I don't think the media can control narratives they present so much as selectively chose what to cover and how.
In about a 4 year space...we went from being able to read the Elliot Rodgers Manifesto online to the Manifestos of shooters like the Buffalo shooter being scrubbed from the internet by companies like Google.
Don't waste your time telling me what "the media" can control.
It is a slight difference and maybe none at all; but I see that they have placed themselves and their biases in the story.
Unfortunately, I see no difference.
That used to be the cardinal rule for how not to do journalism. Now it is prominent on both left and right media channels. We are better than this. We are thinking human beings, not sheep. The truth is out there. You just have to search for it and do so with a discerning eye for the source. I try to watch CNN and Fox to get the spin from both sides that hopefully balances out.
What is more concerning than our media, which have no real power other than to sway opinion, is our politicians. When our Vice President travels to Nashville after the shooting there and choses to stand with the activists rather than the grieving families or the heroes that risked their lives to stop a tragedy from getting worse, we have fallen down the rabbit hole.
Yeah it's....
Well I hate to say it, but it's an effect of capitalism. I'm saying this as a pretty staunch defender of capitalism. We stopped demanding some degree of balance in media back in the 90s I think....and Fox News came in with a very one sided biased model of reporting that was very much a joke to about 60% of America but it spoke directly to that other 40% and survived a pretty shaky growth period by casting off wingnuts like Glenn Beck....
By the time it was clear that Fox News wasn't disappearing in 2000s ...the online social media space was allowing for other types of independent journalists and reporters to survive. There are few examples of exceptional journalism in this space....because to thrive, they had to speak to a specific audience. Those audiences increasingly came from more mainstream sources like CNN, NYT, and even Fox. By 2010, Fox went from a total joke to a right wing biased version of CNN. CNN and NYT and basically every other left wing outlet slid into full blown bias and narrative capture essentially no better than FOX.
If you're a strong believer in capitalism then increased competition, and choice for the audience should have been a blessing. It should have resulted in better media.
Truth isn't a market though.....but lies definitely are. People can sell lies all day....just telling people what they want to hear....telling people the truth though...that doesn't sell. Even countries with state run medias like the BBC have seen the effects of the online marketplace for journalism and it's ability to speak over social media.