I was so caught up in my previous post I forgot to include my answer to Mr. Hitchens' question, like everyone else except markrampion. The answer is the "news" is nothing but another marketing outlet. As time goes by it becomes less and less distinguishable from commercials. The "news" stories are primarily about a new product: a new movie, a book, a personality like Tiger Woods or Oprah or Hannah Montana who push products, a video game, even a presidential candidate. To pay attention to Huckabee's huckster line on the Confederate flag might require discussing issues. They don't do that. They'll give opinions, but backing them up with any type of even half-way intelligent discourse would interfere with the many sales pitches they must make every broadcast. Slogans and jingles and selling points have to be short, sound bites if you will. Notice how when anyone speaks now the subject of the speech is repeated over and over on the wall behind their head. I remember the opening salvo of the Reagan Revolution, deregulating the airwaves so that the amount of commercial time could be unlimited. The first Infomercial was Robert Vaughn for Helsinki Formula, presented in the format of a newscast. That's all they are now, except Wolf Blitzer is no Robert Vaughn. We are not a society of thinkers or even doers anymore. We are a society of consumers to be sold to. And sold out. And if we even slow down in our consumption, civilization as we know it is jeopardized.

Very intelligent post Telemachus. Our democracy is in danger. What do we do about it

Markrampion

Democracy is always in danger. It's weaknesses are the weaknesses of human nature. But human nature is also its strength. I have faith in the basic goodness of people. Despite all the evidence to the contrary. What we do about it is to keep paying attention. Even people who have given up may come back to the fray if inspired by a single act of decent humanity. I saw three or four today.