By Jon Dougherty
President Donald Trump coined the phrase “fake news” to describe the legion of phony reporting surrounding his presidency, especially as it pertained to the garbage “Russian collusion” hoax.
Turns out that most Americans are with him on that and, what’s more, they see it as a greater threat to our republic and its future than terrorism, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.
“Many Americans say the creation and spread of made-up news and information is causing significant harm to the nation and needs to be stopped,†the pollster noted.
“More Americans view made-up news as a very big problem for the country than identify terrorism, illegal immigration, racism and sexism that way. Additionally, nearly seven-in-ten U.S. adults (68%) say made-up news and information greatly impacts Americans’ confidence in government institutions, and roughly half (54%) say it is having a major impact on our confidence in each other,†the researchers said.
Eight-in-ten of those surveyed believe steps should be taken to combat fake news, First Amendment aside, while just 20 percent disagreed.
Also, the survey noted that 54 percent believe that fake news erodes Americans “confidence in each other†while 51 percent say it impedes political leaders’ ability to get work done, the Washington Times reported.
Oddly, survey respondents blamed our politicians mostly for the fake news, not the news agencies themselves, as the Times noted:
Six-out-of-10 also fault the political community for the trend, while 53% point the finger at activist groups. Just 36% cite journalists themselves while 35% felt that “foreign actors†were to blame.
“U.S. adults blame political leaders and activists far more than journalists for the creation of made-up news intended to mislead the public. But they believe it is primarily the responsibility of journalists to fix the problem. And they think the issue will get worse in the foreseeable future,†Pew researchers said.
There is evidence that fake news outlets are suffering, however, even if — oddly enough — journalists aren’t being blamed.
“Roughly six-in-ten (63%) have stopped getting news from a particular outlet, about half (52%) have changed the way they use social media and roughly four-in-ten (43%) have lessened their overall news intake,†the poll found.
This is a huge problem, and certainly much bigger than most Americans understand.
Our founders established a free press for the purpose of keeping the electorate informed – properly informed — of the important issues of the day. Somewhere along the line the Left took over journalism education and newsrooms around the country and began pushing their views as propaganda disguised as ‘news reporting,’ leading to a far-less informed population.
American Liberty: “Established 1776” Order yours now!
Information is only as good as its accuracy. If we’re not getting good, accurate information from our news organizations, there is no way we can successfully continue this experiment in self-government. It’s really that simple.
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- Follow Jon Dougherty on Twitter at @JonDougherty10
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A local AM station is FAUX affiliated and plays a Schleppy Schmith commercial where he says “ewe” in place of you.
It is good for a laugh every time and the Brawndolians nearby never know what is so funny.
Fake news started the day after our country was founded. It went into hyper-drive with Edward R. Murrow then Walter Cronkite. Today is different. The curtain has been pulled back and we see what the wizards are doing. Yet, they forge ahead with their lies. Education is the solution bur don’t expect your kids to get it from public schools.
MAGA
I don’t fear anything ! What disgusts me is the way the TRIBE corrupts everything they infiltrate and invade to the point where black is white, up is down, and left is right. It’s all to cause division, and ultimately to rob people blind of everything they own. Only when we rid ourselves of these lying, backstabbing psychotics and bloodthirsty neurotics will our country start healing itself.