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Overload: Finding the Truth in Today's Deluge of News
From the explosion of fake news to the challenges of the 24 hour news cycle, legendary journalist Bob Schieffer examines political journalism today and those who practice it. Based on interviews with over 40 media leaders, Schieffer provides an inside look at the changing role of media and asks whether today’s citizens are more informed or just overwhelmed.
234 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 1, 2017
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209 people want to read
About the author
Bob Schieffer
25 books13 followersBob Lloyd Schieffer is an American television journalist. He is known for his moderation of presidential debates, where he has been praised for his capability. Schieffer is one of the few journalists to have covered all four of the major Washington national assignments: the White House, the Pentagon, United States Department of State, and United States Congress. His career with CBS has almost exclusively dealt with national politics. He has interviewed every United States President since Richard M. Nixon, as well as most of those who sought the office.
Schieffer has been with CBS News since 1969, serving as the anchor on the Saturday edition of CBS Evening News for 20 years, from 1976 to 1996, as well as the Chief Washington Correspondent from 1982 until 2015, and moderator of the Sunday public affairs show, Face the Nation, from 1991 until May 31, 2015. From March 10, 2005, to August 31, 2006, Schieffer was interim weekday anchor of CBS Evening News, and was one of the primary substitutes for Katie Couric and Scott Pelley.
Following his retirement from Face the Nation, Schieffer has continued to work for CBS as a contributor, making many appearances on air giving political commentary covering the 2016 presidential election. Schieffer is currently releasing episodes of a new podcast, "Bob Schieffer's 'About the News' with H. Andrew Schwartz".
Schieffer has written three books about his career in journalism: Face the Nation: My Favorite Stories from the First 50 Years of the Award-Winning News Broadcast, This Just In: What I Couldn't Tell You on TV, and Bob Schieffer's America. He co-authored a book about Ronald Reagan, The Acting President, with Gary Paul Gates, that was published in 1989. In his memoir, This Just In, Schieffer credits the fact he was a beat reporter at CBS for his longevity at the network.
Schieffer has won virtually every award in broadcast journalism, including eight Emmys, the overseas Press Club Award, the Paul White Award presented by the TV News Directors Association, and the Edward R. Murrow Award given by Murrow's alma mater, Washington State University.
Schieffer was inducted into the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame in 2002, and inducted into the National Academy of Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in 2013. He was named a living legend by the Library of Congress in 2008.
Schieffer is currently serving as the Walter Shorenstein Media and Democracy Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center.
Schieffer has been with CBS News since 1969, serving as the anchor on the Saturday edition of CBS Evening News for 20 years, from 1976 to 1996, as well as the Chief Washington Correspondent from 1982 until 2015, and moderator of the Sunday public affairs show, Face the Nation, from 1991 until May 31, 2015. From March 10, 2005, to August 31, 2006, Schieffer was interim weekday anchor of CBS Evening News, and was one of the primary substitutes for Katie Couric and Scott Pelley.
Following his retirement from Face the Nation, Schieffer has continued to work for CBS as a contributor, making many appearances on air giving political commentary covering the 2016 presidential election. Schieffer is currently releasing episodes of a new podcast, "Bob Schieffer's 'About the News' with H. Andrew Schwartz".
Schieffer has written three books about his career in journalism: Face the Nation: My Favorite Stories from the First 50 Years of the Award-Winning News Broadcast, This Just In: What I Couldn't Tell You on TV, and Bob Schieffer's America. He co-authored a book about Ronald Reagan, The Acting President, with Gary Paul Gates, that was published in 1989. In his memoir, This Just In, Schieffer credits the fact he was a beat reporter at CBS for his longevity at the network.
Schieffer has won virtually every award in broadcast journalism, including eight Emmys, the overseas Press Club Award, the Paul White Award presented by the TV News Directors Association, and the Edward R. Murrow Award given by Murrow's alma mater, Washington State University.
Schieffer was inducted into the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame in 2002, and inducted into the National Academy of Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in 2013. He was named a living legend by the Library of Congress in 2008.
Schieffer is currently serving as the Walter Shorenstein Media and Democracy Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
November 18, 2017
This fairly slim volume from the venerable CBS newsman Bob Schieffer proves to be somewhat disappointing. It is less a book than a mishmash of articles and podcast transcripts sprinkled in with some bits of commentary here and there from Schieffer. The overall theme is about how we are all so inundated with news today. More than ever before in history, a limitless number of media outlets competes for our limited attention spans and time commitments.
Much of the book seems to be based around a podcast that Schieffer and his co-author H. Andrew Schwartz hosted in 2016 concerning the presidential election. Most of the chapters are actually rehashes of interviews that they conducted with various people in the media, mainly reporters or people who have founded their own news outlets. While some of this can be and certainly is interesting at times, it was probably much superior to have heard it on the podcast during the election cycle. Additionally, Schieffer repeats, in later chapters, what some of the people said, resulting in the reader reading the same quotes multiple times.
Other chapters are articles written by Schwartz or others. Unfortunately, these really do not mix well with the chapters featuring the podcast interviews. The result is a somewhat disjointed, thin book that is light on analysis and heavy on regurgitation about the 2016 election, how badly the media did at predicting it, and how difficult it is for newspapers to survive today.
While Schieffer does briefly write about such stalwart papers as the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal, it would have been nice had he moved away from the East coast media mecca and focused on some Midwestern papers such as the St. Louis Post-Dispatch to see how they are dealing with declining readership and changing habits of consuming news. Also missing was a case study on a medium city or small town newspaper, something such as the Kalamazoo Gazette, just for a random example, to see what unique challenges those types of papers are experiencing. Shieffer does talk briefly about the Texas Tribune, but that seems to mainly be because he is from Texas and seemed to feel the need to include it in the book. Unfortunately, by keeping much of his focus to the traditional big newspapers, he reinforces the stereotype that many people have of the “mainstream media” only being concerned about things going on out East. I don't believe that Schieffer feels that way himself personally, but by narrowing the book's scope, he doesn't help disabuse people of any preconceived notions that have about the media.
The final section is the best part, with Schieffer engaging in some commentary about what he thinks the biggest issues are for the media and what they need to try to do to remain relevant and at least somewhat trustworthy in the future. On page 169, he writes: “In truth, none of us can be totally objective. It is much easier to be fair....” This type of commentary is what I was hoping to see more of from such an experienced and respected journalist. He has been in the business for sixty years, but not much of that experience came through in this book.
Grade: C-
PERSONAL NOTE: I went to see Schieffer speak in Dallas as part of the roll-out for this book. The hour long discussion that centered around him was quite interesting, and it was a real pleasure to meet him. He was very gracious with anyone who asked him questions, and it is clear that he has not forgotten where he grew up and got his start at. Well worthwhile to go see him; I just wish the book had been better.
Much of the book seems to be based around a podcast that Schieffer and his co-author H. Andrew Schwartz hosted in 2016 concerning the presidential election. Most of the chapters are actually rehashes of interviews that they conducted with various people in the media, mainly reporters or people who have founded their own news outlets. While some of this can be and certainly is interesting at times, it was probably much superior to have heard it on the podcast during the election cycle. Additionally, Schieffer repeats, in later chapters, what some of the people said, resulting in the reader reading the same quotes multiple times.
