TheWiseOldFart

The beginning of the end happened on October 7, 1996. This is the day “fake news” began. The creation of billionaire Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes began broadcasting on this sad day in American history. They called it “FOX News,” although its real business was not informing the public about the facts. The events happening around the world were of no interest to these two con men. Their philosophy was based on money: “sensationalism increases viewership, and increasing the number of viewers increases advertising revenue.” The truth and facts were far down their list of priorities, or not at all. FOX quickly morphed into the right-wing propaganda machine it is today. It continues to support white supremacy, and the division of 340 million American people. In just months, FOX became the number one television “news” network. This translated into lower ratings for all legitimate news services: ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, and all the others. Billionaires are involved in all television and print new...

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart I knew the truth, but Fox viewers ignored the facts. Bill O’Reilly never was a legitimate journalist and his highly rated show was a disgrace to real newspersons everywhere. His one tactic was to talk over his guests if he did not like the answers they were about to give. Recently, Kamala Harris had the class and the courage to accept an interview on the biggest fake news broadcast in history: Fox News’. Bret Baier was given the honor of interviewing our future president, but he failed miserably. He used O’Reilly’s tactic. He would ask a question and as Vice-President Harris began her response, he began talking, attempting to make an effort in support of the worst president in history 38 times. He embarrassed himself and lost all the respect I once had for him. What was Baier’s excuse? (I paraphrase). “If I let her answer the questions, there wouldn’t have been enough time in the interview.” Really? Fox IS the original “FAKE NEWS.” Op-ed by James Turnage Find my...

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart When I find something I want to write about, two sources I never use are the Washington Post, and the New York Times. The first reason is because after I read a few articles, they block me unless I pay for them. To be totally honest with you, they’re not worth a nickel of the little income I have every month. For example: I just learned that the Times recently published an op-ed encouraging their readers not to vote in November; quickly changed the title; and then removed the article completely. First and foremost, any vote not for President Biden is in essence a vote for Trump. This would be a repeat of the 2016 election. No one talks about the truth, but Hillary Clinton had a relatively large lead in the polls just before election day. However, a lower voter turnout than expect, mostly attributable to Vladimir Putin’s interference on social media, resulted in Trump’s victory in the Electoral College vote. PURE IDIOCY The article by “guest writer” Matthew Walth...

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   There are irrefutable facts that Trump’s illegitimate victory on November 8, 2016 was aided by Vladimir Putin, James Comey, and the mainstream media. However, recent investigations into the 2016 campaign and the ensuing election reveal a much deeper responsibility supported by our nation’s major print and internet news sources. They failed their most important responsibilities, and why they are protected by the First Amendment: to expose corruption in our government and report the truth to the American people. This is exceptionally important during the years when our nation’s leader is elected. We learned in 2017 that throughout the 2016 campaign season the mainstream media gave Trump five times more coverage than all other candidates combined. However, he was seldom criticized for his many, many lies or the fact that he and his camp rarely discussed the issues facing our nation. Nor did they stress the fact that he was clearly a white supremacist, a bigot...

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   Groucho Marx: “I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book.” This was an observation from the early days of television. It was accurate. Over the next 70-80 years of television broadcasts, there have been a combination of great, good, interesting, bad, and recently with the obsession of “reality TV” an embarrassment to anyone who possesses average intelligence. I was raised on television. By that I mean that my mother was a single parent, my brother and I were latching key kids, and our only source of entertainment was initially a nine-inch television. This was the early 1950’s and there wasn’t much to see. However, as time passed and our nation became obsessed with the “boob tube,” the early age of television began and I was very happy. I remain obsessed today, but also extremely disappointed. As television expanded into numerous areas of entertainment, including sports, politics, cookin...

  Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart   When I was much younger, I was an admirer of Edward R. Murrow, John Chancellor, Walter Cronkite, and other men who were respected and honest reporters. These men were legitimate journalists who offered the facts without inuendo, without personal opinion, or any intent related to financial gain. Today’s pretend journalists are paid millions of dollars and are required to report what television executives instruct them to tell their viewers. Like Fox News, all network broadcasts are more concerned about advertising revenue than the truth. I followed the 2016 campaign with a combination of fascination and fear. After the most disgusting and embarrassing primary season in history, our country was left with two options. Hillary Clinton was undeniably the most qualified presidential candidate in history. She remains a lifelong public servant who will be remembered by historians as a woman who worked to improve the lives of all Americans. Her opp...