My Media Week

During an average week the type of media that I use the most is probably similar to many people—the internet. I have officially canceled my subscription to the Star Tribune, more because they do a horrible job covering news than that I don't like newspapers. Instead, I read various news media online: The New York Times, Slate Magazine, BBC News, and MinnPost. I don't know if the ownership of the Star Tribune has anything to do with their inability to keep up with current market trends, but I find I can get much more information online from more in-depth sources that I tend to trust more.

There is actually a great article in The Rake Magazine, an actual print publication that I absolutely love and read all the time, about the incompetence of the Star Tribune. Check it out here.

As for television, I don't watch much tv. My kids watch a lot of PBS, like Cyberchase. When they do watch commercial television, they watch pretty inane shows like Spongebob Squarepants. I am pretty turned off by the incredible amount of advertising on network television. Obviously, the advertising drives the programming of the networks, and the types of shows they watch on Saturday mornings are completely mindless. They are often directly linked to the products being advertised during the commercials—double whammy. I much prefer the PBS shows. Even though some of the PBS shows' characters are also marketed commercially, they're not marketed during the show and there is more educational content than the mindless cartoons shown on network television. There is an obvious connection here between ownership of television and the types of shows they broadcast; PBS is a public company while the network television stations are owned by large corporations driven by their advertisers. Really, who needs intellectual stimulation when you can talk about underwear and poops?!