Other chapters are articles written by Schwartz or others. Unfortunately, these really do not mix well with the chapters featuring the podcast interviews. The result is a somewhat disjointed, thin book that is light on analysis and heavy on regurgitation about the 2016 election, how badly the media did at predicting it, and how difficult it is for newspapers to survive today.
While Schieffer does briefly write about such stalwart papers as the New York Times, Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal, it would have been nice had he moved away from the East coast media mecca and focused on some Midwestern papers such as the St. Louis Post-Dispatch to see how they are dealing with declining readership and changing habits of consuming news. Also missing was a case study on a medium city or small town newspaper, something such as the Kalamazoo Gazette, just for a random example, to see what unique challenges those types of papers are experiencing. Shieffer does talk briefly about the Texas Tribune, but that seems to mainly be because he is from Texas and seemed to feel the need to include it in the book. Unfortunately, by keeping much of his focus to the traditional big newspapers, he reinforces the stereotype that many people have of the “mainstream media” only being concerned about things going on out East. I don't believe that Schieffer feels that way himself personally, but by narrowing the book's scope, he doesn't help disabuse people of any preconceived notions that have about the media.
The final section is the best part, with Schieffer engaging in some commentary about what he thinks the biggest issues are for the media and what they need to try to do to remain relevant and at least somewhat trustworthy in the future. On page 169, he writes: “In truth, none of us can be totally objective. It is much easier to be fair....” This type of commentary is what I was hoping to see more of from such an experienced and respected journalist. He has been in the business for sixty years, but not much of that experience came through in this book.
Grade: C-
PERSONAL NOTE: I went to see Schieffer speak in Dallas as part of the roll-out for this book. The hour long discussion that centered around him was quite interesting, and it was a real pleasure to meet him. He was very gracious with anyone who asked him questions, and it is clear that he has not forgotten where he grew up and got his start at. Well worthwhile to go see him; I just wish the book had been better.
July 4, 2017
Hurray For Bob Schieffer! First, let me state that I have the utmost respect for Bob Schieffer, his work and his life. I feel that the country would be greatly benefited if someone like he were to return to giving the news. With that confession out of the way, and admitting that my opinion of his work may be skewed, let me review his latest book. Overload is about the state of the media today. Of how we, as consumers of the news, are overwhelmed by the amount of information out there, and coming at us, nonstop every hour of the day. Of how, being overwhelmed and not able to process all the information, we tend to find news sources that agree with how we see the world. "Some folks get one set of facts from one outlet and other folks get another set of facts from another outlet, no wonder they come to different conclusions". How "Americans choose their favorite channel (or website) not to get just the latest information but to get the ammo to back up their previously formed opinion. And it's getting harder to separate opinion from fact". Schieffer explains his theory on the reason Trump ultimately won, and why Clinton lost. (It has to do with the ability to utilize the media more effectively). He covers the phenomenom of "fake news", and the problems of combatting it (A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to put it's pants on). And the pattern it follows; eye-catching headline, interesting first paragraph, relevant photos (often taken off the internet), a few quotes (often not real people), and a format that looks like a typical news site. The fall of the traditional media and the rise of the new media. And he gives examples throughout the book. He covers conspiracy theories, and why people fall for them. I loved the book. I only wish Schieffer could be given a bigger platform to share his ideas. We need it!
June 23, 2017
I love Mr. Schieffer, so this does not come easy: nothing given in this book is anything that hasn’t been said in a 200-word editorial or a 2000-word article or a 24-hour news cycle, trying to ‘make sense of it all.’
He won. Mainstream media lost, and it still hasn’t gotten over its sheer shock and disgust.
They still don’t understand what the people who voted for him saw in him.
And it continues to infuriate them that he doesn't care what they think.
For a hundred years, U.S. never met a military dictator it didn’t like, a genocide it didn’t brush aside and an invasion it didn’t justify, with the full support of the same label-heavy hate-mongering pat-on-the-back tunnel-vision big city gatekeepers, approving every ‘us vs. them’ metaphor out there before Bush made it vogue again. Patriotism never felt as good as when someone’s arse was on fire!
American media likes its presidents to appear soft harmless but decisive bunnies while okaying nuking Hiroshima and Nagasaki! As long as someone sounds like a Reagan it doesn’t matter who gets the finger! As long as there is the ground-(color)-breaking Obama, who cares how many wars he starts or economies go bust! Trump is no different: he has played it to the gallery (not the Washington elite press though), buttered the usual lobbyists, fattened the usual arms, pharma and devil-may-care industries. But for the news media that Mr. Schieffer represents, who cares if the world burns, as long as the president gives you the feels! (which this one absolutely doesn’t, hence this vitriol of a book!)
America has made great social infrastructure and cultural landscape for its people in a 200-year history. For all the hot air talk on decent American values, media’s focus has never been on what could bring real lasting social change: universal health care, education and employment / growth opportunities for all, good gun laws, the eternal race and stereotype issue. They just want Trump gone!
Trump’s win isn’t hidden in the ‘rust belt’ , ‘margin of error’, ‘Hillary Clinton’s integrity issues', or 'fake news.’ It would have been better if Mr. Schieffer had gotten out of the cozy narcissistic liberal rich big city news belt and traveled to the inner sanctum of the voting-voters to ask them where the hell Washington is on the map: they would have told him they don’t care. At the end of the book, Mr. Schieffer remembers his 'last big story on Trump' that started with how, in 1996, Trump stole and sat on chair reserved for someone else at a children-with-AIDS charity event. All that that reveals to me is how clueless, out of it, and obsessive-compulsive the media really was in the days leading up to Nov.8th.
The book just organizes opinions of colleagues whose work he likes (including a non-colleague Stephen Colbert!), and praises the work of NYT, WP etc. That’s like being in a well and sharing how good all the frogs look in there. As he says at the end, 'Since Election Day, Slate writers and executives have continued talking with historians, psychiatrists and other experts to explain who Trump is and what is happening in American politics today' (!)
Good news, sir, George Clooney has found wings. Unicorn at your service!
Stats:
- TOP DIGITAL NATIVE PUBLISHERS: as per the following guidelines: - must have at least 10million average monthly unique digital visitors (as of last quarter off 2015) - it must be born on the web and not the website of a legacy news brand - the outlet is a publisher of ‘original content’ about news and current events. - it is not user generated like fb, twitter, wikipedia, medium and reddit: axios, the blaze (glenn beck), breitbart, business insider, bustle (aimed at women), buzzfeed, the daily beast, fivethirtyeight, huffpost, independent journal review (former Republican staffers), International business tmes, mashable, mic, politico, quartz, raw story, the root (african-american), salon, slate, uproxx (the culture of now), the verge, vox media
- PODCAST NEWS MEDIA: in 2016 podcasts became an addictive and useful platform for delivering the news - this list does not include podcasts that are audio replays of tv or radio shows - its only the ones producing audio podcast medium: after the fact, Ask me another, the axe files with david axelrod, the ben shapiro show, beyond the bubble, can he do that?, civics 101, code switch, common sense with dan carlin, ctrl-walt-delete, the daily, decode D.C., economist: the week ahead, embedded, face the nation diary, five thirtyeight politics, fresh air, global news podcast, hidden brain, how i built this, inside the times, intercepted with jimmy scahill, invisibilia, kickass news, the newyorker: politics and more, 1947: the meet the press, NPR politics podcast, on the media, planet money, pod save america, pod save the world, politic’s off message, politico playbook in 90 seconds, pop culture happy hour, presidential, propublica podcast, recode decode, recode media with peter kafka,serial, slate’s trumpcast, so that happened, storycorps, the takeout, TED radio hour, this american life, too embarrased to ask, the vergecast, VOX the weeds, wait wait....don’t tell me!, what’s tech?, WSJ heard on the street, WSJ media mix, WSJ money beat, WSJ opinion: foreign edition, WSJ opinion: potomac watch.
