Everything Looks Beautiful on Video

Recently, I have had the chance to watch what passes for news on cable TV. I've been away from cable news channels for a few years, and like Rip Van Winkle, I now find myself in a strange new landscape.

I have, over the past few years, been able to see short clips from YouTube, etc., of the travesties of journalism aired by Fox News, but what I didn't realize is to what extent the other channels like CNN and MSNBC have become "Foxified" as well.

The problem is that these networks no longer report the news. Instead, news stories are either sensationalized out of proportion (round-the-clock Paris Hilton coverage) or editorial commentary has replaced objective news reporting. The most extreme example of this is CNN's Headline News channel. Once upon a time, all this channel did, 24/7, was report the news. Now, during the prime time hours, it's all Glenn Beck and Nancy Grace. Instead of an anchor reporting the news, you get these bozos voicing their opinions on a small number--perhaps just one--of news stories. Instead of a just-the-facts broadcast where the viewer is left to make up his or her mind about the meaning and importance of the events of the day, you have these people telling you what to think.

You see this on all the channels now. Cable news is all about personalities: Beck, Grace, Bill O'Reilly, Lou Dobbs, Sean Hannity, Keith Olbermann--these people aren't journalists; they're people who know how to rile up their audiences so that their networks will get higher ratings.

The sources of just-the-facts news reporting are dwindling. You can still get it from the traditional networks--ABC, NBC, and CBS, although the editorializing that one finds on cable is fast making inroads to these traditional sources. PBS, with its offerings of the NewsHour and the BBC is probably the best bet for news nowadays, but I foresee a time in the not-too-distant future when "journalism" in the US will consist of nothing but commentary and propaganda.