WHAT IS REALITY NEWS?
Many people within the TEA Party movement interested in this paper ask me, “What is Reality News?” They normally follow this question up with “Why did you take on this task?” or something similar. I will attempt to provide answers to these inquiries from all of you interested Reality News folks.
Reality News attempts to provide everyday people relevant, tangible and high level information not being disseminated to them by more traditional news resources. The interest of Reality News readers originates with their desire to inform themselves to the greatest extent possible on the most crucial current issues affecting our society and world. These readers are generally quite politically engaged or are becoming so, not necessarily by choice but certainly by necessity.
The content of Reality News includes articles from foreign and national sources as well as local writers and regular people in the TEA Party movement. Wisconsin state politics and interesting, contentious county and city issues get lots of coverage as well. Besides the dissemination of high level information, Reality News attempts to provide a forum outside of the internet for conservative minded people to interact with each other in two very important ways; 1) to allow the voices and opinions of TEA Party people to be heard through articles and letters submitted to and published in Reality News, 2) for people to publically proclaim their support of the conservative viewpoint as a sponsor and/or advertiser so these like-minded people can support each other in their business dealings as well as their political activism. This mutual support of conservatives amongst themselves I feel will be the greatest factor in determining how successful our movement becomes.
Some of the information provided in Reality News can be obtained on the Internet. So why would someone publish this content in a newspaper? The sheer volume of Internet information on any subject makes the evaluation and selection of relevant and high level articles tedious and laborious. Many people find the idea of someone they deem trustworthy selecting relevant, high level information on these crucial, current issues quite appealing. Such a relationship greatly simplifies the process of formulating an informed opinion. A paper appeals to those folks who are not computer literate, Internet savvy or just enjoy reading a paper. An actual paper can be read at any time and taken anywhere. A paper does not need a power supply or machine to be accessed or shared.
Many people have had it with the “Liberal Bias of the Main Stream media.” While these folks may believe this statement to the core, what really bothers them is the fact that these information outlets will not acknowledge the bias of their reporting or publication. Everyone reporting or writing on anything has a bias. This bias determines our word choices, what facts, data or opinions we present, and how the subject analysis is constructed. Reality News is an ideological product. Our mission statement says, “Committed to Constitutional Government, Individual Liberty and Dissemination of Truth.” All publications will reflect my interpretation of this statement (since I am the Editor) both in terms of content selected and my own writings. The difference lies in the fact that Reality News does not masquerade as anything else. The reader knows up front where we are coming from and what to expect. This transparency allows for the reader to make a more comprehensive assessment of the value of the presented information and modify his or her personal viewpoint of any particular issue accordingly.
Rarely does a discussion of the most crucial part of this relationship between reader and information provider occur, namely reader bias. Like anyone reporting or writing on any subject, readers bring their own bias to the evaluation of any news story or article. Our preconceived notions, prior experiences and education affect how we will assign value to opinions, what facts we will acknowledge, deny or simply ignore. Our knowledge and awareness of the difference between facts, data and opinions and how to identify each will have a profound impact on the assessment of any information piece. Understanding the five fallacies of logic and being able to identify each ultimately determines one’s ability to formulate a truly consistent viewpoint. The personal values we espouse as individuals that guide our daily lives ultimately are the cornerstones upon which all of our opinions rest. I will provide readers with a more comprehensive explanation of the five fallacies and the difference between facts, data sets and opinions in a separate piece.
The goals of Reality News are quite clear and simple. We are responding to the desire of the TEA Party movement to have a voice in the marketplace of ideas and a mechanism to interact with each other in both political and business circles. The avalanche of feedback received from readers about the ideas and content of Reality News demonstrate that this need truly exists and strengthens daily. The long-term fate of Reality News will depend on our ability to continue to disseminate high level information to all of you while managing a self-sufficient, financially viable product. This product must continually fulfill the desires you have expressed in order to obtain and retain your support.
Reality News thanks everyone who has read our paper and become a subscriber. We couldn’t do this without you. All the people and businesses supporting Reality News as sponsors deserve our special thanks as leaders of our movement willing to put forth a piece of their livelihoods. Without these sponsors there is no financially viable Reality News. Please remember these folks in your pursuit of products and services and support them whenever you can. When you support them, you support us. If like-minded people commit themselves to participating in this mutually beneficial system, we can move these ideas forward for as long as we live.