Belly laugh of the day

[michael adams]

Eh ?

Subsequent to his disclosures which rendered him liable to arrest by his employers the US Govt and a possible long term of imprisonment pon conviction, Edward Snowden has sought and been granted political asylum in Russia. However Russia didn't sponsor or have any foreknowledge of his activities; his presence in Russia is simply a matter of convenience for Snowden which keeps him out of a US jail.

Oh dear. You really think its all down to "like" and "dislike" do you ?

Unfortunately its a bit more serious than that.

The Al Jazeera is a state-funded news agency, which was originally set up by, and remains wholly owned by the state of Qatar.

Who to repeat

The state of human rights in Qatar is a concern for several non-governmental organizations. Sharia law is the main source of Qatari legislation according to Qatar's constitution.[1][2] Flogging and stoning as forms of punishment are legal in Qatar due to Sharia law.

According to Human Rights Watch in June 2012, hundreds of thousands of mostly South Asian migrant workers in construction in Qatar risk serious exploitation and abuse, sometimes amounting to forced labor.[3]

Given which, its for you to say why anyone should necessarily believe a word that their state sponsored news network has to say about anything.

michael adams

...

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Thanks for ignoring the question.

And that is trying to side step my point.

Thanks for confirming you only take note of things said by people you approve of in every way.

However, if you actually understood the NewsNight formula, you'd know they do occasionally have 'novelty' items. And it's up to the viewer to see what's behind them.

[michael adams]

If you insist then quite obviously the question as to how people regard their press is totally different to the question as to whether they trust it or not.

As the question as to how they regard their press, will cover such topics as to whether they find it interesting or boring, whether they find it amusing or over-serious, whether they regard it as being well produced or cheaply produced. None of which have very much bearing as to the further question as to whether they trust it or not.

michael adams

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[Dave Plowman (News)]

I'd say you rather unusual if you trust something you have no regard for.

None of which makes any difference to trust.

[charles]

[Snip]

He's only 6 months older than me!

[Bill Wright]

Radio 4 news today told us a few bad things about Trump (can't remember exactly what) but omitted that he has done rather well at the NATO talks.

Bill

[michael adams]

Dear me.

Money spent on high production values - the best designers, the best paper, fewer advertisements - the things by which it appears superficial people such as yourself judge print media has no bearing on whether or its trustworthy or not.

All such things tell anyone is that the publishers are willing to spend a lot of money, possibly more than their competitors are able to afford, in order to persuade their readers that they can indeed be trusted.

If such superficial but expensive things - good design, good paper, fewer advertisements didn't sell more copies then publishers wouldn't spend all that money on them would they ?

Which is totally divorced from whether they can be trusted or not.

You just have to be trolling. I can't seriously believe that anyone can be so naive as you're pretending to be.

Oh and I've just read, which I didn't realise, that Cleese voted "leave" in the referendum. Another rat making for the exit then.

Poor old Cleese really jumped the shark after Fawlty a true masterpiece, which could never be bettered. He should have seriously considered a change of direction at that point IMO as Palin managed to do. Either that or got killed in a car crash, ideally driving into a tree having swerved to avoid a toddler who'd run out into the road.

michael adams

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[Dave Plowman (News)]

Perhaps you do buy things like newspapers based on what they look like. Others may be more interested in the contents.

[michael adams]

Previously you said people bought newpapers solely on the basis of trust.

Now you're saying that they buy them on the basis of their contents.

So faced with a choice between

a) a newspaper with 20 interesting, amusing and well written articles and news stories, with colour pictures but none of which most readers are really sure they can trust.

b) a newspaper with only two articles or news stories which are very long, very boring and not really very well written, and with no pictures at all, which neverthess if they ever managed to read to the end readers know they could trust. Say maybe written by a very boring relative of theirs, but they're till not going to read them right to the end

Which newpapaer are most readers most likely to buy, a) or b) ?

michael adams

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[Dave Plowman (News)]

You trust any product only after previous experience of it. Now I dunno about you, but most buy a paper for its contents. Not as wallpaper.

[alan_m]

Judging by newspaper sales in the UK - neither.

Facebook is now the main source of unbiased news. You don't have to buy a newspaper or watched the biased BBC to get a rounded view of the world without the spin from editors or politicians.

Social media is more likely to influence who wins the next UK general election than the views of the editor of a newspaper or the BBC news department who are too shit scared of moving then times of their main news programs in case it upsets parliament :)

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I take it you're having a laugh?

Everything you read on Facebook comes from some scribe on an unbiased planet, does it?

Facebook knows what you like to read and feeds you more of the same. Anything but a balanced selection.

[Andy Burns]

If it's like Google, it only thinks it know what you like, and feeds you more of that ...

For me it has my age band, sex and car manufacturer correct, the remaining "interests" are generally *so* wrong, that I assume the few that aren't are just by accident ...

[Jack James]

Not accident so much as what you have browsed for whatever reason. I often see an adv on facebook for something related to a link posted here that I have chosen to follow. Not so much with youtube stuff tho.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Have you any oidea of how many people on facebook are paid to be there to give you a biassed POV?

Thats why all the PR companies are targeting it.

[michael adams]

I'll overlook the fact that you've snipped the question I asked you. And instead concentrate on the paragraph above, which you posted in response to my claim which you've not denied that you previously said that people bought newspapers solely on the basis of trust.

Your first sentence:

" You trust any product only after previous experience of it."

has no bearing on the question as whether people buy newspapers solely on the basis of trust or not.

It's simply a general observation about how people come to trust things, newspapers included.

While your second sentence :

" Now I dunno about you, but most buy a paper for its contents"

merely re-iterates what you posted before - that people bought a paper for its contents not necessarily because they trusted it; which as you are no doubt aware directly contradicts what you previously said. Which is why I posted the question which you appear to have snipped for some unaccountable reason.

While your third sentence - "Not as wallpaper" sits rather uneasily with someone who boasts of taking infinite pains over some engraved glass panel, showing his number in his front door. Anyway whatever it was, it wasn't a piece of cardboard with the number written in marker pinned to the front door, which would have done just as well, was it ?

While on the subject of front doors, have you put up that notice next to the bell yet ?

michael adams

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[michael adams]

How could they be otherwise ? When they know that 25 year old supermodels such as yourself, who drive a Ferraris, are more likely to change your mind about almost anything than you are your knickers* ?

michael adams

*which at least would explain all the lingerie pop-ups

...

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I'm answering for myself. You apparently want me to guess what everyone else does.

If you buy a paper based solely on it looking pretty, that's up to you.

[alan_m]

Yes :)

[Cursitor Doom]

They seem to believe this crap about impartiality themselves, though. Like they've been smoking their own dope. :-/