He won. Mainstream media lost, and it still hasn’t gotten over its sheer shock and disgust.
They still don’t understand what the people who voted for him saw in him.
And it continues to infuriate them that he doesn't care what they think.
For a hundred years, U.S. never met a military dictator it didn’t like, a genocide it didn’t brush aside and an invasion it didn’t justify, with the full support of the same label-heavy hate-mongering pat-on-the-back tunnel-vision big city gatekeepers, approving every ‘us vs. them’ metaphor out there before Bush made it vogue again. Patriotism never felt as good as when someone’s arse was on fire!
American media likes its presidents to appear soft harmless but decisive bunnies while okaying nuking Hiroshima and Nagasaki! As long as someone sounds like a Reagan it doesn’t matter who gets the finger! As long as there is the ground-(color)-breaking Obama, who cares how many wars he starts or economies go bust! Trump is no different: he has played it to the gallery (not the Washington elite press though), buttered the usual lobbyists, fattened the usual arms, pharma and devil-may-care industries. But for the news media that Mr. Schieffer represents, who cares if the world burns, as long as the president gives you the feels! (which this one absolutely doesn’t, hence this vitriol of a book!)
America has made great social infrastructure and cultural landscape for its people in a 200-year history. For all the hot air talk on decent American values, media’s focus has never been on what could bring real lasting social change: universal health care, education and employment / growth opportunities for all, good gun laws, the eternal race and stereotype issue. They just want Trump gone!
Trump’s win isn’t hidden in the ‘rust belt’ , ‘margin of error’, ‘Hillary Clinton’s integrity issues', or 'fake news.’ It would have been better if Mr. Schieffer had gotten out of the cozy narcissistic liberal rich big city news belt and traveled to the inner sanctum of the voting-voters to ask them where the hell Washington is on the map: they would have told him they don’t care. At the end of the book, Mr. Schieffer remembers his 'last big story on Trump' that started with how, in 1996, Trump stole and sat on chair reserved for someone else at a children-with-AIDS charity event. All that that reveals to me is how clueless, out of it, and obsessive-compulsive the media really was in the days leading up to Nov.8th.
The book just organizes opinions of colleagues whose work he likes (including a non-colleague Stephen Colbert!), and praises the work of NYT, WP etc. That’s like being in a well and sharing how good all the frogs look in there. As he says at the end, 'Since Election Day, Slate writers and executives have continued talking with historians, psychiatrists and other experts to explain who Trump is and what is happening in American politics today' (!)
Good news, sir, George Clooney has found wings. Unicorn at your service!
Stats:
- TOP DIGITAL NATIVE PUBLISHERS: as per the following guidelines: - must have at least 10million average monthly unique digital visitors (as of last quarter off 2015) - it must be born on the web and not the website of a legacy news brand - the outlet is a publisher of ‘original content’ about news and current events. - it is not user generated like fb, twitter, wikipedia, medium and reddit: axios, the blaze (glenn beck), breitbart, business insider, bustle (aimed at women), buzzfeed, the daily beast, fivethirtyeight, huffpost, independent journal review (former Republican staffers), International business tmes, mashable, mic, politico, quartz, raw story, the root (african-american), salon, slate, uproxx (the culture of now), the verge, vox media
- PODCAST NEWS MEDIA: in 2016 podcasts became an addictive and useful platform for delivering the news - this list does not include podcasts that are audio replays of tv or radio shows - its only the ones producing audio podcast medium: after the fact, Ask me another, the axe files with david axelrod, the ben shapiro show, beyond the bubble, can he do that?, civics 101, code switch, common sense with dan carlin, ctrl-walt-delete, the daily, decode D.C., economist: the week ahead, embedded, face the nation diary, five thirtyeight politics, fresh air, global news podcast, hidden brain, how i built this, inside the times, intercepted with jimmy scahill, invisibilia, kickass news, the newyorker: politics and more, 1947: the meet the press, NPR politics podcast, on the media, planet money, pod save america, pod save the world, politic’s off message, politico playbook in 90 seconds, pop culture happy hour, presidential, propublica podcast, recode decode, recode media with peter kafka,serial, slate’s trumpcast, so that happened, storycorps, the takeout, TED radio hour, this american life, too embarrased to ask, the vergecast, VOX the weeds, wait wait....don’t tell me!, what’s tech?, WSJ heard on the street, WSJ media mix, WSJ money beat, WSJ opinion: foreign edition, WSJ opinion: potomac watch.
July 23, 2017
"Overload" by famed CBS newsperson, Bob Scheiffer begins well, but eventually with the partisan pull of the times tilts to the very left in its conclusion
The work begins strong with Schieffer providing the best, to date, post election analysis that I have read, and I have read quite a few books looking for the same. Right from the start the author gets to it wonderfully, Hillary's inability to articulate, and to go beyond the damage that she and her campaign laid out, verses Trump's strength was speaking crudely and rudely as the "average joe/jane" do when speaking on the internet.
From this Mr. Schieffer provides a great analysis of where our news organizations have failed to adapt, but where they are doing so now. Whether it is via the Jeff Bezoz (amazon.com) Washington Post strength, or the changes that CBS news is coming to, podcasts, and other strategies where "news" is finding its ground anew.
Of course he delves into the "fake news" - that innuendo, fear based information that comes from sources on the far partisan levels of both sides, but is so encouraged by "bots" and more that this "fake news" which is more readily available to the iphone user than "real news" is helping to keep the partisan hatred alive and the true news out from the forefront.
Had the book ended here, I would have given it five stars, but instead I opted for two (and would have added a "half" if I had that option on Goodreads) is that in the final chapter Bob Schieffer does what he avoided in the rest of the book - he presents a "spin" on news as a prelude to an anti-Trump chapter that will no doubt delight one political side and upset the other, which is a shame because up until now he actually had a non-partisan work.
My example begins where we all know that Hillary Clinton and Team's emails were hacked. We know that wikileaks published actual emails of the same which included - anti-Roman Catholic statements by team members, cheating by others on behalf of the candidate (giving questions to otherwise unknown debate questions early) and more. This act happened, these revelations occurred. Yet about them the author writes "...political organizations are facing a strong increase in phony stories, similar to the attacks on the Democratic National Committee and the Clinton Campaign Chair John Podesta." The author suggests that the latter Podesta and DNC reports were "fake news" when they were not.
The fact that a broadcaster whom I have great respect for could not walk away with a great work, but instead had to lean so partisan that he actually delivers false news himself takes away greatly from what could have been a non-partisan text to be enjoyed by all.
The work begins strong with Schieffer providing the best, to date, post election analysis that I have read, and I have read quite a few books looking for the same. Right from the start the author gets to it wonderfully, Hillary's inability to articulate, and to go beyond the damage that she and her campaign laid out, verses Trump's strength was speaking crudely and rudely as the "average joe/jane" do when speaking on the internet.
From this Mr. Schieffer provides a great analysis of where our news organizations have failed to adapt, but where they are doing so now. Whether it is via the Jeff Bezoz (amazon.com) Washington Post strength, or the changes that CBS news is coming to, podcasts, and other strategies where "news" is finding its ground anew.
