The Evil Results of Unverified News and Bias

The real test is this. Suppose one reads a story of filthy atrocities in the paper. Then suppose that something turns up suggesting that the story might not be quite true, or not quite so bad as it was made out. Is one's first feeling, 'Thank God, even they aren't quite so bad as that,' or is it a feeling of disappointment, and even a determination to cling to the first story for the sheer pleasure of thinking your enemies are as bad as possible? If it is the second then it is, I am afraid, the first step in a process which, if followed to the end, will make us into devils. You see, one is beginning to wish that black was a little blacker. If we give that wish its head, later on we shall wish to see grey as black, and then to see white itself as black. Finally we shall insist on seeing everything -- God and our friends and ourselves included -- as bad, and not be able to stop doing it: we shall be fixed for ever in a universe of pure hatred.

- C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, (1952; Harper Collins 2001) 118.

Chesterton and Muggeridge on the Weakness and Temptation of Journalism

It is the one great weakness of journalism as a picture of our modern existence, that it must be a picture made up entirely of exceptions. We announce on flaring posters that a man has fallen off a scaffolding. We do not announce on flaring posters that a man has not fallen off a scaffolding. Yet this latter fact is fundamentally more exciting, as indicating that that moving tower of terror and mystery, a man, is still abroad upon the earth. That the man has not fallen off a scaffolding is really more sensational; and it is also some thousand times more common. But journalism cannot reasonably be expected thus to insist upon the permanent miracles. Busy editors cannot be expected to put on their posters, “Mr. Wilkinson Still Safe,” or “Mr. Jones, of Worthing, Not Dead Yet.” They cannot announce the happiness of mankind at all. They cannot describe all the forks that are not stolen, or all the marriages that are not judiciously dissolved. Hence the complex picture they give of life is of necessity fallacious; they can only represent what is unusual. However democratic they may be, they are only concerned with the minority.

- G.K. Chesterton, The Ball and the Cross

Modernity and Journalism (Metr. Hierotheos of Nafpaktos)

By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

Recently a newspaper published a decalogue for a good journalist, written by someone who for years worked as a "military journalist" and is a follower of "absolute truth and objectivity." From this decalogue I would like to present the first five principles of a good journalist:

1. Always write the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

2. Cite your sources. If your source wants to remain anonymous, be skeptical.

The Information Age and the Empty Tomb of Christ

By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos

We live in an era of information and information technology, an age in which television broadcasts play an important role. Despite this, however, we live in an era of disinformation and misinformation. We learn a lot of news going on in the world, but we ignore the greatest news, which is the essence of things.

Does Media Help Us Appreciate Life In Its Fullest?

By John Sanidopoulos

Modern media, whether it is literature, film or any other, often is dark, depressing and full of angst. It identifies with the modern soul, and helps those with similar emotions and thoughts feel as if they aren't alone in their lonely and confused existence. When coupled with a moral foundation or ending, it can be quite powerful in expressing existential truths and give some meaning where meaninglessness seems to reign. And if we can't identify with tragedy, then maybe we can at least learn something from the tragedy of another.

Fear of the Devil in the 1980's and Today

 By John Sanidopoulos

Anyone watching TV in the mid-late 1980's remembers the Satanic Panic commercialized by the media. Unable to understand the changing trends in culture that began in the 1960's, blame went to the devil and his "followers". Maybe it was the end of the Cold War and Reagan-era conservatism or maybe it was Heavy Metal music and Horror movies, but back then you could hardly go a day without seeing some overly sensationalized tabloid headline that spoke about shocking satanic rituals, or childhood sexual abuse tied to devil worship. Reports of the latter would later prove to be false, since no evidence was ever found and the only cases reported were the result of so-called repressed memories recovered through hypnosis. Personally, I think all this only made some people more fascinated with "the dark side" and sinister conspiracies, even those who opposed them, and to speak against the devil in society was a way to show this fascination. It also gave society a scapegoat to place blame on when easy answers couldn't be found elsewhere.

Derren Brown's Experiment on the Effects of Subliminal Advertising

Information Overload: From the Printing Press to Social Media

Don't Touch That Dial!

A history of media technology scares, from the printing press to Facebook.

By Vaughan Bell

A respected Swiss scientist, Conrad Gessner, might have been the first to raise the alarm about the effects of information overload. In a landmark book, he described how the modern world overwhelmed people with data and that this overabundance was both "confusing and harmful" to the mind. The media now echo his concerns with reports on the unprecedented risks of living in an "always on" digital environment. It's worth noting that Gessner, for his part, never once used e-mail and was completely ignorant about computers. That's not because he was a technophobe but because he died in 1565. His warnings referred to the seemingly unmanageable flood of information unleashed by the printing press.

Read the rest here.

"The Century of the Self" (4-part Documentary)

The Century of the Self is an award-winning British television documentary series by Adam Curtis. It focuses on how the work of Sigmund Freud, Anna Freud, and Edward Bernays influenced the way corporations and governments have analyzed,‭ dealt with, and controlled ‬people.

"This series is about how those in power have used Freud's theories to try and control the dangerous crowd in an age of mass democracy." —Adam Curtis' introduction to the first episode.