Journalism is, unfortunately, under attack in the United States. Not just from politicians attacking the constitution, but also from a monetization angle as well. Right wing politicians and the U.S. president tell their followers to believe only party-approved news sources like Fox News and Sinclair Media. These are far-right organizations that twist truth for a partisan message, and their viewers become addicted to them. It’s a self-perpetuating problem.
Conservatives, fearful of change and worried about the future, crowd around a glowing screen with familiar faces. These news conglomerates sow mistrust, or, rather, cement mistrust, in everyone but themselves and our Republican leaders, who, despite obvious personal motivations, are labeled as heroes of the middle class. These companies teach their viewers to distrust intellectuals and believe only the fear in their hearts, not in logic, science, or compassion. Fearful of truth, their viewers return repeatedly to seek out the comfort of Fox News, their local Sinclair affiliate, Brietbart, InfoWars, or other right-wing partisan news organizations who claim their fear is justified, and they have solutions.
Money in Journalism
If only attacked from the far-right, journalism would survive and even thrive, however, it’s besieged on two fronts. Monetization is increasingly becoming problematic for print and web journalism. Previously, newspapers could rely on subscriptions, but would also sell ad space within the printed pages to make up for the fact that a subscription covered only a small portion of their expenses. But we now live in an online world, with free news sites. As such, people expect their news to be free, and nearly every browser is capable of blocking ads. Most users block those ads without hesitation. This leaves no reliable source of revenue for news sites. Journalism is being starved while it’s facing attacks from authoritarians.
Apple, Google, Flipboard, and others have separately come up with their own solutions: make reading news easier. Bring all of these sources together and keep people from entering ideological bubbles or frantic 24 hour news cycles. It doesn’t help journalists very much, especially since many of these services scrape ads to serve up their own, but it can help people find and subscribe to news sites they learn to trust.
After fake news boosted Donald Trump’s chances of winning the election in 2016, Apple set out to make a fact-centered news outlet for the 2018 midterm U.S. elections. Unfortunately, they may have fallen into a “both sides” journalism trap.
Curated Apple News Sections
Apple’s goal is noble. They’ll provide curated, factual, and balanced stories to Apple News users. By carefully curating and fact-checking stories, Apple can ensure their users are well informed, and can go into the election knowing the news, not propaganda. Fake news may have turned the tides in favor of Donald Trump during the 2016 election, but truth could reverse its effects in 2018.
Apple will display a section in the Apple News app, coming soon to macOS, and currently on iOS. This section will contain news and information specific to the 2018 midterm election. A banner will sit in the For You tab, making it easy to find this coverage every time you open the app. Not only will Apple’s election section contain news stories, but it’ll also include opinion pieces, analysis, and commentary.
Apple’s “The Conversation” section will cover opinion pieces form all over the political spectrum. “On the Ground” will show information about local elections. Apple will also include a section from The Washington Post called “Election Now,” with contextualized polling and policy data. Axios will provide a weekly briefing, and Politico will have a “Races to Watch” section. The only part I find concerning is the section for opinion pieces, “The Conversation.” Too often, well meaning journalists fall into the “both sides” trap, putting issues like civil rights in a moral balancing act, weighing something like “all people deserve equality” as having the same validity as “LGBTQ people don’t deserve any rights.” The same goes for abortion rights, immigration, and other civil rights issues. Too often, the privileged fail to see how “both sides” journalism is failing those fighting for their rights.
The Sources
Apple will pull content from at least five sources: Axios, Politico, The Washington Post, Vox, and Fox News. Yes, Fox News, a news source with more than 50% false reporting. No source of news today has been more destructive to our democracy and way of life than Fox News, yet Apple saw it fitting to include it. Their partisan bias has caused division in America, and they’ve fought for bigotry, anti-intellectualism, and anti-science for years. Steve Jobs himself told Rupert Murdoch that Fox News was an “incredibly destructive force” in the world. It’s strange that Apple would team up with them now.
With any luck, Apple won’t rely heavily on Fox News. It’s the most popular source for fake news and propaganda in the country, and a destructive force in the world. However, if Apple is able to expose Fox News for their false stories by combining it with factual news from Axios, Politico, and the Washington Post, along with often left leaning but well meaning news from Vox, perhaps they’ll be able to even out their reporting.
2018 Midterms
The 2018 election may prove to be one of the most important ones in America’s history, likely the most important one of your life. Make sure you understand what’s necessary, know about current events, and make sure you vote.
Sources:
- Apple
- Luke Dormehl, Cult of Mac
- Benjamin Mayo, 9to5Mac