Of course he delves into the "fake news" - that innuendo, fear based information that comes from sources on the far partisan levels of both sides, but is so encouraged by "bots" and more that this "fake news" which is more readily available to the iphone user than "real news" is helping to keep the partisan hatred alive and the true news out from the forefront.
Had the book ended here, I would have given it five stars, but instead I opted for two (and would have added a "half" if I had that option on Goodreads) is that in the final chapter Bob Schieffer does what he avoided in the rest of the book - he presents a "spin" on news as a prelude to an anti-Trump chapter that will no doubt delight one political side and upset the other, which is a shame because up until now he actually had a non-partisan work.
My example begins where we all know that Hillary Clinton and Team's emails were hacked. We know that wikileaks published actual emails of the same which included - anti-Roman Catholic statements by team members, cheating by others on behalf of the candidate (giving questions to otherwise unknown debate questions early) and more. This act happened, these revelations occurred. Yet about them the author writes "...political organizations are facing a strong increase in phony stories, similar to the attacks on the Democratic National Committee and the Clinton Campaign Chair John Podesta." The author suggests that the latter Podesta and DNC reports were "fake news" when they were not.
The fact that a broadcaster whom I have great respect for could not walk away with a great work, but instead had to lean so partisan that he actually delivers false news himself takes away greatly from what could have been a non-partisan text to be enjoyed by all.
January 7, 2018
3 1/2
This was co-written.
So I mainly really liked all the points though some were rehash, some were really interesting to know. Still, the end with Trump and the investigation to the Billy Bush tape... well didn't seem to fit. It wasn't fake news, we get it but I didn't have to hear it all over again. Was just a bit boring at points like that.
This was overall good, pointing to good news sources. It also shows that the lack of local news is hurting our democracy. The changing landscape of news is still misunderstood and journalist are learning that the heartbeat of America needs to be understood and nourished in a different way than yesteryear but yet the integrity needs to be firmed up and maintained. The Web can be used to harm and mislead and we need to redirect and re-examine. This was interesting most of the way, a little boring part of the time and definitely needed though I think even more needs to be done to insure that news is freely distributed. We need a well informed public, that was the whole point of licensing the airwaves and holding the broadcasters to a standard. Now the broadcasters are dictating the standard and money is winning. Journalists are very important now and their integrity even more so. I really disliked Joe Scarborough as my representative when I lived in Pensacola but I really actually like his show, Morning Joe. There are a lot of good news sources, Facebook is not one of them. Whatever you see on FB, you need to fact check yourself. Social Media is not news people! We need to get this message out.
So, over all good and some even really interesting but a slog at points too. I bumped it up as it was really worth the time and taught me a couple of new things about some papers and podcasts.
This was co-written.
So I mainly really liked all the points though some were rehash, some were really interesting to know. Still, the end with Trump and the investigation to the Billy Bush tape... well didn't seem to fit. It wasn't fake news, we get it but I didn't have to hear it all over again. Was just a bit boring at points like that.
This was overall good, pointing to good news sources. It also shows that the lack of local news is hurting our democracy. The changing landscape of news is still misunderstood and journalist are learning that the heartbeat of America needs to be understood and nourished in a different way than yesteryear but yet the integrity needs to be firmed up and maintained. The Web can be used to harm and mislead and we need to redirect and re-examine. This was interesting most of the way, a little boring part of the time and definitely needed though I think even more needs to be done to insure that news is freely distributed. We need a well informed public, that was the whole point of licensing the airwaves and holding the broadcasters to a standard. Now the broadcasters are dictating the standard and money is winning. Journalists are very important now and their integrity even more so. I really disliked Joe Scarborough as my representative when I lived in Pensacola but I really actually like his show, Morning Joe. There are a lot of good news sources, Facebook is not one of them. Whatever you see on FB, you need to fact check yourself. Social Media is not news people! We need to get this message out.
So, over all good and some even really interesting but a slog at points too. I bumped it up as it was really worth the time and taught me a couple of new things about some papers and podcasts.
November 22, 2017
When someone like Bob Schieffer, who has worked as a reporter for 60 years, decides to give a view of today’s media landscape, it deserves attention. This book is a good appraisal of where the worlds of media and politics are today.
Schieffer began at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram where he covered the Kennedy assassination. Now after 48 years at CBS News, he’s doing podcasts, which made much of the fact-finding for this book. He talks with many leaders in media asking them about how it’s changed and what’s getting left behind in the process.
For journalism teachers like me, reading this is time well spent.
Schieffer began at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram where he covered the Kennedy assassination. Now after 48 years at CBS News, he’s doing podcasts, which made much of the fact-finding for this book. He talks with many leaders in media asking them about how it’s changed and what’s getting left behind in the process.
For journalism teachers like me, reading this is time well spent.
November 3, 2017
Despite my huge respect for Bob Schieffer and gratitude for his survey of the current journalism landscape, I felt this book was thrown together quickly with poor attention to basic editing. The text is littered with typos and grammatical errors.
September 1, 2017
Fairness Is The Realistic Goal To Which All Of Us In Journalism Must Strive
In OVERLOAD, I was delighted to find that Bob Schieffer really does provide an independent look at the media and news events. It is such a nice change to read something that is NOT a partisan slam of one side or the other.
The author draws on his “Long Life in Journalism” to give us his take on what in the world is happening to news media. Bob gives an overview of the state of American media, and how it relates to politics, with special attention to the most recent presidential election. A large section is devoted to polls, and why they have turned out to be so wrong in recent years.
The author sees a major problem with both the quantity and quality of information; we are indeed “overloaded” with information. Many folks have trouble figuring out what is true and what is not: “Americans are so overwhelmed by information in the digital era they cannot process it.”
One interesting chapter provides a guide to the most popular news web sites. Bob calls this, “Journalism’s New Digital Wave: A Guide to Digitally Native News Websites.” For each site, there is a brief background on the organization, including how it got started, major figures, and the political leanings. I found this chapter insightful—I had no idea how these web sites got started, but Bob knows.
In “The Awful State Of American Politics,” the author notes that many bright people are repelled by the dirty business of politics: “We have allowed the path to public office to become such an unpleasant and revolting exercise that too many times our best and brightest want no part of it.”
Throughout the book, Mr. Shieffer points lots of interesting facts I didn’t know. I had no idea, for example, that cable news viewers are older: “The median viewer age for Fox is sixty-six, sixty-three for MSNBC, and sixty-one for CNN.”
The very last chapter of the book gives the author’s conclusions. Bob notes that he wanted to have the readers make up their own minds before giving his opinion. Some of his key points:
* Greater reliance on mobile phones makes polling less reliable;
* Fake news poses a growing and dangerous threat;
* Declining advertising revenue has put many local newspapers into desperate straits;
* Our electoral system is broken.
Bob encourages politicians to have courage and stand up for principle: “America needs more than political reform is political courage— candidates and politicians who are not afraid to risk losing the office they hold to accomplish the greater good.” The author also suggests a revamp of campaign spending, and a bipartisan effort to “end gerrymandering of congressional districts.”
The author provides an example of what is considers stellar journalism. He reprints the report by David Fahrenthold of the Washington Post, who “got the dreary assignment of investigating Donald J. Trump’s often cited charitable activities.” This account relates how Mr. Fahrenthold dug into all the claimed donations, to see if in fact they were genuine.
