"tainting the minds of the youth?" Spoken like a crotchety old man. I'm 36, and whenever I find myself thinking things like that (which is often), I take a breath and reflect on how ridiculous it sounds. Every generation says that about the generation that follows it, and it doesn't get any more true as time goes by.

The world is full of idiots, Howard Stern is an A-Hole, Rush Limbaugh is an ignorant half wit, and I find I can survive just fine by ignoring them. I recommend that you grow a thicker skin.

 

"Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us."
--Justice William O. Douglas

"I'd rather live in a neighborhood surrounded by insensitive prank callers than one where from every porch within earshot, stands someone who attempts to legislatively shout over them.."
--Me

 

I think many of you guys are missing the point. We used to have standards for news broadcasts. Now these so called "news" programs are so desperate to beat each other to the punch and earn that extra fraction of a ratings point that they broadcast almost anything without checking their sources. Every program has their so called "experts" the one on NBC yesterday did not even know the difference between a piece of aluminum debris and a ceramic tile. How long did it take them to come up with their graphics such as "Tradgedy In The Sky" or "Day of Disaster". 99% of the crap they broadcast was not "news" but rather speculation and conjecture. The sum total of news yesterday was the NASA press conference. Even the questions some of the reporters asked were asinine.

As long as TV News is ratings driven it is going to suck and pander to the lowest common denominator. There should be a law that since the airwaves are owned by the public that news programing must be commercial free to eliminate this insane scramble to try and grab ratings.

Anyway what these goof phone calls show is how any a$$hole can say almost anything and these news agencies will take it as gospel.

Let me say this, If the caller did not refer to "Baba Booey's Teeth" you would have taken what he was saying as "news" and that is the really sad thing in all of this.

 

only if it is negated by your naivete. imho

 

I agree with Bieg, tv stations, news programs in general just don't take the time to check facts anymore. Does anybody remember 9-11? How many idiots called up that day saying that it was a small commuter plane that crashed into the first tower. I remember watching CNN that day and while they were interviewing folks people were saying that they saw a small plane flying right past their office window. We all know now that obviously isn't true. Back to yesterday, how about all the eyewitnesses at the beginning reporting that they saw another small object flying toward the space shuttle? People are just stupid it's going to happen with or without folks like Stern. Don't blame the man blame the individual.

 

Unfortunately, you're sooo right.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by turbo_pwr
[B]

 

If television programming is soooo terrible don't watch it. Just don't watch it. Subscribe to a newspaper to get your news or use the web. I find nothing of value on television these days so I don't tune in. I have always wondered what percentage of the population of North America is glued to their television sets every night like zombies watching brain dead sitcoms or fear mongering news shows.

 

Again, I have to repeat myself. I was watching CBS news less than two hours since the space shuttle Columbia blew apart when this occurred. Are you saying I shouldn't have been interested in this historic event? Personally, I shouldn't have had to hear that idiot make his asinine prank call. I can't believe some of you don't seem to understand my point.

 

Unfortunately you live in a free society. And if you don't like having to listen to idiots like the one you refer to well...tough. That idiot has every right to be an idiot. If he says something you don't like that is just too bad for you because there's probably a few million other Americans who also say things you don't like to hear.