Friday April 24 Trump held an afternoon briefing without taking questions. Saturday April 25 there was no briefing scheduled though Trump tweeted:

“What is the purpose of having White House News Conferences when the Lamestream Media asks nothing but hostile questions, & then refuses to report the truth or facts accurately. They get record ratings, & the American people get nothing but Fake News. Not worth the time & effort!”

Also, the White House announced daily briefings might be modified to limit Trump’s role.

Earlier in April when conservative Fox News and Wall Street Journal had reported negatively about Trump’s daily briefings, he responded with tweets about ratings. That was around the same time a possible pardon for Tiger King Joe Exotic was in the news and a reporter asked Trump about that during a coronavirus briefing. Fox News covered the story as entertainment news, insisted Trump was joking. USA Today coverage was more balanced, offering the factual transcript along with opinions on both sides of a debate: Was the question and answer about Joe Exotic funny or offensive?

Additional stories involving media bias and/or Trump’s briefings have made recent headlines:

• 320,000+ people have signed a petition asking news media to stop airing live broadcasts of Trump daily briefings; preferring delayed video clips after rigorous fact checking. 
• AG Barr thinks media is on jihad to discredit Trump.  
• Anderson Cooper theorized why Trump hijacks press conferences.
• Captain America Chris Evans backed off social media in preparation for launching bi-partisan political website.
• Daily Beast explored misinformation on the internet.
• Fox pushed pro reopen content as counterpoint to stay at home guidance. Ironically, Lou Dobbs went into self quarantine after staff member tested positive.
• Intercept: Trump’s behavior at briefings baffles world.
• Lawsuit filed against Fox News for coverage of coronavirus crisis.
• Mediaite: 116 times Trump praised his own coronavirus response.
• Megyn Kelly criticized Don Lemon for being biased; pot v kettle.
• Mrs. America tv mini-series explores both sides of the Equal Rights movement.
• NC Lt Gov Dan Forest thinks media is overhyping crisis to generate ad revenue.
• NYT leaked Red Dawn emails exposing chaotic Trump administration response to crisis.
• OPINION: How Mitch McConnell became Trump enabler in chief.
• OPINION: Right wing evangelicals want to punish China and teach Chinese people a lesson.  
• VP Pence attempted to block top medical experts from appearing on CNN as leverage in move to force network to air full live coverage of lengthy white house daily press briefings.

In the spirit of sharing softer news and/or silly vibes:  

• Brad Pitt helped make a wish come true for Dr. Anthony Fauci on SNL at Home.
• Daily Show Heroes of the Pandumbic looked at misinformation in the media.
• Jim Gaffigan compared his quarantine experience to Mel’s Diner on the tv show Alice.  
• John Oliver explored the hypocrisy of Fox News and OAN.
• Mo Rocca investigated the history and popularity of jigsaw puzzles. 

Daily pandemic update:  

The Chinese city of Wuhan, where the global coronavirus pandemic began, said it had no remaining cases of the infection in its hospitals, with all patients treated for COVID-19 discharged. China also reported no new deaths in the country for an 11th straight day. Saudi Arabia partially lifted the curfew in all regions of the kingdom while keeping a 24-hour curfew in Mecca and previously isolated neighbourhoods. In Europe, Spain's daily coronavirus death toll dropped to 288, the lowest since March 20, as the country eased its lockdown to allow children outside for the first time in six weeks. Aljazeera.com timeline

26 Apr 2020	Cases		Deaths		Recovered
16:46 GMT*	Yesterday	Today	Yesterday	Today	Yesterday	Today
World	2,863,073	2,965,711	199,486	205,656	816,003	871,265
US	928,370	970,757	52,359	54,941	110,490	118, 633
NY	277,165	287,490	21,368	22,169	30,817	31,561
CT	23,100	24,583	1,639	1,865	63	63
NC	8,204	8,530	290	314	1,302	1,356

*Documenting time of day because real time data updates continuously. Tracking specific states: NY is US epicenter, son Reid lives in CT, and I live in NC. 
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/     https://www.coronainusa.com/   

A moment of silence for those we’ve lost to coronavirus, including the first 100 in the US.