So all in all, I found OVERLOAD to be a solid, well-written book, in the spirit of non-partisan journalism. The author comes across as a decent person, without an axe to grind. I enjoyed reading Mr. Schieffer’s perspective on the state of journalism today, and the chapters that focus on prominent journalists and newspapers.
I thought this one sentence summed up the author’s hope for America:
“The greatest and most effective reform, however, will be to convince young people that holding elective office is an honorable and needed pursuit.”
Advance Review Copy courtesy of the publisher.
See also Bassocantor.com/blog/overload
In OVERLOAD, I was delighted to find that Bob Schieffer really does provide an independent look at the media and news events. It is such a nice change to read something that is NOT a partisan slam of one side or the other.
The author draws on his “Long Life in Journalism” to give us his take on what in the world is happening to news media. Bob gives an overview of the state of American media, and how it relates to politics, with special attention to the most recent presidential election. A large section is devoted to polls, and why they have turned out to be so wrong in recent years.
The author sees a major problem with both the quantity and quality of information; we are indeed “overloaded” with information. Many folks have trouble figuring out what is true and what is not: “Americans are so overwhelmed by information in the digital era they cannot process it.”
One interesting chapter provides a guide to the most popular news web sites. Bob calls this, “Journalism’s New Digital Wave: A Guide to Digitally Native News Websites.” For each site, there is a brief background on the organization, including how it got started, major figures, and the political leanings. I found this chapter insightful—I had no idea how these web sites got started, but Bob knows.
In “The Awful State Of American Politics,” the author notes that many bright people are repelled by the dirty business of politics: “We have allowed the path to public office to become such an unpleasant and revolting exercise that too many times our best and brightest want no part of it.”
Throughout the book, Mr. Shieffer points lots of interesting facts I didn’t know. I had no idea, for example, that cable news viewers are older: “The median viewer age for Fox is sixty-six, sixty-three for MSNBC, and sixty-one for CNN.”
The very last chapter of the book gives the author’s conclusions. Bob notes that he wanted to have the readers make up their own minds before giving his opinion. Some of his key points:
* Greater reliance on mobile phones makes polling less reliable;
* Fake news poses a growing and dangerous threat;
* Declining advertising revenue has put many local newspapers into desperate straits;
* Our electoral system is broken.
Bob encourages politicians to have courage and stand up for principle: “America needs more than political reform is political courage— candidates and politicians who are not afraid to risk losing the office they hold to accomplish the greater good.” The author also suggests a revamp of campaign spending, and a bipartisan effort to “end gerrymandering of congressional districts.”
The author provides an example of what is considers stellar journalism. He reprints the report by David Fahrenthold of the Washington Post, who “got the dreary assignment of investigating Donald J. Trump’s often cited charitable activities.” This account relates how Mr. Fahrenthold dug into all the claimed donations, to see if in fact they were genuine.
So all in all, I found OVERLOAD to be a solid, well-written book, in the spirit of non-partisan journalism. The author comes across as a decent person, without an axe to grind. I enjoyed reading Mr. Schieffer’s perspective on the state of journalism today, and the chapters that focus on prominent journalists and newspapers.
I thought this one sentence summed up the author’s hope for America:
“The greatest and most effective reform, however, will be to convince young people that holding elective office is an honorable and needed pursuit.”
Advance Review Copy courtesy of the publisher.
See also Bassocantor.com/blog/overload
September 1, 2018
Insightful observations but lack of focus
I greatly admire Bob Schieffer and feel that the Fourth Estate, especially the so-called “mainstream media”, is an important bulwark to our democracy. However, this book was disappointing in a number of respects.
Schieffer is at his best in describing the role played by the media in “a more orderly time”, before the Internet became a major, or for many the exclusive, source of news, supplanting the three major broadcast networks, news magazines, and the scores of local newspapers. Local newspapers, says Schieffer, for many years were “the most trusted source of news” for Americans and made Congressmen and local politicians more accountable.
Economics has destroyed much of print journalism, especially local newspapers in all but a handful of cities, and staff cuts have reduced or in some cases virtually eliminated layers of editors, copy editors, and researchers who exerted quality control and who trained young journalists.
A newspaper or the Encyclopedia Brittanica was curation, Schieffer observes, another way of saying a system of professional story selection, a dedication to accuracy, and quality control. “Today we have more journalists, more information providers, and way less curation.”
Instead, news has become 24 hour, even for publications such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. “Get it first and get it right” has been replaced by get it out quick, and promote the hell out of it through tweets, podcasts, and constant updates of the news pages on the web. Meanwhile, the news consumer is subjected to a firehose of information, much of it biased or uninformed, and is increasingly bombarded with fake news. The effect is to subject our citizens to “Overload.”
Today’s consumer chooses the information sources that conform to his or her biases. The old role of the major networks and major publications as gatekeepers no longer applies. Schieffer doesn’t have a problem with the diversity of news sources made possible by the Internet but he observes that, “We no longer are basing opinions on the same data. One reason Trump was able to connect with his core supporters was that he spoke as so many people write in their Internet posts.” That is not a compliment.
The author is critical of press coverage of the 2016 presidential election, in which outrageous statements dominated the headlines day after day, to the detriment of a thoughtful analysis of candidate proposals. He called this the “Dead Cat Strategy”, which holds that no matter what the conversation at a dinner party is about, if you throw a dead cat on the dinner table people will start talking about the dead cat.
Seemingly, however, Schiffer and his co-author A. Andrew Schwartz, felt that they needed to pad their analysis so as to constitute a book. Thus we have a a list of podcast sources that runs several pages. I predict that this will be a list without a long shelf life given the dynamic quality of the Internet, and it seemed a needless digression.
A 16-page “Afterward” has been added to the book, which reprints a story by Washington Post investigative reporter David Fahrenthold on how Donald Trump repeatedly and publicly declared that he was going to donate millions of dollars to charities and then never followed through or, worse yet, used his charitable foundation as the basis of buying and taking as a tax deduction such items as his own portrait to be displayed in his own properties. This is billed as an example of good journalism but it seems tacked on and a digression.
“Overload” is an insightful comparison of the news business at this moment in time, contrasted to the “good old days” in which a handful of organizations were the predominant providers of most Americans’ news, and so profitable that they could invest huge amounts in staff resources. We have a snapshot of how news delivery has changed without an attempt to define how it may change further. This analysis of the current state of play is likely to prove ephemeral as the delivery of news continues to evolve whether we like the trend or not.
I greatly admire Bob Schieffer and feel that the Fourth Estate, especially the so-called “mainstream media”, is an important bulwark to our democracy. However, this book was disappointing in a number of respects.
Schieffer is at his best in describing the role played by the media in “a more orderly time”, before the Internet became a major, or for many the exclusive, source of news, supplanting the three major broadcast networks, news magazines, and the scores of local newspapers. Local newspapers, says Schieffer, for many years were “the most trusted source of news” for Americans and made Congressmen and local politicians more accountable.
Economics has destroyed much of print journalism, especially local newspapers in all but a handful of cities, and staff cuts have reduced or in some cases virtually eliminated layers of editors, copy editors, and researchers who exerted quality control and who trained young journalists.
A newspaper or the Encyclopedia Brittanica was curation, Schieffer observes, another way of saying a system of professional story selection, a dedication to accuracy, and quality control. “Today we have more journalists, more information providers, and way less curation.”
