Blog Posting # 718. Copyright 9 December 2022. EducateMHC
Perspective. Land lease communities, previously manufactured home communities, and earlier, ‘mobile home parks’ comprise the real estate component of manufactured housing! EducateMHC is the online national advocate, realty asset class historian, trend spotter, education resource, and textbook supplier for land lease communities throughout North America! To input this blog and or connect with Educatemhc, telephone (317) 881-3815, email: gfa7156@aol.com or visit educatemhc.com to order From SmittyAlpha6 to MHMaven book.
George Allen, CPM®Emeritus, MHM®Master, RV/MH Hall of Fame, & MHI Emeritus member
Responses to ‘Decline of Mainstream News Media’
Every once in a while this blog hits a nerve among its’ hundreds of readers. And last week’s ‘The Decline of Mainstream News Media’ did just that. Posting was delayed from last Friday to this Monday (12/5). And within an hour after posting, email responses started pouring in (correct word choice there, rather than trickling). During the past two days I’ve received more than a half dozen commentaries on the headline topic. Six plus? Yes, in blog parlance that’s a heavy response, as usual weekly volume is usually just one or two missives at most.
So, what did people have to say? In no particular order of priority….
One corporate executive tells of his transitions among mainstream news media this way. “I had USA Today delivered to my house for about 15 years. Then, in 2016, for the first time, they endorsed a presidential candidate: Hillary Clinton. While there was probably a legitimate reason someone might prefer her over Trump, it wasn’t enough to break the paper’s historical precedence by doing so. I called and told them to cancel my subscription. They offered me six months free, and I declined that too. Bad news is worse than no news.” And he went on to say…
“I take the Wall Street Journal now. I find it’s moderate politically, though it does lean right or libertarian on the editorial page. They continue to have articles which continue to say there was no fraud in the 2020 election, which tells me the writers are leftists and that management allows them to repeat that obvious falsehood. There’s legitimate argument there wasn’t enough fraud in the 2020 election to make a difference in the outcome, but not legitimate argument there was no fraud.”
From a Midwestern retired manufactured housing executive: “FOX on computer, then local newspaper for local stuff, and that’s it for me! I have not looked at CNN or MSNBC forever.
A more detailed news media litany from a veteran land lease community owner back east.
“You mention CNN and MSNSBC. What about FOX, ABC, CBS, PBS? Are they declining in viewership? And (you say) USA Today slants to the left. I don’t read it so I’ll take your word for it. Epoch Times – not familiar with it. Stinted left or right?” Response. FOX continues to grow, outpacing all other cable networks. The Epoch Times contains conservative views from cover to cover.
Also he offers this timely and salient observation: “Maybe it’s a generational thing. Over 75 years olds see it one way, while the under 35s see it another.” What do you think? And this industry veteran went on at length describing how much the search for TRUTH has come to divide individuals, families, and friends; and asks: “Can we blame it all on the news or social media? Have our minds turned to mush and we’re unable to think for ourselves anymore?”
And the youngest of the responders surprised me with this advice: “…to get news about a country, read a source from another country. I don’t bother with CNN, FOX, and MSNBC, any of those. Nothing on TV in fact. Reuters is my go to – it’s very bland, just like I like it. Highly fact-based versus opinion-based. Also BBC (UK), France 24 (France), DW (Germany), & SCMP (Hong Kong). And when I want opinion, I opt for NPR (US), NYTimes (US), Guardian (UK), FOX News (US), Al Jazeera (Qatar), Sputnik (Russia), HB (Ukraine). And I recently added the National Review (US).” I’ve not fact-checked any of these alleged mainstream news media.
Yet another industry influencer, working nationwide, described “One of my theories is mainstream news media declined because of the political slant of all news sources. When you and I were young (and Conestoga wagons roamed the plains), we watched the news and then formed a political opinion. Today, people form an opinion first and then watch a news source to justify their views. One of the reasons I read left-leaning sources is to challenge my own personal views.”
My parting comment. Somehow the Indianapolis Star read this blog and quickly offered this deal: “Sign up for $1 for the first month, then just about $1 a day for the next two years. NO added fees, no extra charges.” A pleasant surprise yes, but frankly, I’m content with my present daily diet of USA Today and a local rag, followed by the New York Times (Sunday only), and my subscription to the weekly newspaper, the Epoch Times. What’s your diet? Gfa7156@aol.com
YES, ‘The Sleeping Giant (MH) Is A-Stirring!’
Watch this space next week for a possible update relative to the Sleeping Giant focus in last week’s blog (#716). There was a zoom meeting on this subject earlier this week, but not enough time for me to write it into this particular blog posting.
GFA/cc