In my last article, I wrote about how the high distrust Americans have for the corporate media is a positive sign for liberty.  I certainly wish there was more distrust than there is, but there is now a sizeable portion of the population who believe very little of what is coming from the so-called mainstream media.

I typically make reference to the “corporate media” or the “establishment media”.  On the other side is the alternative media.

Most of television and newspapers (to the degree they still exist) make up the corporate media.  These are mouthpieces for the establishment.  They will not deviate much from the official narrative, whether it is war, climate change, COVID hysteria, or any other issue that involves a high degree of money and power.

Radio is mostly part of the corporate media, but it is not as clear-cut.  There is a lot of conservative talk radio, which deviates from the official narrative on some things.  There are also many local shows that may have deviations, but these of course do not have large audiences.

Most alternative media comes from the web.  Google, Facebook, and Twitter are part of the establishment media to a certain extent in that they try to control the narrative.  But their platforms are largely built on the dissemination of information.  So trying to censor certain speech is in conflict with their original goals and successes.

All of the major establishment outlets also have a presence on the internet, so this is not to say that the internet itself is alternative media, because on many sites you will just read or hear the same things repeated as if you were watching television.

But most of the alternative media is found on the internet.  You can find almost anything you want to find with a little digging.  If you start with a search engine, you can eventually find websites that offer an alternative view to the official establishment narrative.  If you start with Google (as opposed to something like DuckDuckGo), it may be more difficult, but you will still find trails to other sources.

This also isn’t to say that alternative media sources are always right.  They are frequently wrong.  Hype sells, and there is a lot of hype.  But if you can parse through the information, you can come out with something resembling the truth.

If there are a hundred different theories or explanations on some event or some issue, then one of them is probably right.  Maybe a handful of them are mostly correct or somewhere near the truth.  The problem is deciphering the information.  But at least it is out there now.  Thirty years ago you didn’t have this resource available.

Television – An Echo, Not a Choice

If you get your news from television, it is essentially an echo.  Even the local news will mostly echo the establishment narrative.  With the political correctness of today, it is probably worse than ever.

The only slight alternative on television that is widely available comes from Fox News.  And even here, it is mostly a handful of shows.

I watched Fox News quite regularly about 20 years ago.  In the run up to the Iraq War (the 2003 version), I became more of a hardcore libertarian, while Fox News became more hawkish on war.  There was very little pushback from anyone on the network against Bush and his wars.

I watched a little bit through the years when they weren’t discussing foreign policy.  It was the only place on television that I could at least get a conservative take on things.  When it came to some issues of economics or just criticizing Democrats, I could get on board.

When Trump came into the spotlight, Fox News actually improved a bit.  His popularity forced Fox News to cut back on the hawkish rhetoric when it came to war.  I know some of the people there couldn’t stand Trump (and still can’t), but they were essentially forced to take a slightly less pro war stance in many instances.

The best thing that ever happened for Fox News and its viewers was the departure of Bill O’Reilly.  Tucker Carlson took his 8 PM Eastern time slot, and he hasn’t looked back.  I don’t think the executives at Fox News ever expected Tucker to be like he is, but it has served his audience well.  He easily has the best ratings, which makes it almost impossible for Fox News to get rid of him now.

I’ll occasionally watch a few minutes of Fox and Friends in the morning just to see what is being discussed.  I can typically tolerate it as long as they aren’t talking about foreign policy.  Still, other than criticizing Democrats, they don’t break too far away from the official narrative.

I also watch a little bit of Gutfeld at 11 PM, which is a relatively new show.  It is a mix of news, opinion, and comedy.  It is mostly conservative opinion, but there is some quasi libertarian opinion in there too.  The show had Dave Smith as one of the guests for the hour, so that is saying something right there.  They are certainly willing to deviate from the official narrative.

At 9 PM is Sean Hannity, and at 10 PM is Laura Ingraham.  I haven’t watched (or listened to) Hannity in a long time.  I don’t know of anyone who does watch him, even amongst my conservative friends.  They will watch some of Tucker’s show though.

I do not typically watch any of the shows in the 8 PM to 11 PM lineup, but I do catch segments or clips on the internet.  Tucker is the best.  Even though he will occasionally criticize libertarians, most libertarians I know appreciate what he does.  He constantly challenges the official narrative, whether it is on war, COVID hysteria, vaccines, climate change, or a host of social issues.  He is a choice, not an echo.

I have to say that I have also been somewhat impressed with Laura Ingraham.  She has always been a conventional conservative in my book.  I do remember her introducing Ron Paul at an event one time, and she was gracious about it.

The few times I have tuned into her show or seen clips of her show on YouTube, she has been great.  She is still a conservative, and I’m sure I would disagree with her on many issues, but her show really does challenge the official narrative at times.  I have seen her have on many doctors as guests who are questioning the COVID vaccines and really questioning a large part of the COVID narrative.

I don’t ask for shows to give me exactly what I want to hear.  I ask for shows to give me alternative views.  I ask for shows to give me differing points of view.  I ask for shows to make things interesting, and to even get me to ask more questions.

Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham get props for providing alternative views and good journalism.  Gutfeld gets some props for providing some entertainment while also allowing some straying from the establishment narrative.

Some of my conservative friends have had it with Fox News.  They prefer NewsMax or One America News (OAN).  But they will still give props to a few shows on Fox News, just as I have.  Usually they are most favorable towards Tucker Carlson.

If I turn on my television using only the cable box, Fox News is the only station where I have a chance of finding some kind of alternative narrative from what I would hear on every other network.  So for all of its faults, I give some props to Fox News.