Instead, news has become 24 hour, even for publications such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. “Get it first and get it right” has been replaced by get it out quick, and promote the hell out of it through tweets, podcasts, and constant updates of the news pages on the web. Meanwhile, the news consumer is subjected to a firehose of information, much of it biased or uninformed, and is increasingly bombarded with fake news. The effect is to subject our citizens to “Overload.”
Today’s consumer chooses the information sources that conform to his or her biases. The old role of the major networks and major publications as gatekeepers no longer applies. Schieffer doesn’t have a problem with the diversity of news sources made possible by the Internet but he observes that, “We no longer are basing opinions on the same data. One reason Trump was able to connect with his core supporters was that he spoke as so many people write in their Internet posts.” That is not a compliment.
The author is critical of press coverage of the 2016 presidential election, in which outrageous statements dominated the headlines day after day, to the detriment of a thoughtful analysis of candidate proposals. He called this the “Dead Cat Strategy”, which holds that no matter what the conversation at a dinner party is about, if you throw a dead cat on the dinner table people will start talking about the dead cat.
Seemingly, however, Schiffer and his co-author A. Andrew Schwartz, felt that they needed to pad their analysis so as to constitute a book. Thus we have a a list of podcast sources that runs several pages. I predict that this will be a list without a long shelf life given the dynamic quality of the Internet, and it seemed a needless digression.
A 16-page “Afterward” has been added to the book, which reprints a story by Washington Post investigative reporter David Fahrenthold on how Donald Trump repeatedly and publicly declared that he was going to donate millions of dollars to charities and then never followed through or, worse yet, used his charitable foundation as the basis of buying and taking as a tax deduction such items as his own portrait to be displayed in his own properties. This is billed as an example of good journalism but it seems tacked on and a digression.
“Overload” is an insightful comparison of the news business at this moment in time, contrasted to the “good old days” in which a handful of organizations were the predominant providers of most Americans’ news, and so profitable that they could invest huge amounts in staff resources. We have a snapshot of how news delivery has changed without an attempt to define how it may change further. This analysis of the current state of play is likely to prove ephemeral as the delivery of news continues to evolve whether we like the trend or not.
November 28, 2017
Bob Schieffer has his name in prominent letters on the cover of "Overload," but he gives much-deserved credit to his co-authors, H. Andrew Schwartz, Kristie Bunton, and Lucy Boyd. "Overload" is about "finding the truth in the deluge of news." How can we sift through the mountain of information that we receive from the media daily--whether it is in print, on the radio, television, or the Internet? At a time when "fake news" has become an omnipresent phrase, responsible citizens have their work cut out for them. Is it possible to obtain objective information that will clarify events occurring on the local, state, national, and international level? At a time when more and more newspapers are going out of business, people increasingly rely on online sources. They frequently use their cell phones to skim headlines, and do not always take the time to seek a nuanced account of current events and their significance.
Schieffer has seen it all, having been a reporter for sixty years. In writing this book, he and his colleagues traveled all over the United States, conducted a great deal of research, and interviewed journalists, pollsters, and politicians. What is their conclusion? The challenge of delivering fair and balanced stories has never been greater. Adding to the difficulty is the polarization of the American electorate that has led to a toxic level of animosity between the various groups vying for power. The recent presidential election "revealed just how divided the nation was over issues ranging from the economy to law and order and race." Moreover, "journalism has been turned upside down by a technology revolution [and] newspapers are at a crisis point."
In "Overload," we get a brief history of journalism in twentieth century America and learn about the prominent role that social media, blogs, podcasts, and electronic newsletters now play in delivering news and opinion pieces. The authors discuss what has been lost and gained during this period of transition. This is an enlightening, intelligent written, but sometimes overwhelming look at the problems that confront news organizations and the general public during this turbulent era. In our 24/7-news cycle, we are bombarded by news reports that often contradict one another. The bottom line is that "the politician's job is to deliver a message. [The journalist's] job is to determine if it is true and what its implications will be for the electorate." Never has it been more important to weigh the relevance and veracity of what that we view, read, and hear. Schieffer is confident that journalism has a bright future, but one wonders if his optimism is justified or an example of wishful thinking.
Schieffer has seen it all, having been a reporter for sixty years. In writing this book, he and his colleagues traveled all over the United States, conducted a great deal of research, and interviewed journalists, pollsters, and politicians. What is their conclusion? The challenge of delivering fair and balanced stories has never been greater. Adding to the difficulty is the polarization of the American electorate that has led to a toxic level of animosity between the various groups vying for power. The recent presidential election "revealed just how divided the nation was over issues ranging from the economy to law and order and race." Moreover, "journalism has been turned upside down by a technology revolution [and] newspapers are at a crisis point."
In "Overload," we get a brief history of journalism in twentieth century America and learn about the prominent role that social media, blogs, podcasts, and electronic newsletters now play in delivering news and opinion pieces. The authors discuss what has been lost and gained during this period of transition. This is an enlightening, intelligent written, but sometimes overwhelming look at the problems that confront news organizations and the general public during this turbulent era. In our 24/7-news cycle, we are bombarded by news reports that often contradict one another. The bottom line is that "the politician's job is to deliver a message. [The journalist's] job is to determine if it is true and what its implications will be for the electorate." Never has it been more important to weigh the relevance and veracity of what that we view, read, and hear. Schieffer is confident that journalism has a bright future, but one wonders if his optimism is justified or an example of wishful thinking.
January 31, 2018
I’ve enjoyed watching Bob Schiffer on CBS for more years than I care to mention. He’s done a great job with his book, just like with his reporting, he did lots of research and the book has great quotes. Bob starts with a lot of statistics, but don’t let that get you down, he weaves a great story about the transition from printed newspapers to on-line newspapers. Have to agree with Mr. Schieffer, because I’d prefer to sit down with a newspaper and read a story that was researched, edited, proofread and is balanced.
Many of the stories on-line are first posted, due to the need for speed, and then edited later. Also, since the stories are much shorter, they tend to give one side and you need to find another article to read the other point of view….often written by a different journalist. This transition has brought about fake news, either due to lack of research or to prop up an individual or an idea. Bob’s point is, readers have to have an understanding about issues, so you know if a story is true or it’s full of untruths, some bullshit or even outright lies.
The book is only 154 pages long, but the conclusions section is 14 pages, while the afterword is 16 pages. LOL, the summary is 20% the length of the book and these are the two longest chapters. Based solely on the in-depth research Bob does, I’m sure the book could have been much longer….maybe even twice as long. And, with regard to all of the interviews Bob did to bring this book to life he still quotes people word for word.
The personal stories he shares about Walter Cronkite at CBS and Huntley & Brinkley at NBC are wonderful for the reader. It wouldn’t surprise me if Bob writes a book about the competition between the two networks, from his vantage point, on the early days of television news. This is a great read for everyone that grew up with newspapers and folks that never unfolded a newspaper, even just to read the stories “above the fold” first thing in the morning. Bob’s biggest concern, small towns around the country have lost their newspapers and the survivors have a limited investigative staff; Bob feels, in the long run, corruption at the local level will go unnoticed, since there’s no one left to check on local government.
