The other evening, I listened to President Biden’s farewell address. I was surprised when he warned us about the amount of misinformation we receive and that the very rich — some of whom own media platforms — are forming an oligarchy. Immediately after his speech, I turned on Fox News to hear their commentary on it. There was none, only a news story about shenanigans at the nomination hearings. Again, I paused. The leader of the most powerful nation on Earth just warned Americans that a group of uberwealthy people are taking power and money away from everyday people like us. And then, minutes after the speech, a major news station did not acknowledgement what just happened.
What I concluded from this is that as citizens, we must take responsibility and think about where we get our news. Internet trolls fill social media with whatever they can to influence our politics. When a TV network waits to post news about a serious warning until they can give their spin to the story, again, we are being told what to think. Maybe it is time that we learn how to think for ourselves.
Sherry Stokes
Madison