Guest Speaker - Charles Wiley

This week we had a fascinating talk by world journalist and reporter Charles Wiley.  He has reported from 100 countries, covered 11 wars and been arrested 8 times by secret police!  His talk today was about US news media - which is the most powerful body in the US today, more so than even the President.  The news media decides what problems we will solve and in what order because they control what people think about.  Politicians wait to see what the news media thinks is a problem.  Two totally different kinds of people report the news. One is objective and they see their job as gathering information and passing it on to the public.  They give all the key facts and leave their own opinion out. The other type of reporter is an advocate who tries to influence the public. It is rare that a reporter lies but they can change the image of reality by what they don't say or leave out.  A lot of history is incorrect - a thousand true words can equal a very false story.  Always keep in the back of your mind that you may be getting propaganda!