Broken NewsChris Stirewalt’s Guide to Smarter Media

This week, Dan steps away from current events and sports to explore Broken News, the latest book by Chris Stirewalt, a journalist with NewsNation. In this insightful read, Stirewalt examines how televised news has leaned into outrage and partisan bias as profit-driven strategies.

 He also offers practical advice for savvy news consumption and proposes ways the industry can reform itself. Dan enthusiastically recommends this book to his audience.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is Dan Riley for Passionate World Internet Radio. Over
the years on this podcast, I have covered hyperpartisan news
and I want to take a break this week only
from news and current events and sports to discuss a

(00:24):
very good book I just recently purchased that covers this subject.
It's called Broken News by Chris Steirwald, and it is
one of the best books I've read in a long
time on this subject. And I want my listeners to

(00:50):
go out and get their hands on this book because
it's the subject matter that's never before been so important.
Starwall covers how an anger driven business model takes advantage

(01:10):
of our partisan biases to make a big load of money.
The only benefits Ted Turner and Rupert Murdoch. The consequences
are frightening. Stiwall covers how this kind of biased journalism

(01:42):
appeared over the last few decades at a time where
local daily newspapers are going out of business left and right.
The book comes with three hints we can use to

(02:05):
interpret the news when we consume it. I'm going to
cover the three hints here. Number one, get your news
from multiple sources. Don't just watch Fox, watch CNN, don't

(02:28):
just read the Detroit Free Press read the Detroit News.
More than ever, partisan bias in news coverage is going
to have terrible consequences for the consumer, and we have
to learn to get our hands on multiple news sources

(02:53):
so we really understand what's going on. The second hint
the book has is to ask yourself if you're just
being skeptical, which is perfectly fine, or if worse, you're

(03:14):
being cynical just expecting the worse of other the worst
of other people or another party. That mindset difference can
have terrible consequences where we misinterpret the information at the
worst possible time. Finally, when watching the news or reading it,

(03:43):
we need to ask ourselves if the controversy covered is
really all that consequential. Political opinions of celebrities, for example,
aren't that important in the grand scheme of things. I

(04:03):
want my listeners to get their hands Unbroken News by
Chris Stirwall because more than ever, we have to understand
how the news became such a mess and how it
contributed to modern society's struggles. This is Dan Riley. Thank

(04:30):
you so much for tuning in and so long