IMO with very few exceptions, journalists have done a good job of reporting every blip but a piss-poor job of helping people understand what those blips add up to. They have made the public savant-idiots: we have heard so much about everything -- blip! blip! blip! blip! -- that we end up knowing nothing at all.

That is exactly why I came to this sub-reddit in the first place, and why I've ended up participating: to try to sort out what is indisputable fact, what is interesting speculation, what is interesting but non-essential, etc.

I have found Seth Abramson's work in my personal sorting-out process to be extremely useful -- and far more useful than the confusing "battle of the talking heads" that goes on at CNN, for example. The coverage at The Atlantic has been stellar, but it tends to be siloed where Seth finds interesting and revealing bridges across silos.

I thoroughly agree that we are at a moment when truth is under daily, cynical assault. But I think Abramson generally does a better job of separating "this is true" from "this might be true" than most of what passes for journalism these days.

P.S. Used carefully, digital as a medium is far superior to TV for purposes of sorting out truth from speculation. CNN, MSNNC, Fox et al are mostly useful for Amusing Ourselves to Death.

Abramson isn't perfect, but he's light years away from spreading Pizzagate-like nonsense. I think most of us can read what he has to say without getting carried away.

If you think this is interesting, I recommend checking out <em>Amusing Ourselves to Death</em> by Neil Postman.

He claims that tv is intrinsically worse than text for some purposes, like the news.

Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business is an excellent read for the "lessons learned" part.

Does anyone have an opinion on the quoted book?

Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business By Neil Postman

The invention of the telegraph.

Neil Postman wrote Amusing Ourselves to Death. It's not a historical piece per say. It's about communication theory. One argument he makes is that the way we ingest the news/information suddenly changed once far off, clandestine information could be shared immediately following the invention of the telegraph.

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Information is power, and virtually all other technological progress after its invention would have been impacted by the telegraph. Engineers could talk across the country. Investors, bankers, and wealthy persons could react to news within a week or two of it occurring. Military incursions were felt immediately by a nation. Suddenly, our world became a lot smaller and collective action became a lot more feasible. It doesn't matter how you spin it. Electrically-transmitted information fundamentally altered the way we engage everything.

&#x200B;

Moreover, everything that defines the "modern" information era is a product of the telegraph and the technologies that evolved from it. Its winners are those with the best information and influence as opposed to those with the biggest military, strongest religious argument, deepest pockets, etc. The best possible example? Elon Musk doesn't own amazing companies. He's wealthy as hell because he created a brand that persuaded/influenced people to invest time, effort, and (most importantly) money into his companies, enriching himself. If Twitter didn't exist, Elon would not be half as wealthy as he is today.

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