The New Journalism Revolution
We face a time in our national history when information is everywhere. There are an exhaustive amount of sources and trying to figure out which one to listen to is becoming a great challenge. We are in a time of hyper partisan bias in our news organizations. Many are accused of being severely conservative and others of being too liberal. Unfortunately, in this day and age you can find websites to support any argument, right or wrong. It’s gotten so bad, there’s even a loyal following for misinformation. People and organizations have a right to be as opinionated as they want to be. They don’t have a right to call that news.
It’s time to flip the script. It’s time to do something that will be hard, but rewarding. There are very powerful names involved in controlling what’s known as the main stream media, but the consumers are responsible for deciding what is and isn’t mainstream. And if we want to, we can do better than the status quo and we should.
Most news on some level can be attributed to eventual policy decision those in elected office, or we as voters, will have to make. Our news should enhance our ability to make informed decisions at the ballot box, not confuse us more about what the facts around the issues are and it shouldn’t be about simply hearing pundits and talking heads tell you what they want you to think. We’re so much better than that. Because, as Thomas Jefferson once stated, “a properly functioning democracy depends on a well informed electorate”. Let’s not only be informed, let’s raise the level of debate in this country.
We have to preserve journalistic integrity. We have to honor the fourth estate. We have to acknowledge that as traditional media reaches its twilight and pivots to the digital era, we as a people will have to grow too and insist that those who engage in providing the news, do so well. We have to demand journalists be accountable for the stories they write. And we as the audience and consumers have got to change the way we react to and interact with the news. We have to be responsible consumers, not spreading misinformation but exercising a healthy skepticism and talking about the issues so that we are participants in our society and not merely spectators. We have to raise the level of debate in this country not for the sake of argument but in the name of progress.
People should not fear differences of opinion. They shouldn’t demonize someone else because they have different thoughts on the policies of the future for a country they both genuinely love. By holding ourselves accountable with accurate information, historical context, rigorous debate and a willingness to keep an open mind, we will we be able to answer some of the most complex questions of our time.
The time is now for collective solutions instead of divisive gridlock. Bullying the other side, dismissing their intelligence or questioning their patriotism is not the American way. Sometimes as Americans, when passions run high, we just have to agree to disagree. But we should never shy away from open forum or tarnish it with animosity. That’s not only irrational, it’s counter-productive. As iron is sharpened by iron, intellect is sharpened by intellect. Now is the time to renew our commitment to getting accurate and impartial news and engage those who provide the news and each other to raise the level of debate.
That’s why I’m starting Rhetornews.com. Not only do we need a common place we can go to in order to get the news, we need a place that provides consensus and a world view of the events that are covered. Rhetornews.com provides a place that we can all trust to not be bloated with hyperbole, sensationalism and only see our own points of view. Let’s start a conversation about the news using some of the most trusted names in news. If you only hear what you agree with, you aren’t growing. Hearing what the opposition has to say and telling them why you respectfully disagree is the way we change what it means to consume the news and is the way we can change the national discourse and raise the level of debate in this country together.
Ideas and beliefs, good and bad, should be allowed to be voiced. We are holding ourselves hostage to the concept of political correctness. Allow the bigots and haters and uninformed to scream what they will at the tops of their lungs. The truth is, facts, intelligent debate, history, rational and logical thought spoken in a conversational tone will leave us with the victory and them with a sore throat. America has traded honest introspection and debate for political correctness. Some issues need to be aired out and put to rest for good. Some conversations, granted uncomfortable, are too important not to have.
In the end, it’s really this simple, if you are offended by what is right, prepare a better defense. The conversations we will have in the future will help develop the future vision of what America is. They will open important dialogue. Let us welcome the intellectual debates of the future and dismiss that which keeps us from doing so.
Rhetornews.com will provide an outlet for a common voice about the news. Hear other opinions, arguments, debates, and share your own. Let’s continue talking about the serious issues we as a country have to confront and not be afraid to start some very important conversations about what direction, we as a nation, want to go. We can’t rely on those we send to Washington to do all the talking for us. And we also can’t accept that all Washington is good for is talk. It’s our job to push them to do better. But we have to lead by example.
The news is happening every day. History is being made every day. Join the conversation on rhetornews.com and raise the level of debate so we can raise the level of our state. Let every American take part in this new century of being an informed electorate. One where we raise the level of national debate in this country. Because in a world where information is everywhere, we must insist that it be worthy of the questions it seeks to answer and the citizens it endeavors to inform.
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