I can remember when I was a kid, and we had four channels on television: ABC, CBS, NBC, and PBS. If you wanted news, you waited until 6:00 and 10:00 each evening. That was when Walter Cronkite and his buddies would come into our homes with the nightly news. People of my age, and older, remember how Cronkite signed off each broadcast: “And that’s the way it is…”
In those days, we all assumed that the news we were given was accurate and fair. Looking back, and knowing that Cronkite (and most of the others) were radical leftists might color how we look at their impartiality, but that was not a concern back then. We trusted the news. We took it as truth.
Of course, today, the landscape has changed. CNN burst onto the scene in the 1980s, and came into its own during the bombing of Baghdad, during Operation Desert Storm, as Bernard Shaw and Peter Arnett gave us live reporting while bombs fell around them. Suddenly, we found ourselves able to access news 24/7. For news and information junkies, it was wonderful.
Soon, Fox News, MSNBC, Headline News, and more filled up our channels. Quickly, a clear divide became evident, with Fox News seemingly on one side, with the others in opposition. Fox tended to push a more conservative agenda, while CNN, et al. advocated a liberal perspective. Most Americans found themselves on one side or the other. It was common to walk into a restaurant that had televisions for patrons to watch, and make a determination on the quality of the establishment by which channels were on.
What we failed to realize was that all of these channels were really on the same side. It was an illusion of choice. Now, we can see that they are all globalists. Certainly, there are a few individuals on these channels that might not toe the party line, but the vast majority of personalities are in opposition to freedom of the individual and have no interest in national interests. As such, they are all suspect. We cannot really trust what they give us.
So what is a Man of the West to do? First, do not trust those establishment mouthpieces. That does not mean we can never watch them, but we should not accept what they say at face value. We must be skeptical. We have no choice. One method of cutting through the noise is to monitor several types of sources. Even reliable sites have a bias. Diversify. Read about the same subjects from as many sources as time and practicality allow.
Secondly, go to online sources. This option is, obviously, fraught with potential disaster, as the Internet is full of garbage. We have to learn to be discerning readers. When a site is obviously nonsense, do not share their idiocy. Just because a website says something does not make it true, so do not share junk. Don’t forward it to friends, post on Twitter or Facebook. When you find a site that seems to be reliable and trustworthy, then use it. As long as it provides helpful material, it is a useful source. Do your research and verify what you see.
One of those online options will be individual blogs. Since there are so many blogs out there, it is worth considering them separately from other online sources. As you find blogs that offer news, cultural inquiry, analysis, etc., take the time to peruse their archives. Some will be parroting one party line or the other. Some will be flat out lunatics. Some will give great material that should be considered. Remember that anyone can post darn near anything, so just because it is written down does not make it true. Without a doubt, most blogs are going to be opinionated and biased. That is not a bad thing, really. Just recognize it for what it is. As with all these sources, having good mental filters is a requirement.
Another key consideration is that you must take responsibility for your own knowledge gaps. If you relied on a public education to inform you of past events, your understanding is sorely lacking. If you do not understand the past, you have no foundation upon which to build a contextual framework of the present. You certainly will not be able to perceive what may come in the future. So take the time to read about the history of our country, and Western Civilization as a whole. There are plenty of good resources available to you in that regard, such as the material produced by Tom Woods. He is not the only credible source, but is a fine one. Once you gain a better understanding of the past, you will begin to notice historical patterns, which will give you some indication of what might come next. This is an indispensable step in understanding the world as it exists, not as it is presented by leftists with an agenda.
The world has changed. We can no longer expect traditional Main Stream Media to provide us with credible news. We must be more proactive in our information gathering.
Will some new method of distributing the news develop? Perhaps. Or maybe, nothing will ever be the same, and true news will remain decentralized. It does not matter. Men of the West know what is true, referring to core values. If a news presentation does not match those, then discard it. Just do not trust the MSM to educate you. If you go that route, you will be misguided.
Now, does this mean we never read liberal sites? Do we discount everything that comes from the NYT, WaPo, CNN, Huffington Post, etc.? Of course not. Occasionally, we find a golden nugget in those sources. If nothing else, when we read their material, we get insight into the workings of the other side. That is only to our benefit, with one caveat: if you do not have the aforementioned grounding in truth, then you can be led astray by these sources. So get that foundation, and then feel free to gather information from any source. Again, be a discerning reader.
As a starting point, here are a few sites that I find useful, at the present time. This is not an endorsement of everything these sites post, but rather a suggestion that on the whole, they are reliable. Of course, that could change. Any site or organization can be converged. But here is my list:
Breitbart.com
Lifezette.com
Drudgereport.com
AmericanThinker.com
RT.Com
These are not the only places I visit for news. But I do check them daily, and find value in what they offer. What are your news sources?
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News and/or commentary sites I also visit (each have strengths and weaknesses, of course):
http://takimag.com/
http://www.strike-the-root.com/
https://mises.org/
http://www.theamericanconservative.com/
http://fredoneverything.org/
http://reason.com/
https://www.lewrockwell.com/
It was always a lie that we could be informed by simply turning on the TV and doing nothing more than watch.
With all things worthwhile, it takes effort and no technology can do what a man must do for himself.
Wait. No body cited Snopes? That bastion of fact checking brilliance?
Seriously, it’s information worth reading and sharing.
“If you relied on a public education to inform you of past events, your understanding is sorely lacking. If you do not understand the past, you have no foundation upon which to build a contextual framework of the present. You certainly will not be able to perceive what may come in the future.”
What would be the best tools to invest in to create the “contextual framework”? Which sources would be the best place to start?
The historical framework comment refers to developing a proper understanding of how we got here and who we are, as a people. I would read and/or watch materials that teach proper history, like the Tom Woods stuff I mention in the article. Learning about Christianity is also important, for a proper world view. I do not refer to churchianity, but true Christianity. Even if one chooses not to become a Christian, that knowledge can inform one about the historical framework of the culture.
Snopes is massively left biased, and their fact-checking has proven consistently unreliable and often flatly false.
I find Taki’s a good news aggregator… Not from the articles themselves, but from the extremely well-informed commentariat.