Turn off CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, CNBC & OANN. Try listening to some foreign coverage on what's going on in our world. You'd be surprised how much interest we bring to these foreign news channels. BBC, Al Jazeera, Deutsche Welle -- although they are state run, you'll hear a little bit more neutral coverage of US politics than you will with the US corporate media. Plus you'll also hear information about people and places and things going on in other parts of the world than you would with US-centric news that makes up our major corporate news networks. I intentionally list RT (Russia Today) because it's basically Kremlin propaganda, as unfortunately, all Russian news sources are as they have been slowly taken over by the Putin regime. https://archives.cjr.org/feature/what_is_russia_today.php
How Reliable is Your News Source? Understanding Media Bias 2021 (League of Women Voters): https://my.lwv.org/california/torrance-area/article/how-reliable-your-news-source-understanding-media-bias-2021
How To Detect Bias In News Media (FAIR: Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting): https://fair.org/take-action-now/media-activism-kit/how-to-detect-bias-in-news-media/
The Media Bias Chart: https://adfontesmedia.com/
AllSides Media Bias Chart (Image): https://ibb.co/kymPNN3
Some non-corporate media that you should be watching:
-----------------------------------------------------
* Secular Talk: https://www.youtube.com/user/SecularTalk
* The David Pakman Show: https://www.davidpakman.com/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/MidweekPolitics
* Democracy Now!: http://www.democracynow.org/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/democracynow
* BNO News (formerly @BreakingNews - Note: @BreakingNews on Twitter is FINALLY back, but it's run by MSNBC) http://bnonews.com/news/index.php/news/landing
* PBS Newshour: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6ZFN9Tx6xh-skXCuRHCDpQ
* The Philip DeFranco Show (non-bias pop culture & Youtube news) https://www.youtube.com/user/sxephil
* The Intercept: https://theintercept.com/
* You can also subscribe to my Twitter list called "Breaking News" which has all sources of news that is breaking that instant and there is no way to put a spin on it. You can access it and subscribe to it here: https://twitter.com/i/lists/68998895?s=20 (kept curated, pruned and up to date with legitimate news sources for breaking news) Unfortunately, since the Twitter CEO change, you are no longer allowed to view people's list unless you are already a Twitter member, which is unfortunate. But here is a list of the members of my "Breaking News" List so you can see for yourself I've tried to get as much center and non-biased journalism, reporting and wire services. All contributing Twitter accounts to the list: https://twitter.com/i/lists/68998895/members - the great thing about Twitter lists too, no ads!
Investigative Journalism
------------------------
* AP Investigations: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-investigations
* Reuters Investigations: https://www.reuters.com/investigates/section/homepage/
* ProPublica: https://www.propublica.org/
* PBS NewsHour Investigations: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/tag/investigations
* Fox News Investigations (ugh, this is disgusting to look at with all it's completely braindead reporting. Try the other sources): https://www.foxnews.com/category/news-events/fox-news-investigates
* CNN Investigates: https://www.cnn.com/specials/cnn-investigates
* The Center for Investigative Reporting https://revealnews.org/
* NPR Investigations: https://www.npr.org/sections/investigations/
Ground News
-----------
There's also a great new service that is called Ground.News. See https://ground.news/about & https://ground.news/mediaopoly/our-methodology They have a great app which you can download. They sort news stories by biases, either right or left and center. I usually try and stick with the center. However, you can scroll to the right to see more right leaning news sources, and left to see left leaning sources.
They also have a very cool feature called "BlindSpot" that shows you news that isn't getting as much coverage as it should. https://ground.news/blindspot
They also have a new feature for Twitter called Mediopoly that rates Twitter accounts whether or not they are left or right leaning, which you can check out at: https://ground.news/mediaopoly
Download their app! You won't be disappointed. It always shows breaking headlines of what's going on in the world and lets you choose how you consume your media how you want too - although I always recommend checking some of the right and left sources on a single story to see how they play it out.
