The News is Not a Reliable Source of Good Information

[Update: Here is a recent example of Ars setting the record straight.]

The newspapers, news magazines, TV news shows, news websites, etc. that you read or watch don't always get it right. You'd be surprise at the amount of errors; I was. I grew up thinking that the news was accurate and useful. How would you feel to see or read a story—about cars—in which headlights are described as those white lights on the back of your car that people see when you are in reverse? While I haven't seen that particular error, I have seen errors in basic facts that make me worry the same.

Thanks to the Internet, you have a lot more sources of information than ever before. Often you can find the original source(s) used by a news story and see the errors in the news story. If you are lucky, you can find a website that does a good job at reporting news. I found Ars Technica a few years ago. (Ars has technology-related news.) Sometimes an Ars article will tell you about the errors in the news at other sites. Another nice thing about Ars is they provide you with real information; they don't try to attract your readership by presenting controversial, held-by-a-single-person-or-small-group view points as hard facts. Sensationalistic news reporting makes me sick because it spreads misinformation to the common people.

I'm going to stop here as I'm getting worked up thinking about all of the falsehoods—both intentional and unintentional—that most people are exposed to.