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<p>I get it because I have a magazine addiction. </p>
<p>I am a longtime print subscriber of the Washington Post and also read the WaPo, NYTimes , Chicago Tribune on line. I have a print subscription to a newspaper from my home town. S watches a lot of msnbc so I see it quite a bit. My favorite is Rachel Maddow who is very intelligent and always interesting and entertaining. At least to me.</p>
<p>I agree with the above posts. I hate how everything is an EVENT…especially weather. It’s January…it’s cold in Minneapolis and Chicago? Duh…who would have figured? Doesn’t matter what the subject, they beat it to death. I do watch Brian Williams most nights. It’s cold, dark, and boring in the midwest, and I like his wit, looks, and ties. :)</p>
<p>TV is a great sleeping pill without side effects. I use it primarily for this and also for watching some old movies because they stopped making the ones that are worthwhile to watch. I usually last for very few minutes, then I am ready, no problem falling asleep. The problem is in the middle of the night. If I wake way too early, there is absolutely nothing that puts me back to sleep, they should re-run evening shows whole night long just for me to fall back to sleep. Oh, well, none of us are ever 100% satisfied.</p>
<p>I agree with MusicaMusica in wondering what is the definition of mainstream media. Mainstream media seems to be code for news outlets I don’t like. It used to be that newspapers were known to have an agenda and you chose to read the paper whose bias most closely matched yours. But as newspapers began to disappear the few that are left are expected to be all things to all people which of course is impossible. Why expect every media outlet to print/broadcast only the things you think are important, relevant etc.</p>
<p>It’s wonderful that we have so many ways to get news and that everyone has access to whatever kind of news delivery they want, as exemplified by all the entries above. I would much rather have news that veers into the silly or mundane than to have all the news available sticking to one party line.</p>
<p>Besides The Onion, I recommend The Economist</p>
<p>It sounds like I have similar habits to many of you: I don’t watch TV news (or much TV in general) and get the daily Chicago Tribune (like having some local coverage), Sunday NY Times (and its daily elecronic news digest) and listen to NPR in the car. I feel pretty well-informed. I supplement these sources with Jon Stewart and Colbert, and lots of commentary and discussions from and with very engaged family and friends. I find the “reality TV” nature of much of mainstream news very puzzling and annoying.</p>
<p>Mainstream media generally refers to institutions with large, widespread availability. The NY Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, Time, etc. Personally, I wouldn’t call NPR mainstream for the fact that in real numbers, not nearly as many people get their news from radio as from other sources, but that’s just me.</p>
<p>I wonder if anything available at the news stand isn’t sort of by definition “mainstream”?</p>
<p>Looking beyond mainstream is a recent pet project of mine. I am finding it extremely challenging.</p>
<p>Is CC mainstream? ;)</p>
<p>I do not like to read at all, more so reading any news. There are no news any more, everybody just find the way to express thier opinions and wash our brains one way or another, printed, on TV, internet, etc. I take about 5 min. of radio and them try to apply my own life experience and filter everything that I ever hear even in 5 min. time span. Otherwise, you end up with the very distorted and untrue picture. 5 min. is enough to get a scoop, then they start repeating, and repeating and …I rather think then listen, results are much more accurate, predictions have been 100% accurate so far.</p>
<p>12 million people a week listen to NPR’s Morning Edition and 11+million to All Things Considered. I would consider that mainstream. </p>
<p>[List</a> of most-listened-to radio programs - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most-listened-to_radio_programs]List”>List of most-listened-to radio programs - Wikipedia)</p>
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I’m sure you’re right. The big three nightly news have about 25 million viewers a week, so it’s all in where you draw the line. Which is not hard and fast by any means, and when one factors in the decline in circulation for the NY Times, et al., you are probably closer to correct.</p>
<p>^yes, morning commute is the worst of them all. All possessed with sports any more, no wonder that 12 mln are listenning to the most biased of them all - NPR, there is nothing else to listen. I have to have a radio blasting, or I can fall asleep in a car. I do not listen to NPR though, way way beyond my tolerance level, I rather have stupid sports, at least I do not understand anything they say, so no possibility of being enraged while driving…got to think about safety risk factors first and foremost.</p>
<p>Yes, I agree. There are plenty of entertainment shows and channels for people to get that kind of news.</p>
<p>Years ago, it dawned on me that EVERY time I read a newspaper story concerning an event or topic I knew about, there would be at least one error. Sometimes minor, sometimes bigger. That was the point I stopped relying much on media stories.</p>
<p>Yes, wellspring…I feel too that “mainstream” is a sort of buzzword for media that one does not agree with. It’s “them”. NPR and Fox are just two different mainstreams.</p>
<p>I agree ML. That’s why I have to have multiple sources on every topic! I just can’t help myself.</p>
<p>But, you know, I’ve scoped out the fake girlfriend story in various places and STILL don’t understand it, so volume of information is no guarantee of comprehension.</p>
<p>Musicamusica, I wouldn’t say Fox or MSNBC or Slate or NR are mainstream by any stretch of the imagination, but I would say that the NY Times and Washington Post definitely are, even though they have a point of view, as well. I guess it’s totally arbitrary!</p>
<p>I have completely different question, why this stupendious story about some desparate for attention person ignited such a volume of interest? What’s in it for me? What’s in it for you? Anybody? Who cares? Why he would not get another imaginary one if he is so much into it? He chooses his entertainment, are we not in free country? We still are, maybe not for the long time, but there is no iron curtain over us yet. So, enjoy however you can and let others to do the same without ridiculing them. Everybody is just doing the best that they can. If they cannot get the real girl to their liking, then imaginary is perfectly fine with me, who am I to judge him? Who we are to judge him? Did he break any laws? If so, he needs to be arrested and court will decide a guilty verdict. If not, we are exactly at his level, because he enjoyed his story and we are enjoying his story, right? Tell me where I am wrong, please.</p>
<p>In my opinion all network news and newspapers (CNN. FOX, NBC, MSNBC, PBS, NPR, etc.,) are mainstream, and sites like Red State or Democratic Underground are not. Neither are blogs, imo.</p>
<p>I really like & rely on NPR. I don’t know of any other daily radio/TV news program that covers national & international news with so much depth and intelligence. I also like to listen to the BBC news – it’s always eye-opening to hear national/international news from an outside perspective. I find that these two news outlets keep me well informed & I’m always able to talk intelligently with both my conservative & liberal friends. (Also try to catch GS’s This Week on Sundays.)</p>