[crsmithdev]

Another breathless, gasping story about the evils of FB / technology / capitalism / <insert boogeyman here> from the Guardian, which has established itself as the nexus for alarmist 'journalism'. The footer: "in the coming year, and the results will define the country for a generation. These are perilous times..." Doesn't sound much like a news outlet to me.

...then you read the piece and find out there's really very little content, just links to other articles (some by the Guardian!). A lot of words on the page that give the impression of something important, whereas in reality they're just building on the narrative they've been selling.

[adamsea]

It's not like they have any context or history of gross, concerted efforts at manipulating public opinion through Facebook and/or a lack of social responsibility to draw upon. /s

[_2d30]

But, like, here’s The Guardian having a go at a gross, concerted effort at manipulating public opinion. Should we have a problem with that?

[adamsea]

Yeah a newspaper article is not the same as a covert social media influence campaign :/. It's not an apples-to-apples comparison.

[_2d30]

What gives the newspapers special status here that changes it from being apples to apples? Why do newspapers get to use broadcast media to influence the public but others aren’t allowed or at least should be looked at negatively?

[adamsea]

A combination of law, culture, and the financial incentives of the respective institutions.