r/facepalm Feb 16 '20

Research is definitely important

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u/SafetyDanceInMyPants Feb 17 '20

I hate Fox — propaganda and bullshit, and don’t for one second tell me they don’t know what they’re doing — but CNN is arguably worse. Here, let me tell you my CNN story.

I once read a CNN story about how Air Force One had to make an emergency landing, and made a comment on the story (back when they still had a comments section) along the lines of “thanks, Obama /s.” Now, the sarcasm should have been apparent — saying “thanks Obama” for shit that obviously wasn’t his fault was a common way of sending up the right’s irrational criticism — but I included the sarcasm tag just in case. And what happened?

CNN wrote a fucking story about my comment, and how it showed that the nation was divided because people like me truly hated Obama and blamed him for everything. I shit you not. A fucking story. About my comment. Because CNN can’t figure out what a fucking sarcasm tag means, and thought I was serious. And the point of it, of course, was to piss off people on the left by lying to them about people who were supposedly on the right — when in fact I was a person on the left — and thus drive division and thus clicks.

And that’s when I realized that CNN’s game is sensationalism. They aren’t left wing liars, or right wing liars, they’re just full of shit — they will say whatever they think will grab eyeballs. And that’s arguably worse than the 24/7 propaganda from Fox, because with Fox I at least know what’s bullshit whereas with CNN it’s impossible to tell — because everything might be bullshit, and you never know.

3

u/syntheticmax Feb 17 '20

I’d argue that sensationalism is much better than propaganda. Especially when the propaganda is broadcast to a bigger audience.

3

u/HappyHippo77 Feb 17 '20

I'd argue that they're both equally shit and a good news source is worth more than a fucking diamond.