Subject: Re: Is AI Good For Democracy?

but on the whole I think we were better off when the news was curated by editors rather than any moron with a keyboard,

Years ago, I caught a talk by Clifton Daniel, about his book on having Harry Truman for a grandfather, on C-SPAN

One thing he mentioned was that Harry perceived that every newspaper had a bias. Some to the left. Some to the right. So, he would read half a dozen newspapers every day, comparing their reports about a specific event. By comparing how the event was reported, he could filter out the biases, both ways, and figure out what actually happened.

The net makes it much easier to find varying viewpoints than depending on a town with only one newspaper, or only two TV stations, like I grew up in.

Recall how Hearst reportedly said to Remington, who he sent to Cuba to draw illustrations for his newspapers "you provide the pictures, I will provide the war".

Ah, the net sifter weighs in.

The famous quote "You furnish the pictures and I'll furnish the war" is attributed to publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1897, telling artist Frederic Remington to remain in Cuba to provide sensational illustrations for his newspaper, promising to fuel a war with Spain, though the anecdote is considered a likely myth.

Context: Hearst wanted to accelerate U.S. intervention in Cuba to boost circulation and create a "journalistic war" to sell his paper, the New York Journal.

The Story: In 1897, artist Frederic Remington reported from Cuba that "everything is quiet" and "there will be no war," asking to come home, to which Hearst allegedly replied with the infamous line.

Validity: Many historians doubt the telegram was actually sent, as there is no surviving copy, and Hearst often denied saying it.

"Yellow Journalism": Regardless of the quote's accuracy, Hearst and his competitor Joseph Pulitzer used sensationalist reporting to whip up public support for war, particularly after the USS Maine exploded in 1898

Steve