Android from Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.checkitt&hl=en_US&gl=US
Apple AppStore: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/ground-news/id1324203419
Enter the code 7751578 under settings to get a free month of their premium service! (Doesn't ask you for CC or any info, it just gives you the free trial and doesn't nag you _too often_)
International Media Sources
---------------------------
Below are links to some international media sources, but I included them just for the fact that some of them stream live 24/7 and if you want to hear a breaking news story, it will often be the best place to turn, depending upon what part of the world it has happened in. It's very hard to bring bias to a breaking news story. It's just about what is happening right at the moment. However, you have to keep in mind certain things when watching breaking news, here is a list:
Where's RT (Russia Today)? https://archives.cjr.org/feature/what_is_russia_today.php
The Breaking News Consumer's Handbook: https://www.wnyc.org/story/breaking-news-consumers-handbook-pdf/
Image Summary of Breaking News Handbook: http://imgur.com/OWJDFJM
Here are some foreign news sources that have MUCH LESS bias towards America than American media does on itself, as well as hearing news stories from around the globe to stay informed.
* Al Jazeera English: https://www.youtube.com/user/AlJazeeraEnglish Al Jazeera Livefeed 24/7 English: http://www.aljazeera.com/live/ or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgJtWREOXHA
* FRANCE24 English: https://www.youtube.com/user/france24english - FRANCE24 English Livefeed 24/7: http://www.france24.com/en/livefeed or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fwxuzl4ZrHo
* DW (Deutsche Welle) English: https://www.youtube.com/user/deutschewelleenglish DW English Livefeed 24/7: http://www.dw.com/en/media-center/live-tv/s-100825 or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yt3HsaIEhM
* Euronews English: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSrZ3UV4jOidv8ppoVuvW9Q Euronews Live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmxIA8L3Xz8
* BBC News: https://www.youtube.com/user/bbcnews
* BBC News World Service Radio [Audio Only]: http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldserviceradio
* Associated Press (AP): https://www.youtube.com/user/AssociatedPress
* AFP (Agence France-Presse): https://www.youtube.com/user/AFP
* Reuters: https://www.youtube.com/user/ReutersVideo Reuters Live Video is a great source for unbiased news with their quick news briefs of only 20 minutes on their videos page. I recommend checking out their Breaking Views news feed that changes daily and gives you a good summary of the days events.
* Sky News (UK) Livefeed 24/7: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y60wDzZt8yg - Main Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/skynews
American News Sources
---------------------
* ABC News: https://www.youtube.com/user/ABCNews
* CBS News: https://www.youtube.com/user/CBSNewsOnline CBSN Livefeed 24/7: http://www.cbsnews.com/live/
The New York Times: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheNewYorkTimes
* Associated Press (AP): https://www.youtube.com/user/AssociatedPress
* Fox News Livefeed 24/7: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yjWDEqvkJc - Main Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/FoxNewsChannel (Fox News is obviously heavily right wing influenced & an arm of the GOP, but if you are looking for breaking news coverage on an incident that is happening right at the moment, it's an okay place to look)
* Bloomberg News Livefeed 24/7: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ga3maNZ0x0w
Not news, but still interesting - NASA International Space Station Live Feed looking down on planet Earth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzMQza8xZCc
* All Live Channels on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4R8DWoMoI7CAwX8_LjQHig
* Google News: https://news.google.com/
* News360 - https://news360.com/home - News360 is a next-generation news reader that gathers news from more than 10,000 different online sources, and presents them in an innovative visual fashion, aggregating different articles and media, and letting you see all sides of a story.
Fact Checking Sites
-------------------
Have a question if the news story you just read or the social media post from your friend is real? That's a good start to becoming a media savvy news consumer! These sites look at suspect news stories floating around the web and try and debunk the lies told by the organization or person ASAP:
* PolitiFact https://www.politifact.com/ - Fact-checking journalism is the heart of PolitiFact. Our core principles are independence, transparency, fairness, thorough reporting and clear writing. The reason we publish is to give citizens the information they need to govern themselves in a democracy.
