Why cable news is no longer a viable source of information

It's been said that honesty is the best policy so here it goes: cable news sucks. At least that's the conclusion I have reached, and it applies to ALL of the channels, including MSNBC, FOX, and CNN. All of them have some very unappealing qualities, whether its a political agenda that manages to poke its head out during the news conference or countless hours of air time being wasted on the antics of some washed-up pop singer that no one cares about. Don't get me wrong, I use to enjoy watching Fox News, the one that I had held hope out for the longest, but lately, its becoming more and more excruciating to sit back and listen to stories about celebrities that I pay absolutely no attention to whatsoever. I still watch their evening lineup (O'Reilly and Hannity & Colmes), but that's about it. United World's primary sources come from the international media outlets like BBC news, the Jerusalem Post, and the Pakistan Dawn. The great thing about them is that they largely overlook the dumb and unnecessary stories the public is forced to listen to and have a tendency to tell the news as it is without preaching an agenda.

Take MSNBC for example, a hotbed of far-left extremism. I was reading their "world" section today and it has hit-piece after hit-piece about the Iraq War, droning on about how all hope is lost, how the surge has failed, and how the alliance of awakening councils will crumble. After that, its all about economic recession and the grim outlook for the dollar and the US economy. Then there's stories about how global warming is going to destroy us and how all hope is lost because we failed to listen to Al Gore. The only good news stories they have are the one's about the democrats. Talk about depressing, huh? When gloom, doom, hopelessness and anti-bush propaganda dominate the headlines, I have an overwhelming urge to turn the TV or computer off and watch an episode of Seinfeld instead.

CNN is not that much better. I enjoy watching Glenn Beck sometimes, but ever since I saw him interviewing Ron Paul and failing to nail him over the crazed positions he has taken, he doesn't seem like the man who stood up for right and wrong like he used to be. To be fair, CNN does do a pretty good job sifting out the celebrity news and pointless stories that no one has any interest in.

Then there is FOX. Now, I love how FOX gives both sides of the story and represents everyone instead of just the far-left, but they seem to have a deranged obsession with dumb stories that aren't news...like Britney Spears and Anna Nicole Smith (I'm already regretting putting the names on this blog). Shepherd Smith, host of Fox Report , actually has a segment of his show known as the "daily Britney". How despicable and shameful is that? Mortar shells are raining down on Mogadishu and Iran is harassing American ships at sea, and this guy is reporting on something as stupid as Britney Spears losing custody of her children. People lose custody of their children everyday, what makes her so special? The sad, sad reality is that people watch such drivel. Every time they put celebrities up on screen, the ratings go through the roof.

Somewhere between the propaganda and the celebrity news, cable news lost its way. I'm not telling anyone what to do, but I think its safe to say I'm done with it. I think I'll be turning elsewhere to get the news from now on.