Many of the stories on-line are first posted, due to the need for speed, and then edited later. Also, since the stories are much shorter, they tend to give one side and you need to find another article to read the other point of view….often written by a different journalist. This transition has brought about fake news, either due to lack of research or to prop up an individual or an idea. Bob’s point is, readers have to have an understanding about issues, so you know if a story is true or it’s full of untruths, some bullshit or even outright lies.
The book is only 154 pages long, but the conclusions section is 14 pages, while the afterword is 16 pages. LOL, the summary is 20% the length of the book and these are the two longest chapters. Based solely on the in-depth research Bob does, I’m sure the book could have been much longer….maybe even twice as long. And, with regard to all of the interviews Bob did to bring this book to life he still quotes people word for word.
The personal stories he shares about Walter Cronkite at CBS and Huntley & Brinkley at NBC are wonderful for the reader. It wouldn’t surprise me if Bob writes a book about the competition between the two networks, from his vantage point, on the early days of television news. This is a great read for everyone that grew up with newspapers and folks that never unfolded a newspaper, even just to read the stories “above the fold” first thing in the morning. Bob’s biggest concern, small towns around the country have lost their newspapers and the survivors have a limited investigative staff; Bob feels, in the long run, corruption at the local level will go unnoticed, since there’s no one left to check on local government.
January 26, 2019
I bought Overload about a year ago. It wasn't an easy read as you can imagine. The book was not based too much on facts. It was based more on analysis, and opinions. Which was talked over, and over again after the election. Most of the book is about how journalism has changed due to the internet, and social media. How journalist has to change with the times. How social media has changed. Taken by storm is the fake news. How do you seminate what is true, and what isn't. Social media has caused polarization in our country. But, also across the world. How local newspapers are disappearing. Which has caused corruption in our local government. Newspapers are forced to cut down on staff. Which has less reporters at local beats. If there are no presence of local reporters. There aren't reporters to question their local governments, and policies. What I found interesting. How young people get their news vs. The older generation. Instead of cable news or ABC, NBC, CBS. The young people get news through VOX, Buzzfeed, Mic. These news sources I never heard of. Also, how the digital age has affected politics, and news reporting. The old vs. The new age. What I enjoyed reading about is podcasts. I love listening on my way to work. There is so many of them. Reading about the history about podcasting brought back the times we listened to the ipod. Then he touched on the digital age with CBSN. What is important here. We are getting bombarded with so much information. How many different ways we can get information. No wonder we are polarized in our politics. We also get a taste of Stephen Colbert. Why he's type of programming is important. Some people only get news from the political comedies. Some of us set our priorities. A newspaper isnt that important. So we get our news through social media, or other cultural means. Whether we know it to be true or not. On the other side. We have propaganda machines. Or we have people purposely post so obsurd stories for financial gain. So many hits the more money you make. In the end. How ever you get your news from newspapers, journalists, newscasters, have integrity, AND ARE NOT THE ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE! If it wasnt for them their would not be people asking questions and accountability.
August 23, 2017
Overload by Bob Schieffer is an introspective look at the changing news landscape and its impacts on society and politics. The book really takes the reader through a bit of history of the news – the traditional newspaper through to today’s digital media landscape.
Through the book, there are interviews and comments from very recognizable names in news as well as the newcomers who have dramatically shaped the way that we consume information.
The premise is clear- we are overloaded with information. Or as we say at work- data rich and information poor. There is no shortage of words and articles and stories published on the web however we are no longer living in the world of aggregators. We consume stories one by one, from our favorite sites that speak to us and confirm our own biases, and don’t tend to venture out to the other side. The newspapers of old would try and aggregate all the data together, fact check and present daily; now it is hourly updates and the rush to get the latest info at the cost of accuracy.
There have been criticisms already posted online about the book and its unfair take on Donald Trump and his campaign/presidency. I say, congratulations for proving the point of the book. If you think that an author saying that Donald Trump is loose with the facts is biased, then you are living the exact echo chamber that is your biased source.
The authors have shown negatives and positives on both side of the 2016 campaign; but most importantly shown the impact that the media had on both campaigns. It has shown the rise of digital media outlets – include lists of reputable ones that lean in both directions.
And as a bonus, an in depth look at the wonderful reporting by David Fahrenthold regarding the Trump Foundation.
There are no alternative facts, there are alternative opinions and alternative viewpoints. Facts are facts; and sadly we as a society have lost the meaning of the word and the appreciation for people who report them.
Through the book, there are interviews and comments from very recognizable names in news as well as the newcomers who have dramatically shaped the way that we consume information.
The premise is clear- we are overloaded with information. Or as we say at work- data rich and information poor. There is no shortage of words and articles and stories published on the web however we are no longer living in the world of aggregators. We consume stories one by one, from our favorite sites that speak to us and confirm our own biases, and don’t tend to venture out to the other side. The newspapers of old would try and aggregate all the data together, fact check and present daily; now it is hourly updates and the rush to get the latest info at the cost of accuracy.
There have been criticisms already posted online about the book and its unfair take on Donald Trump and his campaign/presidency. I say, congratulations for proving the point of the book. If you think that an author saying that Donald Trump is loose with the facts is biased, then you are living the exact echo chamber that is your biased source.
The authors have shown negatives and positives on both side of the 2016 campaign; but most importantly shown the impact that the media had on both campaigns. It has shown the rise of digital media outlets – include lists of reputable ones that lean in both directions.
And as a bonus, an in depth look at the wonderful reporting by David Fahrenthold regarding the Trump Foundation.
There are no alternative facts, there are alternative opinions and alternative viewpoints. Facts are facts; and sadly we as a society have lost the meaning of the word and the appreciation for people who report them.
March 18, 2018
Bob Schieffer has over 50 years of experience as a journalist. He has seen and reported on many of the major events of the last five decades, from the Kennedy assassination to the election of Donald Trump. In Overload, Schieffer suggests that today we are overloaded with news, more news, from more sources, more often than at any time in our history. Yet, are people better informed? Chapter 1 is titled, "Are We Getting the Right Stuff?" A corollary question might be, are we getting stuff right? Schieffer discusses the trends that have turned media on its head - the transition and demise of print, the decline of network news, the rise (and plateau?) of cable, and the many permutations of the internet. He suggests that "historically, as technology has improved the speed and ease with which we distribute information, the power and influence of the news media has grown." Today the speed of the web has been compromised by inaccurate reporting and "fake news". He says it is impossible to prove whether fake news changed the outcome of the 2016 election, but major sources like Facebook, Google, and Twitter are making changes to limit the proliferation of fake news in the future. "The first rule for using the Internet to gather news is 'buyer beware.'" As a consumer of traditional news sources - newspapers and network news - I found the listings of digitally native news websites and podcast news sources useful and have already added apps for several to my phone and tablet. Regardless of the platform, the fundamental ethics of good journalism are more important than ever. Kristie Burton, Dean of the Bob Schieffer College of Communication at Texas Christian University says journalism matters and "telling verifiable truth, maintaining independence from sources and subjects, disclosing conflicts of interest, and serving the needs of citizens" remain critical ingredients of good journalism.
March 13, 2019
The issue with the media is total cognitive capture by the things the political establishment agrees upon. Would the world be worse without what we've got? Absolutely -- but is it worse because what we've got is pretty shit? Also yes.
