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Where are they now?

By Arthur Webster of Ask Old Coot

Have you noticed how desperate the news media is to take your attention away from important issues?

Do you ever read any really informative opinion of the state of your nation in the popular press or on the news feeds that ordinary people read or watch?

Do you ever see any really worth-while reporting of foreign affairs that was not in the vein of "my dad can whup your dad" or "we gonna roast their butts"?

Do you even trust the news that you do read?

Looking at the stories that have had the most impact on news feeds lately, it seems that any 'celebrity' who steps across the same line many non-celebrities step over every day becomes canon fodder for the media.

It isn't enough to simply report facts and leave it at that. Instead the media go out scouring trash cans and speaking to anybody who has actually heard the name of the celebrity. Strange reports are made that "according to a source who cannot be named because he is not authorised to speak on the matter", it is clear that Mickey Mouse has actually left droppings on the floor before".

The witch hunt that follows any transgression by a celebrity is worthy of the most tenacious gum-shoe in the world.

It seems to me that the single intent of the media is to destroy the personality and it really doesn't care who or what it damages in the process. What is even more revolting are the 'so-called' reality shows in which a gang of nonentities will discus at length the reason the poor chap did this, what his wife should do, how his kids should be taken into care - indeed, they demonise the poor bloke so that I'm surprised more don't commit suicide.

In the mean time, major criminal offences against innocents are not being persued with such alacrity. The damning child sex abuse, world wide, by various churches is slowly being investigated. A few veiled reports surface now and again when one cleric is pilloried because he has been 'found out'. From what I read in the popular press, it is something that happened years ago and is not really news-worthy.

AND YET - IT IS STILL HAPPENING TODAY!

Just this morning there is a report that the scandal of child sex abuse by priests is creeping ever closer to the Pope, of all people.

Where are the investigative reporters in this matter? Why aren't they forming their rabid wolf packs and going after savage miscreants who have stolen and are stealing the innocence and childhood of so many?

Instead of sundering some poor, too-rich-for-his-brain-to-handle-celebrity, why aren't these dirt raking reporters going after organisations in which child abuse appears to be endemic? Reports are growing as more people are made aware that they will be heard now but even these are side-lined.

The victims want to be heard at the time so my question to all these 'investigative reporters' is "Where were they then?"

"Where are they now?"

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"Have you noticed how desperate the news media is to take your attention away from important issues?"

Your question assumes it is the news media's job to direct attention to important issues.

The reality is the job of the people who work in the news media is to sell advertising. If they feel talking about important issues is the best way to do that then important issues is what they cover.

More often than not talking about non important sandal or celebrities and blowing it out of all natural proportion is what gets the larger audience. The larger the audience the larger the advertising is worth.

What you say is very true FOR TODAY but if you had been able to read the popular papers thirty to fifty years ago you will notice (or have noticed) the change from a news and scandal mix to a simple character assasination style of pandering to the lowest common denominator of the general population.

The populations of the western world are being taught to appreciate lascivious tales and to believe that if it isn't sport or entertainment related - it isn't news.

The younger generation are starting to be developed into an army of Pavlov type dogs where they will react according to the wishes of their masters when a smoke screen is required. They don't ask questions any more. They don't ask why we are in the state we are in even though there really is no good cause. They don't question how a country that is many times it's own GDP in debt can go and borrow money from another country that is many times it's own GDP in debt. (Does nobody see a problem with this picture?)

Rational thought is being excised by the scalpel of broadcast ignorance and stupidity.

One of the advantages of article writing, Arthur, is that we can do our part to report the news. What we say, hits the internet and not just the area of coverage of a newspaper. Freedom of speech is a wonderful thing.
Thank you for sharing.
Best to you.
Frederick

Hi, Frederick,

Again,what you say is true FOR TODAY but do you remember a few years ago when it was a pleasure to visit article sites to get some good ideas and to see what other people thought?

Now, thousands of affiliates selling crappy ebooks espousing 'can't fail' processes have reduced the vast majority of article sites to nothing more than advert riddled repositories of trash.

Excellent article coot! I could not agree with you more. The sad truth is that the real news does not sell papers, rag magazines, and get people to watch their crappy TV news like the tawdry stories do.

Real news does not sell papers? How do they know? Real newspapers do sell or they would not still exist but real EDITORS? Where did they go, I wonder?

Everybody knows that most little children will eat ice-cream all day long. Todays news editors seem to equate the news buying population as little children and they have created a flavour that panders to the taste created by an ineffective and ever failing education system.

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