The Problem Isn't The Media, It's The People Who Consume It

If you were to take Donald Trump at his word, the media is completely biased against him, and in the pocket of Hillary Clinton. Conservatives constantly complain that the media is biased against them, and Fox News claims to be "fair and balanced" which we know is a lie.

Then you have the far-right and far-left which are convinced that the media are controlled by the elite and "Zionists" - a thinly veiled reference to a range of anti-Semitic conspiracy ideas. These individuals range from Alex Jones' Infowars and Natural News on the right, and a range of wingnut sites like The Anti-Media on the left.

Unless a website is funded by private or public groups like NPR is, that site's existence depends on traffic and ad revenue. Because of that, both traditional and new media sources tend to produce articles based on what people will click on.

This is why the media runs stories on cute puppy videos lifted from Reddit, or the latest celebrity gossip - because that's what grabs people's attention and boosts their ratings. If ratings or web traffic are low, they can't make as much money.

Most of these media outlets depend on advertising to stay afloat, and in the age of Facebook, anyone can create a website and claim that they're a reputable news source or even a health professional. Many also state that they will tell you the stories and truth the mainstream media won't, but they're selling a snake oil sideshow carnival act for the people who are convinced the main circus act is a scam.
Upworthy or World Star Hip Hop-styled tabloid headlines overwhelm quality content from NPR or the New York Times, and most people tend to gravitate to them, let alone want to pay a subscription for material that other sites will just lift and recycle with sensationalized titles like "Fox News Is SUICIDAL After THIS Happened!"

As much as we may despise that practice of clickbait "journalism," in a time where anyone can pretend to be a media outlet, it's often easy money for individuals who can't or won't work a "real job." It's not hard to sit online scraping content from other places and passing it off as your own, and some individuals will stop at nothing to keep that revenue flow alive.

A common retort I hear from the left is that Fox News is the biggest cable news outlet, but younger people tend to get their information online, not from watching TV. We usually consume what appears on Twitter, Reddit or Facebook, and I can tell you that I really only watch MSNBC for Rachel Maddow.

If you truly want quality media, you have to put your click where your mouth is. Learn what is a reputable news source, what is an opinion site like we are, and who is just trying to profit from your time online. If you find that a site is unreliable or secretly promoting an anti-government agenda like Cop Block, remove them from your news feed and move on. Another example is Occupy Democrats which I have repeatedly spoken out against. Occupy Democrats posted an image that does little else other than slut-shame Melania Trump. 357,000 people have shared this image from their page, plus whatever other pages who have used it or made their own versions of it. That's a horrible example for liberals to make of themselves, and meanwhile, the owners of Occupy Democrats and their friends are laughing all the way to the bank. If you search Opensecrets.org, there is not one single donation made to any political campaign by either owner of the website, or the Occupy Democrats organization which advertises itself as a political cause. Yes, this is nothing more than a for-profit organization trying to make a fortune off politics.

Contribute money to your local NPR station or patronize local businesses that support them. Read websites that don't constantly fail Politifact scrutiny, and always, always be sure to fact check for yourself.

Donald Trump Perfectly Illustrates How Stupid Our Political System Has Become

Both Republicans and Democrats are absolutely horrified at the latest remarks from Donald Trump concerning banning Muslims from the United States. Until this election cycle, anyone who proposed any of the things Trump has would have watched their campaign crash and burn. Party officials and political pundits alike would castigate them, but the reaction from the GOP leadership and conservative media has been cowardly this time around.

Remember 2008 Republican presidential candidate Tom Tancredo? No? That's because he barely registered in the polls, thanks in part to his extreme views on race and immigration. In 2016, Tom Tancredo has told Donald Trump to tone down his rhetoric, which illustrates just how far the GOP has slid to the fringe in the past 8 years. When the GOP's leading candidate is embraced by Neo-Nazis, there's no further doubt that our national political dialogue is in complete shambles.



Donald Trump continues to remain popular, because he is appealing to the most ignorant people in America. If I were to guess, I'd say that the average Trump voter barely understands how politics work, and really thinks if you type "Amen!" under a picture on Facebook, that little girl will be cured of cancer. These people are all around us, we all know at least one person who truly believes and shares stuff from conservative clickbait media sites that claim Michelle Obama is really a man - or that they have the exclusive scoop on President Obama's plan to confiscate guns.

Right-wing politics has always relied on the fear of foreigners, intellectuals, gays, etc. The Know Nothing Party flourished on the hatred towards Irish immigrants and Catholics. The KKK has been reincarnated a number of time to oppose blacks, Jews, communists and immigrants. The John Birch Society is still alive and well today, enjoying the support of Ron Paul devotees and Glenn Beck followers.

However, the internet and social media especially have made spreading hatred and misinformation easier - and more profitable than ever before. It used to be that the unhinged rants of conspiracy nuts were mostly confined to newsletters or low watt radio stations, but now all you have to do is tap your Facebook app and find that your gullible aunt is sharing stuff from David Icke, David Avocado Wolfe or websites claiming you can cure autism with bleach.

In other words, the crazy has gone mainstream. Bloggers have found that they can make a lot of money with headlines along the lines of "Barack Obama DESTROYS Every GOP Talking Point In EPIC Smackdown!" or "The SHOCKING Truth About Guns Liberals Don't Want YOU To Know!" Too many people don't read beyond the headline, and pass an article along as being true, without fact-checking both the story and the source.

As much as liberals want to claim that they are smarter than conservatives, there are many folks on the left who believe that George W. Bush will be tried for war crimes or that the FCC can pull Fox News' broadcasting license - simply because they saw it on a website that calls itself liberal.

The danger of Donald Trump being the Republican nominee or even being elected as our next president should not be laughed off. When you have people claiming to be Bernie Sanders supporters who have stated they will not vote for Hillary Clinton, or Clinton supporters saying they will not vote for Sanders, there is a very real possibility that Donald Trump or Ted Cruz could eek out a win in 2016.

Elections are not won based on viral videos or Moveon.org petitions, they are won by educating and motivating voters. Unfortunately, the American public has been dumbed down more than ever before over the last few years, thanks in part to social media. This is how Donald Trump has become as popular as he is, and this may be how the GOP hold on America becomes complete in 2016.