From: kilroy@gboro.glassboro.edu (Dr Nancy's Sweetie)
Subject: What Twist?
Organization: Rowan College of New Jersey
Date: Mon, 9 Nov 1992 04:02:10 GMT


In a previous article, I wrote that while someone may take a political
position which seems diametrically opposed to Christianity, that is not
sufficient reason to claim that person is evil.  Many sincere people are
misguided, and can with the best of intentions support causes that others
will find grossly immoral.

For my example, I used Rush Limbaugh.  I have listened to Mr Limbaugh's radio
show from time to time, and do not very much like it.  In particular, he draws
conclusions which are not supported by his stated evidence; and in many cases,
his stated evidence is factually incorrect or incomplete.  If we limited our
analysis only to Mr Limbaugh's opinions, and did not try to understand how he
came to those opinions, we might conclude that he is attempting to mislead us.
By trying to see how he reached his conclusions, some of what we might have
considered malice we can see as simple human fallibility -- something all of
us are plagued with.


In one of the most amazing things I've seen lately, Michael Kline took my
post and `twisted' it so it was about `the media' instead of `Rush Limbaugh'.

The reason that is so amazing is that no twist was involved: my post used
Rush Limbaugh as a handy example, but certainly applies to most of the other
mass media in the US.

That's right, I said `other mass media'.  I hate to belabor the obvious, but
as it seems to have escaped some people's attention I will make this
observation: Rush Limbaugh IS PART OF `the media'.  He is a professional
broadcaster and political commentator; he is in business to get ratings and
sell advertising.  He is not involved in any form of manufacturing or
production; he makes his money by getting people to tune in.  Therefore, he
talks about things which will get people's attention, and he says things so
that people will tune in again.  His primary business objective is making
money through high ratings -- not telling the truth, not spreading the Gospel,
not improving the world.  As a result, his program's paramount consideration
is "The Almighty Dollar".

News organisations which are more professional make fewer errors of fact than
Mr Limbaugh does, but errors certainly appear.  Because there are so many
people working at large news organisations, differing biases sometimes cancel
out; but almost any news report will contain at least some slanted
information.  There was no twist in changing `Rush Limbaugh' to `the media':
all you did was go from a specific instance to a general category.


Mr Kline wrote:

> Forgive me, I took some liberties on a recent post, I pray Dr. Nancy's
> Sweetie won't be upset.

Upset?  I've spent the last six months on Christia recommending logic books
at least twice a month, and saying "Don't trust anybody!"  If you review the
logs, you'll find several articles titled "Managing The News" that I wrote
last summer explaining how news organisations can produce slanted coverage
without any attempts to be unfair.

(Haven't you been reading anything I've written?)

Rush Limbaugh was a useful and handy example of how the US media scramble
their reporting and mislead people, but he is by no means the only media
personality who does so.  Christia isn't the best place for it, but I'm
usually happy to rant about how the news media goof things up, and how the
stuff they report has to be carefully analysed before it is believed.

 *

What Christia IS for is making the point that just because someone says or
does something that seems to you un-Christian, or just because someone does
not agree with you about a point of theology or politics, you cannot conclude
that he is evil.  In most cases, it is dangerous to assume that your opponent
is unthinking or dishonest, and such claims should be made tenuously if at
all.  But very rarely is someone actively trying to do harm to his own
country, or mislead others on a religious subject.

 *

Of the books I've recommended, I know that at least one person has gone and
gotten himself a copy of one book.  IMHO, that justifies every attempt I've
made at getting people to buy and read them.  Therefore, here are some of
them again:

 _ Logic & Contemporary Rhetoric, The Use of Reason in Everyday Life _

 _ How To Lie With Statistics _

 _ Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences _


(Note that I do not agree with everything in any of these books; but there is
 a lot of good stuff to be found.)


Darren F Provine / kilroy@gboro.glassboro.edu
"Reporter, n.  A writer who guesses his way to truth and dispels it with a
 tempest of words." -- Ambrose Bierce, _The Devil's Dictionary_
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