Fake News?

Fake news has become a term that is used quite frequently nowadays mostly as a way to simply deny some facts.

The great majority of news is not fake, but some is and the best way to distinguish is not by listening to politicians but to consider the source.

First, there are shows on "news" networks that are opinion shows, not news shows.

When someone on one of those shows announces something it doesn't have to live up to any journalistic standards and is primarily designed for entertainment and ratings.

A lot of it is simply speculative, and while they are entitled to do that it is incumbent on the viewer to realize the speculation, no matter how logical it might sound, is generally one sided and the facts, if any, presented were chosen to prove a point.

It is more in the line of an infomercial rather than a news story.

Still many viewers don't make those distinctions.

The vast majority of what is published in the mainstream media is in fact real news, although some mistakes and phony stories get published or aired.

The more reputable or recognized the more likely the screening is effective, but, there always is the make it interesting factor.

They want you to watch or read or listen to what they are putting on so they try to find the entertaining factors.  So in many perfectly accurate news stories you will see something inserted such as in the opinion of x this means something dreadful is likely.  This is actually true but that opinion may very well not be the only one or even the best one.

It is accurate that it is that person's opinion, so not fake news.  Its the opinion that might be the problem.

Stick with the fact from a reputable source and form your own opinion, is probably the safest approach.