. . . I appreciate Lara Logan’s statement recently concerning the silent majority:”They are not the silent majority, they are the completely overlooked stomped upon disregarded, ignored, swept aside patronized majority. Everywhere I go in this country, Democrat and Republican, people tell me they just want to hear the truth. . . . rljohnson1 comment to this article.
Former employee accuses network of amplifying 'fringe voices'
"A former producer for MSNBC explained why she quit her role in a scathing letter, calling the left-leaning anti-Trump TV network a “cancer” that is “stoking national division” among Americans.
"Ariana Pekary accused MSNBC of amplifying “fringe voices” while forcing “journalists to make bad decisions on a daily basis.”
"Pekary wrote on her personal website:
"You may not watch MSNBC but just know that this problem still affects you, too. All the commercial networks function the same – and no doubt that content seeps into your social media feed, one way or the other.
" 'It’s possible that I’m more sensitive to the editorial process due to my background in public radio, where no decision I ever witnessed was predicated on how a topic or guest would “rate.” The longer I was at MSNBC, the more I saw such choices — it’s practically baked in to the editorial process – and those decisions affect news content every day. Likewise, it’s taboo to discuss how the ratings scheme distorts content, or it’s simply taken for granted, because everyone in the commercial broadcast news industry is doing the exact same thing.
"But behind closed doors, industry leaders will admit the damage that’s being done.
"Ariana Pekary accused MSNBC of amplifying “fringe voices” while forcing “journalists to make bad decisions on a daily basis.”
"Pekary wrote on her personal website:
" 'July 24th was my last day at MSNBC. I don’t know what I’m going to do next exactly but I simply couldn’t stay there anymore.""My colleagues are very smart people with good intentions. The problem is the job itself. It forces skilled journalists to make bad decisions on a daily basis.""Pekary also shared quotes of what people said to her during her years while working for MSNBC before pondering the harmful effect the network is having on society." . . .
Ariana Pekary. |
"You may not watch MSNBC but just know that this problem still affects you, too. All the commercial networks function the same – and no doubt that content seeps into your social media feed, one way or the other.
" 'It’s possible that I’m more sensitive to the editorial process due to my background in public radio, where no decision I ever witnessed was predicated on how a topic or guest would “rate.” The longer I was at MSNBC, the more I saw such choices — it’s practically baked in to the editorial process – and those decisions affect news content every day. Likewise, it’s taboo to discuss how the ratings scheme distorts content, or it’s simply taken for granted, because everyone in the commercial broadcast news industry is doing the exact same thing.
"But behind closed doors, industry leaders will admit the damage that’s being done.
“We are a cancer and there is no cure,” a successful and insightful TV veteran said to me. “But if you could find a cure, it would change the world.' ” . . .