Easy Distractions
Fake News is very popular nowadays. There are people who think Mr. Trump invented Fake News But did he really? Fake news is a synonym for disinformation. Disinformation has been around for many years. Corporate media has always presented the news in a way that is favorable to them, and their sponsors. In most cases the reports are just an echo; reporting one side of the story, the side that is more convenient for them or using them as the main source to run their reports, and propaganda.
Investigative Journalism means doing research, and investigating all possibilities, gather evidence and prepare the report based on the findings. Unfortunately, I don’t see it happening enough. It is sad how easy it is to manipulate people with incorrect or incomplete information. You see how fast people react over a headline without reading the content. And you know they haven’t read it when you see the comments.
Is it so difficult to think first?
We are getting distracted by our own leaders from talking about the real issues we should be talking about in our communities like racism, sexism, inequality, etc. The social media has its negatives but one of the great benefits is that it opens up a channel where everybody can express themselves. It opens borders and let people connect directly. What usually happens when you visit someone’s home. There are probably house rules you need to follow right? Those house rules are missing on the internet from our side as users. There are certain online behaviors like the promotion of hate speech and racism that we must not tolerate and report.
We have been conditioned into thinking a certain way when we are confronted with people who see things differently than us. This is what the elite hate because they can’t control the information. They can and are still influencing opinions with distracting propaganda but there are unbiased outlets that work on good reporting and are monitoring the news that is being reported by analyzing the sources of information. But they are trying to control Net Neutrality, don’t take it lightly. Net Neutrality ensures that you, not a corporate monopoly, choose how you access and use the Internet. It prevents Internet Service Providers, such as cable and telephone companies, from preferring certain content, applications, or services over others.
We also should think about all those places where there are so much unrest and war. People are being killed, Children are starving, and communities are being displaced. Are we discussing how to help people in Africa, The Middle East (especially Yemen, Gaza, and Syria)?
Oh, Wait! That’s not a good topic, right? Maybe if we help more we wouldn’t have people fleeing their countries because they don’t want to die? Can we understand that? One thing that stands out in territories in the Middle East and Venezuela is the presence of oil. Oil is sadly an important commodity for the military. In the Middle East, the U.S. intervention hasn’t been effective. There are wars going on. And instability has been growing. The main reason for the U.S. intervention? Oil.
Invasion of Iraq was “justified” because it was believed that Sadam Hussein ordered the 9/11 attacks and had weapons of mass destructions posing as a treat for the U.S. There was a strong desire to end a repressive dictatorship and bring democracy. After the invasion, no evidence was found to verify the initial claims of weapons of mass destruction, and claims of Iraqi officials collaborating with Al-Qaeda ( is a militant Sunni Islamist multi-national organization founded in 1988 by Osama bin Laden, Abdullah Azzam, and several other Arab volunteers during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan) were proven false. So in short: It was all fake news. There was no transparent due process on an international level.
The invasion was proposed and coordinated by the U.S. government of that time. Maybe if the case was brought to the International Court of Justice, things would have resulted differently. Later on the leader of Al-Qaeda was mysteriously assassinated by the US troops. But then what happened was as the saying says “Cut off the head of the snake, and another will grow in its place”. And it did. It's named: ISIS. This group took advantage of all the military weapons that were brought by the US and Company. As a result, was continues in that region and ISIS became a global threat.
It is very strange how it is very easy to be the judge and executioner in certain circumstances where there is a misuse of power. And in other instances like the Israel and Palestine current conflict heads are turned the other way. It’s true that both have been in conflict for a very long time but the situation has changed.
The blockade of the Gaza Strip is the ongoing land, air, and sea blockade of the Gaza Strip imposed by Israel and Egypt in 2007. Families don’t have fixed access to clean water and electricity. Israel is cutting water supplies, electricity and trade due to the blockade. People are earning less than 2 U.S. dollars a day, it is very difficult for children to go to school. The longstanding access restrictions imposed by Israel have undermined Gaza’s economy, resulting in high levels of unemployment since Israel limited or basically blocked entry of any Palestinians into Israel so those who used to have a job on the other side lost it, food insecurity and aid dependency," and that "Israeli restrictions on the import of basic construction materials and equipment have significantly deteriorated the quality of basic services, and impede the reconstruction and repair of homes. The people are paying the consequences of the blockade not the members of the government.
These people that are oppressed are an easy target for manipulation; they are the victims and are not receiving help.
This is a case where the most powerful is abusing its power buy taken away basic rights from people and oppressing them. To be honest not everyone is turning their heads away and ignoring the apartheid scenario in this region. The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement works to end international support for Israel's oppression of Palestinians and pressure Israel to comply with international law. But it is being attacked as anti-Semitic.
It's ironic when the Palestinians are considered Semetics. That propaganda simply doesn't make sense. Why does Israel get a pass for not complying with International laws when other countries get heavily criticized?
In the U.S. AIPAC and the Anti-Defamation League are pushing for an Israel Anti-Boycott Act that seeks to criminalize supporters of the boycott movement, even as the ADL determined behind closed doors that such bills are ineffective and unconstitutional. How is it ineffective when something similar was done against South Africa during their apartheid era. I wasn’t aware of how troubling the situation has become until last year. There are people suffering in other parts of the world where there is no financial interest so you don’t hear about it.
The biggest humanitarian crisis I’ve read about that we currently have is the displacement of the Rohingyas yet you don’t see it get the attention as the oil countries have. Us as viewers don’t get to see the real picture and therefore we are unable to understand why the things are the way they are. And yes, we do get easily distracted by one-sided reports and sensationalist news. I hope we all could take a moment and think about what really matters. We all have problems but there are people who are living in the worst conditions and just trying to survive. Can we focus on solutions instead of wasting time watching sensational one-sided news, and reading incoherent stories that are supposed to be journalism?