First chapter of True Enough

I enjoyed reading the first chapter of “True Enough” because it covers and explains areas of the media that I am particularly curious about. What I found interesting in the text was Farhad Manjoo’s breakdown of “media fragmentation”. He mentions the infosphere where this force exists and how people can skillfully manipulate it. In his references to the John Kerry controversy, Manjoo shows how the media landscape can distort, exaggerate and even lie to the public. This makes me wonder how much of the news I’m informed about is actually the full truth. The presidential candidacy is one of the most publicized topics in the media, I can only imagine what other truths are stretched in areas of lesser importance.

 This book also opened my eyes to the polar opposite perspectives between Democrats and Republicans. I don’t consider myself too politically knowledgeable but I am aware of the political bias’ that exist between news stations.What I didn’t realize until now was the different realities that exist between Democrats and Republicans. “Sixty-two percent of Democrats said it was difficult to find a job in their communities, but only 38 percent of Republicans thought so” (25), Manjoo wrote. It’s interesting to see these statistics define the different social classes amongst the two political parties