Where Did All the Good News Go?

As a child, I loved reading reading the newspaper every day and that continued into my adult life. I love learning and discovering new things.

These days, I can barely tolerate what is being passed off as news. It is pure propaganda.

Propaganda is communication primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to adopt a specific viewpoint or agenda, often by selectively presenting information or using emotionally charged language. It's a form of persuasion that can be biased, misleading, or even false, and is often used to promote a particular cause or ideology. —AI Overview

Newspapers and television today are not what they used to be. I remember when it was presented as information, with both sides given. It was up to you to decide which view you thought was correct.

Today, choose any television channel or read any paper and they'll tell you how to think. And if you don't fall in line and think like the rest, then you are bad.

We are locked in a Matrix (think the movie with the same name). You are not allowed to escape (speak truth) or they will come after you to silence you. We are to be controlled by the Borg (as they first appeared in Star Trek) and possess a common mind.

"We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile." —Borg (Star Trek, The Next Generation)

So yes, I do have a bee in my bonnet. And how did it get there? I'll tell you how.

I was perusing the online San Diego Union-Tribune obituary section. I know of several Bonita residents who have recently passed and I wanted to let the Bonita community know.

And in the middle of the obituary section, this pops up:

So much for a neutral newspaper. Politics inserted into the sympathy section. Curious, I clicked on it and got this:

And when you think it can't get any worse, this appeared:

So first I get a campaign endorsement and then an ad showing fellow endorsers. That is followed automatically by a defamatory ad about Ms. Aguirre's opponent, Mayor John McCann.

This speaks volumes about the kind of person who would allow such a thing to be printed and a "newspaper" that would publish such a thing.

Just present the facts, Union-Trib, and stop trying to force feed your patrons with your disinformation and brainwashing techniques. Stop with the NAME-CALLING: using negative labels or insults to create a negative association with a person. Stop with the CARD STACKING: Focusing on positive aspects while downplaying or omitting negative ones to present a biased view. And stop with the SCAPEGOATING: blaming a specific group or individual for a problem to deflect responsibility or create division.

I think this type of hate-mongering—rampantly appearing as "news"—is the reason people are acting crazy and committing "peaceful protests" in the street.

Try being a NEWSpaper again and give people the truth, and nothing but the truth. Don't be a rag.

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