In the news:  

• WHO warned nations against immunity passports; no evidence recovered will be immune from reinfection. 
• Testing indicates coronavirus has infected nearly 20% of New York City. 
• Hilltop fortress town in Spain avoided coronavirus through isolation. 
• House Beautiful explains replacement timelines for household items. 
• Indoor activities for dogs stuck indoors.  
• Some restaurants currently sell groceries.  

Following Kenny Beck’s lead to share a few signs of hope:

• Eminem donated mom’s spaghetti to Detroit health care workers.
• TX teenagers plan online spelling bee after original event was canceled.
• UConn students and alum form Boston based Ventilator Project.

In my personal life…

Full disclosure: I was a teenage republican during the 1980s. My family lived in Alabama when George Wallace was governor and leader of the state democratic party; I felt drawn in the opposite direction. After moving back to NC in the early 1990s I registered to vote unaffiliated. I consider myself an independent progressive leaning left of center; moderate on some issues, progressive on others.

Another somewhat relevant disclosure is that I worked at two small town newspapers in Alabama: The Southeast Sun in Enterprise and the Opp News in Opp. I started out as a high school co-op receptionist at the Southeast Sun, answering the phone and coordinating classified ads. I learned layout skills on Tuesdays when all the office employees gathered in the back to help physically assemble the paper with literal waxed paper and X-acto knives. Eventually I was offered the opportunity to write a weekly column about high school news called Class Acts. After graduating I moved to Andalusia, AL where I held down a variety of part time jobs to support myself while attending Lurleen B. Wallace State Junior College. Working briefly as a news reporter at the Opp News was one of several gigs that sustained me during those lean years.

Growing up I remember watching Walter Cronkite with my grandparents. At the end of each nightly broadcast he would sign off “and that’s the way it is” and I would reply, “good night Walter” as though he was in the room with us. That’s how much I trusted him. His calm demeanor and lack of emotional commentary made him the gold standard by which I judge other journalists. It’s gotten hard to find that type of newscaster on tv nowadays. Even when they stick to a script, you can sometimes sense bias in their micro facial expressions and tone of voice. I don’t have a poker face either so I would be a horrible anchor.

Quite a few people I know avoid the news because it makes them feel anxious, angry, sad or depressed. When I have those feelings, I unplug for a while. Also I try to figure out what specifically triggered my negative feelings so I can avoid repeating a pattern. For example, I can watch CNN news with Jake Tapper and feel fine; I trust him to share facts without trying to manipulate my emotions. I also like Christiane Amanpour and Judy Woodruff on PBS for the same reasons. However, I avoid shows like Morning Joe with Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski because they tend to share their opinions and emotions as much as, and sometimes more than, actual facts.

In my 30s I watched Meet the Press with Tim Russert, Face the Nation with Bob Schieffer, and occasionally The McLaughlin Group on PBS. Russert and Schieffer in particular were adept at facilitating a thoughtful panel discussion. Chuck Todd simply does not have the requisite skills or aptitude, bless his heart. I’ve not yet seen Margaret Brennan so I can’t comment on her ability. By my 40s I grew tired of the panel format where pundits shouted over one another. CBS Sunday Morning with Jane Pauley is a gentler kind of Sunday news program so it’s on our DVR list. 

For late night infotainment I watch The Daily Show with Trevor Noah and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, sometimes followed by PBS as a mental palate cleanser before I go to sleep. The older I get, the more I prefer online “print” news rather than tv or video. I tend to process information a little easier by reading it than hearing it, plus I like to include links in the blog as footnotes for folks who may want to dig a little deeper. 

All this is to say/write, I like being informed. Knowledge is power, a sense of control over the uncontrollable. That’s why I immerse myself in so much content from so many different sources, to inoculate myself from apathy and ignorance.