ABC Its Own Liability? Conventional media loses credibility in the digital age

The great thing about the age we live in is that the average consumer has more agency over what they consume than ever before. And what’s more, everyone has been given a voice through social media channels and platforms like Yelp which not only feature customer-to-customer generated reviews, but they also have mechanisms for identifying and weeding out fraudulent posts.

But whatever mechanisms Yelp and similar websites for algorithmically identifying abuse, it gets a little more difficult when we’re dealing with mass media — which is, ironically, the very source media consumers once trusted the most.

What is potentially destructive about the influence of the internet, is that it places an incredible amount of emphasis on speed. And perhaps even more worrisome than the “need for speed” is the fixation on that dreaded buzz word: “buzz.” For all of the good that they do, social media channels also help to create echo chamber. Ideally, trained journalists would uphold ethical and editorial standards, and would fact-check rigorously, and would provide the average media consumer with quality reporting — not carelessly researched, misinformed drivel.

Another problem for the average consumer in the digital age is that there are so many contradictory stories out there. While it’s easy to point the finger at sites like Yelp that rely upon user-generated content and not properly trained journalists, but the reality is that major media sources themselves are contracting themselves all of the time, and these contradictions are commonly at the expense of the consumer.

For example, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) was one organization that the public traditionally depended upon to ensure that licensed businesses uphold quality standards. ABC’s 20/20 news time released a scaything expose a few years ago which alleged, among other things, that that BBB was accepting bribes, issued high ratings to non-existent businesses, and even endorsed one “business” that was a confirmed neo-nazi website. Incredulously, however, ABC has frequently cited the BBB’s data to indebt other businesses.

And how are consumers supposed to know what sources to trust? It’s been proven that mass media does inform public opinion when it comes ot businesses. Consider, for instance, the consequences for Bay-Area Uber drivers when bad press started to spur legislation. The BBB issued Uber an “F” rating. How seriously can we take that “F” rating, however, if consumer generated reviews of Uber have been overwhelmingly positive, and if the BBB gives “A” ratings to fascists?

Consumers need watch dogs. The watchdog organizations have failed them. The journalists, who are supposed to watch the watchdogs, have also failed them. The internet has indeed democratized mass media. The problem, however, is that their isn’t enough accountability, and it’s become too difficult to discern the credibility of any given source. More scrupulous fact checking has become imperative.