Hacker News Reader

Comment by nness | Hacker News Reader

So, I know nothing of Illinois or State Attorney Kim Foxx, but I do have a litmus test where I search the author/person in focus and note the top results who are sharing the story — New York Post, Daily Mail, Fox News, etc.

Does such things invalidate the points made in the article? No. But it helps me judge the level of scrutiny I need to apply.

View on HN

Both sides have a narrative.

The news CNN or NYTimes night carry is often ignored by NYPost or Fox and vice versa because it doesn't fit their narratives.

Having a narrative on either side doesn't mean the things being reported on are incorrect or even embellished.

But yes, you do need to be aware of the narrative so you can place different weights on news items.

Or... Find better news sources.

Where are these legendary non-political news sources you speak of? If such news sources exist, I would love to hear what they are.

Not on this subject. The NYTimes is heavily conservative when it comes to the criminal judicial system. They've written articles espousing essentially the same positions as this one. They've led the charge to kill bail reform in New York.

Evidence?

Here's an example of a deeply misleading article. Reading this you wouldn't know the new law only eliminates bail for misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies. You wouldn't know that while judges can't set high bail because they consider a defendant dangerous they can determine a dangerous defendant isn't eligible for bail at all and keep them in jail regardless.

It also leaves out that the point of bail is ensuring people return, not keeping them in jail. This makes sense: if someone is dangerous they're dangerous no matter how much money they have.

There's much more slanted crap in their opinion section, but this is a news article.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/29/nyregion/bail-reform-hoch...

You (or any user) posting that sort of detail helps me figure out how to frame loaded commentary. I want take a thoughtful step back if I run into a challenge to my worldview but I don't have limitless energy to do so. I need to pick healthy and worthwhile challenges.

"Does it fit the narrative?"

“Is it sensationalised trash designed for boomers who are not capable of reading on a topic unless there are intensifiers before every keyword?” is generally the hallmark of those publications.

If it were the WSJ, Telegraph or Times (London) publishing it too, your concern would be more justified.

The Murdoch narrative? It certainly appears to.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com