Thoughts Are Free

What gives you the right to say that? -- The Radical Righteous

I was born with that right. -- The Liberal Leftist

   It's not a reporter's job to tell you what to think. Nor is it a commentator's job to tell you how to think.

   A reporter's job is to provide information, and commentators will say what they think of it. It's then up to you to decide what you think. An educator's job is to teach you how to think.

   Some folks complain that the news media spend too much time telling viewers and readers what to think rather than focusing on the classic Five Ws of journalism -- who, what, where, when and why, plus how -- and expecting  their audiences to do what they're told to think.

   If you feel that way, change the channel, or buy a different newspaper, or track a different Internet site, until you find one that you believe is neutral, or one that agrees with your own already formed opinions.

   That, however, is not what a responsible citizen should do. (And yes, that's an opinion.) But it is your right to listen only to those who reflect your opinions.

   As it is, many folks complain of bias and "fake news" in the media when what they're really complaining about is hearing information that conflicts with their previously formed views.

   A caller recently complained that something I wrote was not straight news but only speculation, and should not have been written, much less published, because it was only opinion and did not belong on a news page.

   But the title of the essay was "Speculation," the opening sentence used the word "speculation," and the top of the page displayed the word "Opinion."

   Straight news goes on Page One and on the news pages, and in broadcasting there are journalists and there are commentators. There is room in the news industry for both, and the Constitution guarantees the rights of both.

   So if a reader or a viewer does not like the coverage, or disagrees with the comments, they can easily read a different publication or change the TV channel.

   There are TV operations that are clearly conservative in the views of their commentators, others that are liberal, and still others that are neutral in their news coverage.  Broadcast TV operations tend to be neutral in their news coverage, while their counterparts that operate via cable often focus on  liberal or conservative opinions. Anyone surfing the channels can identify their preferred viewpoints and stay with their selections. Otherwise, change the channel.

   Ideally, however, we should listen to the opinions and interpretations of others, even if we disagree with them. Unfortunately, we are too often plagued with political leaders who insist that we should agree with everything they say, and to do as we're told.

   I tried that with my cat.

   It didn't work