Essential Media Skills for Today's Moral Person, Part 1

In the past few years, I have seen many versions of a maddening graphic going around, showing the trustworthiness of different news sources. The grids varied, but more or less tried to show who you should “trust” as a good source. One of the must-use sources, one that landed exactly in the middle of the grid and is supposedly “mainstream,” NPR, recently began a piece with “America, unlike some countries, is not defined by a common ancestry, nor is it tied to an official faith tradition. But it does have a distinct identity and a quasi-religious foundation.”

National Public Radio doesn’t know (or refuses to acknowledge) that America had a Christian founding? Now perhaps the question of the nature of its Christian roots, or its extent, or even its validity could be argued. But a basic fact of history is completely reversed by the presenter?

While it is fine for people to write across the spectrum of political thought, these ideas should not be represented everywhere as “the most unbiased.” If, as the graphic insists, the “trustworthy” news sources are rewriting history and flipping basic facts, the result is enforcing not only the idea that political left is center, but that this version of “center” is reality. Continually echoing the “truth” of the source creates a news narrative that leaves thinking people frustrated and unthinking people propagandized.

These graphics were internalized by a good number of the public, who subsequently try to help by flagging “suspect” sources for their friends, and social media giants have joined the game. Now sites which actually might be articulate and have reasonable analysis are getting banned, pulled, and blocked for countering the acceptable narrative.

Ideally, this problem would be handled within journalism itself. As the Ethical Journalism Network explains, journalists should strive for truth, accuracy, independence, fairness and impartiality. An accurate journalist, no matter how much they disagree with Christianity or its value, would recognize the fact of it being an actual religious philosophy and the foundational paradigm for America. It would not hurt their arguments at all to acknowledge facts like these, and actually builds credibility with audiences who are aware that no matter how problematic Christianity might be today, there is no doubt it was part of the sincerely held beliefs of the American Pilgrims and Founders.

Examples like this can be found across the board, every single day. As people are becoming more aware of how manipulative the news is, they are starting to want better sources of information. The problem is that no one source can really give us what we need anymore, if we really want truth. Too much media is compromised by its own allegiances, probably a natural result of the information age, corporate ownership and sponsorship, and the competition of the 24 hour news cycle.

Every media consumer needs to step back from the grid, and find our own way to learn the information we need. We need to trust ourselves as readers, and then filter information through our own brains and moral systems to create independent thoughts about what is going on in the world. It is much more work this way, but in the end we can be much more confident in what is true because we have found it ourselves.

My own “Essential Media Skills” list has come about the hard way--through trial and error. I’m hoping to pass them along and help you skip that step. Full disclosure: I do not have any kind of degree in media psychology (does it bother you, by the way, that there are media psychologists who are hired to help make media reach more effective?). However, I did train as a lawyer where the mental gymnastics approach to every topic taught me how to always think beyond text. Here is Part 1 of my list:

1. Develop a Moral Groundwork. Before you even begin to approach media with the goal of thinking independently, you need to take some time to consider what you think is right and wrong. Personally I operate under a religious paradigm, but many similar conclusions can be arrived at through other moral frameworks. It might even help to write down some basics. Do you believe in forgiveness? Do you believe in the value of innocence? Do you believe in justice? Do you know what is truly good and what is truly evil? If you don’t know what you believe you run the risk of letting the media you consume build those beliefs for you. Warning, the media always values materialism, hedonism, expediency, and manipulation for profit. You are much better off finding your values another way.

2. Immerse Yourself in Truth. Find authors that resonate with your moral groundwork and immerse yourself in their writings. The very best measure of truth is the heart, so you need to spend time reading moral/religious authors and feeling what you believe is truly right and wrong. I find it helpful to also read what others say about the author, even if it is criticism, to analyze their blindspots and limitations. I also try to disagree with my favorite authors on some things. There is some absolute Truth out there. There is also Evil. We need to make sure we know what they are.

3. Flag Assumptions. Learn to assess intent and assumptions, the unwritten aspect of media that actually holds the keys to its purpose. The flashy nature of our media encourages a stream of thoughtless consumption. When my kids were little I received the advice to regularly stop the TV show they are watching and discuss with them what was going on. Why did that happen? How do you feel about it? Would you do the same? What are they trying to teach you about what is going on here? These steps were to help kids learn to be active watchers, using their critical thinking skills. We need to do this as grown ups, and to think about what lies beneath the surface of our information.

4. Mentally Stand Up. Develop a thick skin by realizing you will have to stand up for your beliefs, even if it is just a voice in your head against the voice on the page. (One way I did this was to join Twitter and lurk through the comments, growing in understanding of the many sides of issues.) It is very helpful to learn about your own mental weaknesses and develop a thick skin to protect against criticism. Practice letting yourself love people who not only disagree with you, but think you are crazy or even think you are a horrible person. As long as you are open to being manipulated by people’s opinions of you, you won't be able to resist media trends.