I sat down in front of the TV the other day and decided to watch US stations.
It was a purposeful decision, driven by what I’ve been reading on blogs the past few days.

It was eye-opening. I know news is comerce driven, so I decided to flip over to CNN and stay there for a few hours. The three main network news were subdued in the Schiavo coverage, CNN wasn’t.

I’m beginning to understand some of the bizarre anger and drive for attention I see on some US god-blogs. If I was subjected to the unrelenting all news all the time in between the commercials that news channels churn out, telling me what I’m supposed to care about; I’d snap. I’d begin to think what I watched is normal. It is not normal.

On CNN while talking heads were arguing and yelling at each other about Terri Schiavo, the Democrats, Republicans, left/right, conservative/liberal, district courts, and medical opinion, the news crawler was spitting up drivel. Micheal Jackson. Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston. Coming up next…
It’s crazy making.

Watching CNN you’d think evangelicals were a political party. Pat Robertson was on and he was asked who he blamed for Terri Schiavos imminent demise.
He wasn’t shy about saying exactly who he thought was to blame as if he spoke for millions of people and the people he ‘blamed’ were guilty of something. Even though the host made a disclaimer that Robertson’s opinion is his own, it was rather lost in the authoritative rhetoric.
Opinion and entertainment as news.The purpose isn’t to inform, it’s to manipulate.

So, when I read today the FBI arrested a man who was soliciting the murder of Micheal Schiavo and Judge Greer, I wasn’t surprised.
People are addicted to information, addicted to the adreneline of opinion, the power of attention, all delivered theatrically.
And all the better for generating revenue for a network.

Next up, Randell Terry was telling politicans that if they didn’t do something and do it soon, there would be hell to pay.
He praised children who were arrested, and applauded their parents.

More commercials.

The host cut to a corner of the studio where two people sitting in front of computers gave about a 90 second look at what blogs were talking about.
What was going on in the blogosphere.
Several blogs were mentioned, re-inforcing the Schiavo story. About the last 20 seconds were devoted to an upcoming internet bill. I think part of the object of the exercise was to mention as many blogs as possible.
More ways to hook viewers and make opinion credible.

I turned the TV off, because quite frankly, I had a headache. I’m not sure who is manipulating whom, but let me be very clear, all news all the time is manipulative. I found my foray disheartening. Educational and disheartening.

The Internet Monk looks at news coverage and asks: What are we going to care about next?

I have family who are full time viewers of Fox, CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, the 700 Club, TBN and C-Span. They are regularly angry about the issues these programs put before them. Emotionally upset and deeply concerned. Meanwhile, people who don’t watch those channels have no idea that these stories and issues are threatening our way of life. They look around them to see where the problems are that they can address and help. Who is out of touch? And with what?

Today I read a Christian blogger’s post saying that if you did not agree with his view of the Shiavo case, you probably weren’t a Christian. I don’t know the Shiavo/Shindler family. I hear from lawyers, experts and lots of pundits on television, radio and print. They all have strong opinions. In fact, they seem to know too much about this story. They know so much that you start to hear a lot of conflicting information, and some of it sounds very suspect. Emotions are very agitated, and reasonable people who see lots of complex problems all around, get drowned out.

We’re told how we must feel, and what we must believe about what is “important.” We are told who are the good guys and the bad guys. We are told that the fate of our culture is in the balance. We are told that it’s the dawn of a culture of death. We’re told that the Nazis are in control. Christians are praying….or making threats. There’s a sense of unease because so much emotion has been poured out through the media. There’s a lot of emotion, and it seems be a crisis. This may all be true, but when I look at Jesus, and at those who know him and follow him closely, I don’t see this kind of manipulative emotional roller coaster.

Now, in between the crisis and the experts, there are commercials and promos. I assume the price of these advertisements is somehow tied to how many people are watching. So we always pause in our discussion for a message from our sponsor. The blogs are getting to be much the same way. Blogs that tell you what you must care about are full of ads telling you other things you must care about. It’s all desperate and urgent. Click now or suffer the fate of the ignorant masses.

He says it better than I because I am not subjected to much of what he is writing about. And having worked in broadcast news, I know I have to consume carefully.
Because I have identified myself as a god-blogger I deliberately refuse advertising here at BDBO. It’s not a decision I’m going to wrestle with. It’s not a box I’m going to fit into. I couldn’t care less if every god-blog out there advertised. I won’t.
I eschew the labels I was subjected to watching a news channel. I never want to forget how important it is to turn the TV or computer off, walk away and go see how my neighbours are doing.