Teenagers tend to distrust and dislike the news media, and the far-left Associated Press is not happy about it.
A News Literacy Project asked teens for one word to describe the news media and 84 percent of the responses were exactly what Normal People who want Normal Teens want to hear — negative: “biased,” “crazy,” “boring,” “fake, ”bad,” “depressing,” “confusing,” “scary.”
I guess “shit” wasn’t an option.
“About half of the teens surveyed believe journalists give advertisers special treatment, make up details such as quotes, or pay or do favors for sources.” Meanwhile, nearly 60 percent said “journalists regularly take photos and videos out of context.” Only “one-third or less believe that reporters correct errors when they happen, confirm facts before reporting them, gather information from multiple sources or cover stories that help protect the public interest at least.”
Naturally, the AP blames President Trump. “To some degree,” writes the AP, “teens reflect the attitudes they’re exposed to, particularly when the most prominent politician of their age has made ‘fake news’ a mantra.”
Yeah, I’m sure the negative attitude teens hold for the news media has nothing to do with coming of age during an unprecedented era of fake news from the corporate and legacy media:
Naturally, the AP wants government-run schools to start media literacy classes. “That’s one of the lessons that 16-year-old Brianne Boyack has taken from her course in news literacy,” chirps the AP helpfully. “She had little trust in news going in, but has learned the importance of double-checking sources when she sees something interesting and seeking outlets she’s found reliable.”
As far as Normal People are concerned, teens distrusting and showing no interest in the news media is a very healthy thing. In a sane world, we would all want young people not to worry about anything other than figuring out who they are, who they want to be, gaining the experience and education necessary to find a decent job, and getting a start on building the foundation that will mark their place in the world. If they want to be journalists, fine.
I can’t imagine anything that destroys those golden years faster than “worrying about the world.”
Let kids be kids. Let teens be teens. Some will discover an interest in journalism and current events naturally. Some teens, like me, will discover an interest in beer, skipping school, and going to the drive-in, naturally.
Pushing “social justice” (which is what this really is all about) on a kid is, in my opinion, nothing more than destroying their innocence and denying them the irreplaceable joys that come from youth and from not knowing a world outside of your own. There’s all kinds of time to stress and worry about things you can’t control. There’s all kinds of time to get slapped around by the real world.
Leave the kids alone.
John Nolte’s first and last novel, Borrowed Time, is winning five-star raves from everyday readers. You can read an excerpt here and an in-depth review here. Also available in hardcover and on Kindle and Audiobook.
