I guess a good starting point to decide if the information you are receiving is news, is to determine what constitutes the definition of news. The Merriam Webster dictionary basically defines as previously unknown information. Whether that information is significant or not depends on how it affects the individual receiving the information.
A fire in the mountains near Los Angeles, California may be of mild interest to someone in New York, but it is of great interest to the citizens that live in the mountains, near Los Angeles. One think that was missing from the definition of news was the opinion of the person delivering the news being relevant. This is where there may be a breakdown in what many citizens consume as news that in fact may be opinion.
Is It What Is Said Or What We Understand
The results of a study by the University of Maryland was written about by Tyler Kingkade, on December 20 2010. The Iowa Independent survey the viewers of different new networks on how misinformed they were on political issues. The study revealed that regular viewers of Fox News were the most misinformed while the audiences of MSNBC, PBS and NPR were better informed.
There are one of two things happening in a situation such as this, either the information being delivered is incorrect or the information recipient is misinterpreting what they are hearing. Could it be that this delivery of news is somehow more than just the delivery of information and has other elements added such as commentary?
Check Your Own Facts
Given the results of this study it has become apparent that news consumers need to dig down to a second level and do a second check of what they believe to be facts. Even with the limited time available to most individuals a quick search on the internet might be wise before making a decision based upon what you heard on the news.
Red Flags
There are red flags to consider when listening to the news. The first is the structure of the program, is it actually labelled as a news program. If the show bears the name of the host of the show and has highly scripted segments then be wary of the content as unbiased news. Another troubling is if there is a point of view coming from the program's host or guest.
If the host of the program is involved in personally advertising products or services, it could be a sign that that program is not dedicated to the delivery of unbiased news. Most true news program anchors refrain from endorsing products to maintain impartiality in the instance that a company that is connected with the product being endorsed is the subject of some type of news-worthy incident.
Filling 24 hours with news related content is not easy and some outlets may be broadcasting news themed content that viewers need to consider to be less than impartial news.
