Here’s the problem with “news”

ok, so i watch the news on TV in the morning to get traffic and weather. also, occasionally i like to hear what’s going on locally. but TV news, like most things, has lead me to become angry and frustrated. here’s the breakdown:

first, the teaser: Is There Danger Lurking In Your Water?
if there really was danger, shouldn’t you be telling everyone now? i mean, really?

then, the story: A Small Segment of the Population May Have Experienced Something. We’ll provide you some anecdotes from passer-by, but we won’t actually report on details or the full story.

this is driving me crazy. and it panders (IMO) to the segment of America (read, most of America) who believes whatever they hear, and doesn’t question it. OR they question it because it opposes their preconceived ideas that they hold onto like a petulant child or certain president, never admitting they could possibly be wrong, mistaken, or misinformed.

and then i read this in the Straight Dope today, which just furthers my rage and disappointment:

“What about the Prius and its allegedly grim environmental impact? The cause of the controversy seems to be a report called “Dust to Dust” by Oregon-based CNW Marketing Research. The report claims a Prius has a higher lifetime energy cost than a Hummer, an assertion cited by George Will in 2007 in his syndicated newspaper column. But the report is ludicrous. It evidently was self-published, lists no authors, quotes no technical literature, never explains its methodology, and contains numerous unsupported and often bizarre assertions. (Sample: a Prius will have a life span of only 109,000 miles whereas an H1 will last for 379,000 miles, apparently the basis for the contention that the Hummer’s per-mile costs are lower.) Only a fool or a commentator with an ax to grind would take such nonsense seriously.”

damn right, Cecil. because it doesn’t matter what the facts are, or how inconclusive a study may be, we have to cling to ideas unwaveringly once we find them acceptable. it’s subjective truth. it doesn’t matter which side you come down on in any debate, once you pick your side you stick with it to the death. even if more information comes out. even if your source for facts is clearly biased. believe what the TV and radio tell you and you can be self-righteous without the annoying task of informing yourself.

grumble.