* FactCheck.org https://www.factcheck.org/ - We are a nonpartisan, nonprofit “consumer advocate” for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. We monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews and news releases. Our goal is to apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship, and to increase public knowledge and understanding.
* Washington Post Fact Checker [BIAS ALERT] (Might require subscription to read, scroll to the bottom to download a plugin that will allow you to read news sources hidden behind a paywall below) - https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/
* Snopes https://www.snopes.com/ - When misinformation obscures the truth and readers don’t know what to trust, Snopes.com’s fact checking and original, investigative reporting lights the way to evidence-based and contextualized analysis. We always document our sources so readers are empowered to do independent research and make up their own minds. Snopes got its start in 1994, investigating urban legends, hoaxes, and folklore. Founder David Mikkelson, later joined by his wife, was publishing online before most people were connected to the internet. As demand for reliable fact checks grew, so did Snopes. Now it’s the oldest and largest fact-checking site online, widely regarded by journalists, folklorists, and readers as an invaluable research companion.
* The Straight Dope https://www.straightdope.com - Fighting ignorance since 1973. (It’s taking longer than we thought.) How did the Straight Dope come to be? It all started in February, 1973, in the Chicago Reader, now a titan of alternative journalism but then … well, a skinny titan. The column appeared without fuss or fanfare. This was Cecil’s preference. He wanted to start off small and then expand. Just like the universe.
* Fact Check from Duke Reporters' Lab https://reporterslab.org/fact-checking/ - The Reporters’ Lab is a center for journalism research in the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University. Our core projects focus on fact-checking, but we also do occasional research about trust in the news media and other topics. [Down at the time of writing, so I can't really give it a fair assessment]
* SciCheck (by FactCheck.org) https://www.factcheck.org/scicheck/ - FactCheck.org’s SciCheck feature focuses exclusively on false and misleading scientific claims that are made by partisans to influence public policy. It was launched in January 2015 with a grant from the Stanton Foundation. The foundation was founded by the late Frank Stanton, president of CBS for 25 years, from 1946 to 1971.
* QuackWatch https://quackwatch.org/ - Quackwatch, which is operated by Stephen Barrett, M.D., is a network of Web sites and mailing lists maintained by the Center for Inquiry (CFI). The sites focus on health frauds, myths, fads, fallacies, and misconduct. Their main goal is to provide quackery-related information that is difficult or impossible to get elsewhere. To help visitors with special areas of interest, there are sites that cover autism, chiropractic, dentistry, multilevel marketing, and many other problematic areas.
* Science Feedback https://sciencefeedback.co/ - Science Feedback is a worldwide network of scientists sorting fact from fiction in science based media coverage. Our goal is to help readers know which news to trust.
* Health Feedback https://healthfeedback.org/ - Health Feedback is a worldwide network of scientists sorting fact from fiction in health and medical media coverage. Our goal is to help readers know which news to trust.
* FlackCheck - Headquartered at the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, FlackCheck.org is the political literacy companion site to the award-winning FactCheck.org. The site provides resources designed to help viewers recognize flaws in arguments in general and political ads in particular. Video resources point out deception and incivility in political rhetoric. FlackCheck.org is funded by an endowment provided by the Annenberg Foundation to support the Leonore Annenberg Institute for Civics.
* Climate Feedback https://climatefeedback.org/ - Scientists from around the world sorting fact from fiction in climate change media coverage so you know which news to trust.
* Media Bias/Fact Check https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/ - Media Bias/Fact Check (MBFC), founded in 2015, is an independent online media outlet. MBFC is dedicated to educating the public on media bias and deceptive news practices. MBFC’s aim is to inspire action and a rejection of overtly biased media. We want to return to an era of straight forward news reporting. MBFC follows a strict methodology for determining the biases of sources.
