MSNBC Almost Entirely Dominated By Opinion: Pew Study

[a kennedy]

MSNBC is far more reliant on opinion coverage than any of its cable news rivals, a new study found.

The Pew Research Center's annual "State of the Media" study was released Monday. One section of the report — which, when taken in its totality, makes for very gloomy reading — deals with changes in the television news landscape over the past five years.

The study's authors found that, since 2007, CNN, Fox News and MSNBC have all cut back sharply on the amount of actual reporting found on their airwaves. Cheaper, more provocative debate or interview segments have largely filled the void. MSNBC, though, stands out from the pack, Pew said:

CNN, which has branded itself around reporting resources and reach, cut back between 2007 and 2012 on two areas tied to that brand—in-depth story packages and live event coverage. Even so, CNN is the only one of the three big cable news channels to produce more straight reporting than commentary over all. At the other end of that spectrum lies MSNBC, where opinion fills a full 85% of the channel’s airtime.

Pew found that Fox News spent 55 percent of the time on opinion and 45 percent of the time on reporting. Critics of that figure would likely contend that the network's straight news reporting tilts conservative, but it is true that Fox News has more shows that feature reporting packages than MSNBC does. The network's straight news hours — hosted by Chris Jansing, Thomas Roberts, Tamron Hall and Andrea Mitchell — are usually filled with interview segments or pundit debates.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/18/msnbc-opinion-cable-news_n_2900160.html#slide=2154019

[warrior1]

1. Bull

[Cigar11]

8. It’s not someone eles opionion

when the playback is directly from the mouths the person who made the statement.

Something the Republicans and The GOP always forgets.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

2. I KNEW something bothered me about them

Now, I do like a couple of the personalities. But I would like a dedicated news provider. The only ones I can find are BBC and Al Jazera.

Pravda does some interesting things, too.

[liberal_at_heart]

5. I do watch BBC sometimes

You get to hear world news without the American slant.

[liberal_at_heart]

3. that's bull. They are all opinion based editorials now. None of them are news.

[Fawke Em]

4. Big deal - it's the one fairly liberal news outlet.

The Conservatives have crap loads. They can afford to spend more hours on so-called "straight" news on Faux.

[Beaverhausen]

6. Wonder what they think Morning Joe is?

Opinion or news?

[Mike Daniels]

13. Not sure how they could classify it as anything other than opinion

Since 95% of the show consists of people talking over each other while trying to present their respective talking points.

The only part I would consider "news" is the 1 minute Mika gets each hour to present the recent headlines Of course, she has to deal with Joe throwing in his opinion during the entire time.

[NRaleighLiberal]

7. Ah, but the catch-22 is on how much of Faux's "news" is reported straight-up

And taking it further....even the older, "trusted" news folks of yesteryear - Cronkite, et al - we were a different society then with different levels of trust. Has news ever been simply reported as dry events and statistics - or has there always been slant creep.

I just don't know.....kind of comes back to the OP on Krugman's request to always question authority....and also links to the wisdom (???) of getting older and feeling like you are living in groundhog day!

[jollyreaper2112]

9. Yes, it is opinion

Only ever watched Olbermann and Maddow. Rarely are there ever hostile guests. Usually we are presented a thesis and guests will help elaborate on it.

Is this a bad thing? Well, there's not really debate. But Rachel does a good job of presenting both sides.

The real problem is that fact without context does less than inform, it paralyzes. And we get this from the regular news all the time. It's like giving the patient his bloodwork without a doctor to tell him what he's looking at. The raw data is certainly useful but only to experts.

There's actually a term of art for useless facts and how they ruin actually informing people but I can't remember what it is.

The thing I like about Rachel is she builds context around factoids. Dow is up to the highest ever! Yay for economy, right? Oh, no, dear child. Allow me to explain. The nooz never does that.

[daleanime]

15. If you've been watching Rachel....

and it looks like you have, you know she would love to have more 'hostile guests'.


I wonder why they don't dare to show up.

[jollyreaper2112]

17. yah

So many of the Republican positions are just stupid, there's nothing to give a reasonable person pause.

Who was that one kook she had on, I think he was a candidate that believed in segregation or something? That was crazy.

[jollyreaper2112]

10. one other thing

Not all facts are created equal. False equivalency is the nature of the nooz.

Scientists: evolution is real, here is proof.

Religious nuts: Nuh-uh!!!

nooz: Evolution in dispute

Treating ignorant and demonstrably false views as equally valid with demonstrably true views is bullshit. And every effort will be made by the opposing side to muddy the waters, especially when fact is not on their side.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

11. What does Fox News "report" on other than RNC-approved memes?

I don't watch tons of MSNBC so maybe I'm not qualified to say anything but MSNBC has NEVER struck me as a "left/progressive" version of Fox News. To be a "left/progressive" version of Fox News, I would need to see wall-to-wall interviews with left-wing and progressive activists and Democratic politicians, as well as hosts reporting only news favorable to President Obama and promoting only DNC-approved memes. It is about the only network anymore to find left-leaning pundits like Rachel Maddow and, formerly, Keith Olbermann, Ed Schultz, et. al but there is seriously no way that anybody can look at Fox News and say that MSNBC (or any other cable news station out there) that is exactly the same ball of wax- but from the left.

I would LOVE it to have a good, solid Democratic/progressive leaning news network that reported the truth and facts but it has just not happened but MSNBC isn't now anything like that.......

[Stinky The Clown]

12. Why is this a surprise for anyone? "The Place For Politics" is their branding.

[Larkspur]

14. Who owns Pew?

Is it a conservative or liberal institution?
Is it like the Wall Street rating agencies that gave AAA ratings to toxic funds?

[Whisp]

16. you said pew, don't say pew. n/t

[OKNancy]

18. I think this is accurate, but who cares?

I watch MSNBC for the opinions. I read DU LBN for hard news.

[tularetom]

19. This is how the three major cable news outlets deal with fact v. opinion

MSNBC: 1+1=2

Fox: 1+1=3

CNN: 1+1=2.5

[Dawson Leery]

20. MSNBC calls itself "the place for politics".

Pew's credibility is on the line here.

[talkingmime]

21. So what? FOX is ENTIRELY dominated by opinion.