Do American people believe everything they see on the US media?

Question

Especially regarding the conflicts in the Middle East. Just curious.

Answer 1

most do

Answer 2

Yes, if you are referring to average Americans. They also believe Kiefer Sutherland is the only thing standing between us and a massive terrorist attack.

But as for educated Americans, I think there is an understanding that the world doesn't view the situation in the middle east as it is portrayed in the popular media.

This leads me to another question; do foreigners really believe 9/11 conspiracy theories, that Americans all support the war in Iraq and so on?

I often get the feeling that people around the world have trouble understanding the freedoms we have in America. If there was a 9/11 conspiracy, reputable investigative journalists would undoubtedly uncover it and the freedom of the press would protect their right to report on it. Likewise, when the United States goes to war, large numbers of people disagree and are free to express their discontent with the war. Whats so hard to understand? We're complicated!

Answer 3

Interesting question.

Belief is unimportant. The idea that it is important is a false belief, postmodernist anti-realistic drivel.

What obviously matters is the language used in non-fictional presentations as it relates to three things--
1. attested facts (somebody reports a fact) versus unsupported
beliefs.
2. standards-based evaluations versus subjective opinions.
3. full proofs versus hazy, unsupported opinions.

Since all three of these sorts of information are mishandled by the public monopoly news media, election commissions and university and bureau types, that's why we find people believing extraordinarily wrong things. For example:

Near East
Iraq had WMD. It had zero.
Iraq was a country. It was a dictatorship held together by Saddam Hussein's totalitarian police and army.
Muslims attacked the Twin Towers. Pseudo-religious mass murderers pretending to be religious attacked the Twin Towers.
We were attacked for being American/Western/capitalists. The US's leadership is an imperial president, a Congress who has given up balance of powers and a constitution that has destroyed (deregulated) individuals' rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness at the federal level. Since that is the American form of government, we are no longer either American nor western nor capitalist.

The answer to your question is: Viewers of U.S. TV news believe far too much of what they are being told,and think far too little for themselves.
70% believe in angels, 3% in responsible perfectible selfhood. Enough said.
Read a good newspaper.

Answer 4

I certainly don't and I believe there are many more people out there who are just like me. I am always skeptical about anything I see in the media or read in a book for that matter. Unless I know it to absolutely true through my own experience; I question everything. That is my right as an American!

Answer 5

I belive 1/2 of what I see, and less of what I read. I once saw a film where Adolf Hitler was all nice and laughing, was it true? It could have been.
I once saw a live TV News brodcast from Vietnam, a man got shot, was it true? it could have been.
Were they Accurate and Unbiased, no.
I saw the President Bush in a Pilots Uniform on the deck of a Carrier, is he a pilot? no.
I twice saw President Bush in front of signs declareing Victory in Iraq! they were three months apart.
I once saw Osama Bin Laden fighting for President Reagan, and he was given Rocket Launchers by then Col Oliver North. That was true.
Then I saw Osama Bin Laden 'claim' that he had blown up those places in New York, but he was still alive. Truth and Media make very strange bedfellows.

Answer 6

Absolutely not. As a matter of fact, all American programming is shown exclusively to Canadians. All citizens born in the US have a completely different choice of programs to view. We have no idea what the rest of the world is viewing, they only assume they're watching US made programs & news. Ben and Jerry started the whole thing.

Answer 7

Have they ever done anything different since WW II ?
It is more "glamorous" now of course.
Heck, why pick a book, or read different publications to educate ones self. There's always the "biased"....Networks.....
based on your supper or the mood of the day, there is one to make you cry,
one to make laugh, and one to help to absolutely confuse your self. At the end, they all are out for the money that the News "they make" not report; will bring.
And we are eating or "downing" one more, while been slowly "brainwashed"...........
So, what's new?
LOL

Answer 8

Of course we do. We believe our government wasn't at any kind of fault in 9/11. We are afraid of Halloween candy and fast-food. We're the media's puppets. Unfortunate, but true. We're lazy. We'd rather sit around and let the television do our thinking for us.

Answer 9

Hmm... I dont trust the media. I could care less on what they watch or listen to... Let them believe that they want and I'll Do what I need to. Understanding issues like war and politics are very biased... Its all about ones own opnion in the end.

Answer 10

Well who are we suppose to get our information from? A neighbor who might have bias opinion. While some of the medias' opinions might be somewhat slanted it's will be more accurate then just picking someone off the street.

Answer 11

Nope, I like to research things before I believe them. I dont think news channels or reporters always mean to mislead us, they just let their own beliefs get in the way of accurate reporting sometimes.