* NPR FactCheck https://www.npr.org/sections/politics-fact-check - NPR (national public radio) is an independent, nonprofit media organization that was founded on a mission to create a more informed public. Every day, NPR connects with millions of Americans on the air, online, and in person to explore the news, ideas, and what it means to be human. Through its network of member stations, NPR makes local stories national, national stories local, and global stories personal.
* Hoax Slayer https://www.hoax-slayer.net/ - Hoaxes spread misinformation, waste bandwidth, and lessen the effectiveness of the Internet as a communication tool. Hoaxes circulate via email, social media, blogs, online forums, and fake-news websites. Hoax-Slayer helps stop the continued circulation of these hoaxes by publishing information about them. Hoax-Slayer allows Internet users to check the veracity of a large number of hoaxes. Information about new hoaxes is added regularly.
* AFP Fact Check https://factcheck.afp.com/ - Fact-checking by @AFP The world's biggest network of fact checkers covering more than 80 countries. Agence France-Presse (AFP) is a French state-owned international news agency headquartered in Paris, France. Founded in 1835 as Havas, it is the world's oldest news agency. AFP has regional headquarters in Nicosia, Montevideo, Hong Kong and Washington, D.C., and news bureaus in 151 countries in 201 locations. AFP transmits stories, videos, photos and graphics in French, English, Arabic, Portuguese, Spanish, and German.
* HoaxEye https://twitter.com/hoaxeye - Hoax fighter and fact finder. Main tools: reverse image search and coffee. Operated by @JanneFI
* International Fact-Checking Network https://www.poynter.org/ifcn/ - What is the International Fact-Checking Network?
The International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) at Poynter was launched in 2015 to bring together the growing community of fact-checkers around the world and advocates of factual information in the global fight against misinformation. We enable fact-checkers through networking, capacity building and collaboration. IFCN promotes the excellence of fact-checking to more than 100 organizations worldwide through advocacy, training and global events. Our team monitors trends in the fact-checking field to offer resources to fact-checkers, contribute to public discourse and provide support for new projects and initiatives that advance accountability in journalism.
* ufoofinterest.org https://twitter.com/ufoofinterest - Fact-Checking UFOs & Sky Anomalies. Debunking hoaxes, conspiracies, fake news. UFO_Hoax_Buster: @_scottbrando_ [Unfortunately the website at the .org domain is in Italian]
* SkepticalRaptor https://twitter.com/skepticalraptor - Stalking pseudoscience in the internet jungle.
* Skeptical Inquirer https://skepticalinquirer.org/ - Promoting scientific inquiry, critical thinking, science education, and the use of reason in examining important issues with our magazine, Skeptical Inquirer
* Debunking Denialism https://twitter.com/debunkdenialism - Debunking pseudoscience and quackery with reason and evidence. Official account.
* FTC: Consumer Information - Avoiding and Reporting Scams - https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/features/scam-alerts = The latest scam alerts and warnings for consumers from the FTC
* Better Business Bureau: Scam Alerts https://www.bbb.org/us/news/scams - The latest scam alerts and warnings for consumers from the BBB
A List of Straight Down the Center Legitimate News Sources based on AllMedia's Media Bias Chart - https://ibb.co/kymPNN3
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Associated Press: http://www.ap.org/
Reuters: http://www.reuters.com/
The McClatchy Group: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/
Voice of America: https://www.voanews.com/
Axios: https://www.axios.com/
BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation): https://www.bbc.com/news
The Christian Science Monitor: https://www.csmonitor.com/
MarketWatch: https://www.marketwatch.com/
Newsweek: https://www.newsweek.com/
NPR News: https://www.npr.org/sections/news/
Real Clear Politics: https://www.realclearpolitics.com/
I know some may disagree with me, but if you have any other suggestions, or find a broken link HMU on Twitter @pogue25 or leave a comment below.
