Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for June 17, 2022

Now we know TV news is aimed people with minds of 6 year-olds.

I’m not as patient as I used to be. Haven’t bothered watching a movie in a long time.

What news were you expecting to be about, Calvin? Yourself doing some amazing feat?

A sound bite is better than 24/7 news coverage.

Boy, does this ever look familiar!

He must be watching Fox News!!

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Must be watching FOX.

Not to worry, Calvin, it understands you better than you think.

Sensationalism wins a well-earned triumph.

Back to Sesame Street.

Apparently a short attention span is not a new thing! Been around since 1992 at least.

BW was way ahead of his time.

And this was early times leading cell phones to become appendages and a focus for short term thinking.

Wow, that TV is bouncing around more than Calvin is!

As it ever was with news. Yellow journalism got us into the Spanish American war. Walter Cronkrite got us out of Vietnam and todays journalists just twist the facts faster. We live in magical times.

Nothing’s really changed.

I loved 90’s Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network commercials/ bumpers. Short, sweet & to the point!

So called “independent” news channels featuring discussion panels with ALL the participants on the same side!

Calvin is so ADHD.

And this strip was done before the explosion of 24/7 “news” cable networks (CNN was around but it was far better than what cable news is now).

In the days of our youths (for the geezers among us) TV shows would attract advertisers that were looking for an audience like their target audience. With three TV channels the competition was there. Now, with streaming of anything anytime that dynamic is gone.

Some idiots still watch TV

Folks here are right mentioning he must be watching FOX News. I remember this strip and it was a real time commentary on the advent of the “new” station that had just debuted, and it was clear from the start it had a different agenda from traditional national networks. They front loaded their “news” programming with lots of fluff and “fun” stories, advertising they wanted viewers who were tired of the usual doom and gloom.

They often showed outlandish or twisted stories to change the tone or spice up the interest, highlighting some dubious or scurrilous element to imply they had a scoop the others didn’t. After a while it became a schtick to portray popular, mainstream mostly dem political figures unkindly, taking quotes out of context, misrepresenting actions, insinuating something nefarious was going on. They would get the smear out, then retract it quietly if the target threatened to sue.

To assuage viewers who were starting to catch on, they added the tagline “fair and balanced” simply to give the impression that other stations weren’t, even though they were the ones skewing things. It was working and other stations were losing viewers so they all started to fluff up their programs to compete, with more human interest and less Cronkite gravitas.

Murdoch, a craven right winger, was finally called to account for his flaunting of FCC regulations around news programming which required fact checking, neutrality in coverage, and avoidance of charged rhetoric, opinion segments labeled, etc. He laughed at the committee and said, “FOX News” is just the name of the company. We are in the ‘creative entertainment’ business, it says so right here in our license application.”

And he got away with it, free to nurture this dangerous distrust of vital mainstream news. FOX marched right into it’s real goal as the propaganda organ of the reactionary right, with millions of duped citizens locked in step.

Turns out Murdoch was sly as a…..

He must be watching Faux News.

We finally cut cable right out and we don’t really miss it. If and when we want entertainment, we stream it.

Ah I miss the days when between 4:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. the air waves were filled with cartoons for kids. At 5:30 p.m. was the national news and at 6:00 p.m. was the local news.

Saturday mornings cartoons started around 7:00 a.m. with Mighty Mouse, followed by Heckle and Jeckle. Next came Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales followed by Underdog. The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Hour rounded out the cartoons only to be followed by Roy Rogers, after Roy Rogers was Sky King. Then a quick lunch and out the door to play until supper time.

Over time some of the cartoons were replaced by the likes of HR Puffen Stuff, Josie and the Pussy cats etc. But the Saturday morning formula stayed the same for many years.

The problem with the media is that it gives us exactly what we want.

Man, this strip is pretty timely.

Sometimes I actually write to editorial contacts. Sometimes they agree with me, but the tide itself never turns.

Amusing himself to death. Pace Neil Postman.

I never watch the news. It’s either too depressing, or it just pisses me off…

The worst manifestation of cable ‘news’ is the ‘ambush journalism’ carried out by the likes of cretin Jesse Watters!

Good commentary on todays ‘News’ outlets.

He must be watching Fox news.

Angry Dad: “That’s opinion! NOT NEWS!”

So, Calvin grew up to be a Trump supporter?

The public gives reporters of news department the story of what public does against the law. Curtis you are too young to watch public mess up that creates the news story.

Plus ca change…

That was 25 years ago. Fortunately, the news has evolved and lives by the rule book called “Journalistic Integrity.” They just give us the straight news, no matter whose ox is being gored and they won’t stand for partisanship in reporting.

No matter how many times I see it, the bouncing TV gives me a laugh.

The gravity defying tv is one of the masterpieces of Bill.

Calvin watches the news?!

As does it seem most of the rest of the Human Race.

And things have not exactly gotten any better.

What do you mean Fox news??There is NO SUCH THING AS AN UNBIASED, TRUTHFUL, ACCURATE NEWS SERVICE these days.And agreeing with leftist agendas does not make it truthful, just more likely to be inaccurate, or just plain wrong, and biased