You find me a news station willing to go against illegal wars of aggression of the sort we have hung people as war criminals for -- and then I'll stop saying you're bullshit. Vietnam doesn't fucking count, the media-coverage of that before Melai was fucking disgraceful, and it never, ever, discussed the actual issue "Vietnam was an illegal war of aggression, (targeted at civilians, using chemical weapons) the likes of which the world was never again supposed to see. The US betrayed the UN, the World, and itself. We should be ashamed, and atone for our crimes."
Is this because of actual corruption? No, again, it's cognitive capture - -the best propagandists believe what they're saying, and the ones that don't drink the kool-aid get run out. Everyone prints what they believe, so long as the believe the right things.
It's an interesting book tho. I enjoyed it.
You find me a news station willing to go against illegal wars of aggression of the sort we have hung people as war criminals for -- and then I'll stop saying you're bullshit. Vietnam doesn't fucking count, the media-coverage of that before Melai was fucking disgraceful, and it never, ever, discussed the actual issue "Vietnam was an illegal war of aggression, (targeted at civilians, using chemical weapons) the likes of which the world was never again supposed to see. The US betrayed the UN, the World, and itself. We should be ashamed, and atone for our crimes."
Is this because of actual corruption? No, again, it's cognitive capture - -the best propagandists believe what they're saying, and the ones that don't drink the kool-aid get run out. Everyone prints what they believe, so long as the believe the right things.
It's an interesting book tho. I enjoyed it.
March 30, 2020
I wanted to read a book that explained where news has been and how we got to where we are today. Bob Schieffer is the perfect person because he has seen it all. He started his career covering the Ford White House.
We all know the way Americans get their news has shifted drastically. He analyzes where news came from (newspapers and TVs big three news anchors) and how papers are making the jump to digital.
Schieffer uses the rest of the book analyzing all the news sources he deems credible from podcasts to cable news to newspapers and even devotes a chapter to Stephen Colbert. This book fell short for me in that I wanted a prescription for our country moving forward. How does democracy survive in a world of fake news? In a world where people believe what their itching ears want to hear? I know the situation is dire, Bob, so what do we do now?
We all know the way Americans get their news has shifted drastically. He analyzes where news came from (newspapers and TVs big three news anchors) and how papers are making the jump to digital.
Schieffer uses the rest of the book analyzing all the news sources he deems credible from podcasts to cable news to newspapers and even devotes a chapter to Stephen Colbert. This book fell short for me in that I wanted a prescription for our country moving forward. How does democracy survive in a world of fake news? In a world where people believe what their itching ears want to hear? I know the situation is dire, Bob, so what do we do now?
December 21, 2018
This book was worth reading mainly because of Schieffer's long experience in the media, lending him access to industry leaders and knowledge of the history of journalism. His presentation of the facts on the decline of local newspapers and his analysis of the implications are spot-on and deeply discouraging. His distinction between objectivity and fairness/accuracy in the conclusion was a new (to me) take on journalistic ethics. The most valuable part of the book was the detailed sections in the middle of the book (many authored by colleagues) of traditional and new media venues and their strategies. The conclusion rambled a bit--not a lot of new ideas about how to combat "fake news."
October 25, 2017
Most Essential Read of 2017?
This book is essential. If you’re frustrated at our current media landscape, this is a book for you. If you’re frustrated at the portrayal of outstanding media organizations by politicians who don’t want facts reported and would prefer coverage of the narratives they would like to peddle, this is a book for you. It’s fair and balanced (no really) and accurately covers existing media organizations and looks at their coverage historically but with a sharper lens on the historic and controversial 2016 Presidential Election. Please read this book.
This book is essential. If you’re frustrated at our current media landscape, this is a book for you. If you’re frustrated at the portrayal of outstanding media organizations by politicians who don’t want facts reported and would prefer coverage of the narratives they would like to peddle, this is a book for you. It’s fair and balanced (no really) and accurately covers existing media organizations and looks at their coverage historically but with a sharper lens on the historic and controversial 2016 Presidential Election. Please read this book.
June 23, 2018
I believe the media has been hanging round and judging itself for so long they do not even realize how dishonest and unfair they have become. This book is another example of that. These people from the Washington Post or the New York Times or network news believe they are journalists but they cannot write a story without inserting their ideology into the equation. Their disdain for our President is mentioned page after page. I do not see equal unfair treatment of Obama. This is a poor excuse of a book. Two thumbs down, way down.
November 22, 2017
The title, subtitle, and promotional blurb for this book are wildly misleading. "Overload" is a broad-stroke overview of the media and political landscape, not a guide to media-literacy. To people largely disengaged from politics and current events, this primer may be a useful first step to becoming media-literate, though it is difficult to imagine why someone ignorant enough to benefit from this would have any interest in reading this book in the first place. 2.5/5
January 19, 2018
It really is a very good and insightful book!! Incredibly accurate to the 2016 cycle and journalism as a whole. Historically based but completely aware of the present and not demeaning to millennials (which is a nice change of pace from many modern histories). Occasionally a bit repetitive and provides extensive lists of newspapers and podcasts which seems sort of unnecessary, but doesn’t wholly detract from the persuasion and insight of the book.
December 12, 2020
Written just after the 2016 election, this covers the polls and the media. (Hillary was never trusted and she did n't work to change that impression.) Loved reading about revamping of the NYTimes and WaPo and NPR. I majored in journalism at TCU where the Bob Schieffer College of Communicates is I am a disappointment to myself and others. What I really really loved was theDavid Fahrenthold story of the search for Trumps charitable donations in 2016.
January 2, 2018
Loved it. Big fan of Schieffer's and this is exactly what I thought it would be, smart opinions and interviews with some of the largest newspaper publishers and media outlets. Interesting thoughts on social media and where improvement lies in media coverage. If you;'re a newspaper or news junkie, this is perfect.
October 20, 2017
Overload is a book that compares modern news, journalism, and technology. News delivery changes so rapidly that even this book will be old news in a year or so. I love and respect the wisdom of Bob Schieffer and his dedication to accuracy and quality control. The questions remains: Are we more informed or just overwhelmed?
October 23, 2017
Brought me up to date on how technology has changed the news business. Well written and most informative, this is a must read for anyone interested in staying current with news and where to find it in 2017.
Brought me up to date on how technology has changed the news business. A must read for all who are stymied by what is happening!
Brought me up to date on how technology has changed the news business. A must read for all who are stymied by what is happening!
June 19, 2018
Is accurate in describing the impact of technology and social media platforms on the process of reporting , distribution and consumption of news as well as the impact on existing media platforms. Some of the information on the new media apps is fairly common information for anyone already using those.
November 27, 2021
The book had lots of contributions from various journalists which was fine but I was hoping from from Bob Schieffer himself. That said, I really enjoyed the portions of the book that included his stories and perspective on the profession past and present. I was able to take away a new view of journalism and the role it plays in our lives which was my goal in reading this book.
October 12, 2017
Overload
This is such an informative book. I have learned so much about journalism in its current state. This is not my usual genre for reading material, but I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in news and how we go about acquiring it.
This is such an informative book. I have learned so much about journalism in its current state. This is not my usual genre for reading material, but I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in news and how we go about acquiring it.
November 25, 2017
A quick read and early chapters especially interesting - focus on how communication of news is changing with the explosion of social media and demise of local press. Much related to the 2016 election, and the chapter on polling is a must read.
November 4, 2018
Good, but I was disappointed in the narration. I was hoping to hear Bob Shieffer's voice but rather heard a fast paced narrator,a bit disconcerting. The content of the book was excellent and makes a good case for unbiased journalism.
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