By: Bryan Cargill
EUGENE, Ore. – Residents of Jefferson Westside Neighbors get their news from a variety of sources. The sunny suburbs of JWN bustled with life as the beautiful Friday afternoon was host to a myriad of outdoor activities like basketball, art shows, and bike rides. People in the community were interviewed to see how they get their news.
With a day similar to those of summer, Matt Sandler was staying active playing basketball outside with a friend. Sandler says that the primary way that he finds his news is through the Internet. “I use twitter, the New York times, Gawker, CNN and the Guardian,” says Sandler. Though he uses a variety of news sources, he does not have a specific favorite.
Sandler’s friend takes a shot
On his way to dinner, Esteban Camacho said, “My news [comes from] the radio, newspaper and Facebook.”
But not everyone in JWN follows the news. “You know what, I don’t pay attention to the news,” says business owner, Collin Rau. Rau’s disconnect from current news does not stem from lack of interest or ignorance, but rather because he is too busy he says.
Individuals in JWN are in agreement, as they have seen the negative aspects of the news and journalism. They voiced that some sources are bias and can twist a story to fit their agenda.
A man rides his bike across the street
As a business owner who has had stories written about his company, Rau says he has experienced first hand how journalist can manipulate and tell a story to meet their own agenda.
“…They can turn a story into whatever they want…they can completely pull things out of context,” says Rau.
When asked if news groups are bias or objective, Sandler says, “I think it depends on which news you go to.”
The reason for such opinionated and selective journalism could be that “mass media is so influenced and money driven,” says Rau.
JWN residences make their way
Things are being done to counter large news corporations with practices such as citizen journalism; a practice that Rau says he supports.
“I think the fact that we get our news from amateurs is interesting…[and] print journalism is in trouble,” says Sandler.
Citizens of JWN are aware of the bias in the news and support the citizen journalist. There are many issues with various news outlets according to JWN locals, but one thing for sure among the public is that journalism today is very dynamic and citizen journalist give the people hope.
