Are any NEWS sources reliable????

I don't know how reliable this source is but......

This is not from the mainstream news but.......

I tried to look for other sources but......

I couldn't find the source on any mainstream news sites but......

I have seen people start their threads with sentences like the ones above.
How do we know which news source is reliable and which is not???

People always cite CNN, FOX, NBC, etc. as reliable news sources. However, if someone uses India Times, Pakistan Daily, Al-Jazeera, etc. as a source, it is immediately discredited.

How do you know what is reliable and what is not? Do any of you actually do your own research to find out the truth?? Do you see the truth with your own eyes??

It amazes me that ATS is full of conspiracy theorists and they believe that media in the US is controlled by the elite and that these media outlets can't be trusted. Yet, it is the very same people who use these outlets as reliable sources when they create a thread here.

If anyone uses Al-Jazeera as a source, then people are quick to ask, what 'other' sources do you have? Did you find the same news on a 'mainstreaqm' news website? Please provide some 'reliable' source.

On the other hand, if CNN is used as a source, I have yet to see anybody questioning it

Is it because we have been brainwashed so much that other country's news sources are automatically discredited? Have we been brainwashed into thinking that CNN, FOX etc. even though they embellish the truth sometimes, can still be used as reliable sources of world news?

What about war in Iraq, we get lot of conflicting reports sometimes, who do we trust?

If Al-Jazeera reports that US soldiers raped a unarmed civilian girl and murdered her and FOX reports that US soldiers were engaged in combat with insurgents and one of the female insurgents was killed. It's the same story told from different perspectives. Obviously, one of them is twisting the truth. How do you decide who is true. I can bet that lot of people here would not even bother reading the Al-Jazeera account or even if they do, they will discredit it.

Simple answer, No...

Second line.

There is no single reliable source, and looking for one is a very bad idea.

Multiple sources allow the reader to take in in fo from differing points of view and make a decision for themself.

Unfortunately, at least in america, most now look to the news to make their minds up for them, as opposed to using it as food for thought.

reply to post by captaintyinknots


Very well put, people have forgotten that even 'Mainstream' NEWS is a glorified form of gossip. You need to be able to filter the BS out of this gossip to reach the truth.

Abovetopsecret.com

Link TV is the only channel I watch that I believe.

On the others, I think it's important to get a cross reference. Al Jazeera is just as credible as FOX or MSNBC. But it's best to get a few sources because they're all biased and I just look at them all and find the truth somewhere in the middle.

I think for FACTS, the MSM is pretty reliable, but it's the slant that we need to be careful of. When they start talking about WHY someone did something, it's time to turn on the skepticism. That's my view.

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


That's exactly how I see it. I do like to know the 'What', the WHY and WHO I like to decide for myself

reply to post by silencer


Most of the MSM will get their stories from either AP or Reuters anyway, so it generally has the same content, just with a particular political slant indicative of that news outlet.

I think the key, is reading between the BS to see the real motives behind the story, who gains, who loses?





[edit on 28-9-2009 by kiwifoot]