Tv news might be terrible, but there is definitely something to be said for having a certain selection of stories pushed at you. If nothing else it gives you perspective and context knowing what news everybody else is paying attention to. I noticed a terrible confirmation bias seeping in to my news when I got all my news from Internet sources.

Perspective?

I think quite the opposite, it gives you the illusion of being informed when in reality you are just viewing a tiny slice of the world as through a soda straw.

If you really want to be informed it takes a hell of a lot more leg work.

I can't remember who said it, but a favourite saying of mine is "isn't funny how the world only creates just enough news to fill 30 minutes every day".

I record the 6pm news on Tivo every night. Sometimes I watch it, mostly I don't. If something big breaks, I can watch it on the news.

Generally being alert to blogs and twitter will let you find out all the necessary to follow stories.

People waste far too much of their lives absorbing non-essential news items. In retrospect, most of us would be flat out recalling 4 big news events from the prior year.

TV news can be good. Try watching Channel 4 news in the uk for an example. It is an hour long.

I'm not saying you should get your news from CNN. I'm saying that if you get your news all from the Internet, you should turn on CNN from time to time to see the stories the rest of the world is paying attention to.

Um, CNN is dead last in the ratings. The vast majority of the rest of the world is paying attention to something else.

Bias is also very strongly present in television news (even news other than blatant lies as found on certain networks)...it may get worse as the most educated viewers leave to the Internet, and accountability for accuracy goes down.

Yes, bias is very present in broadcast news, but it is somebofy elses bias, and it is usually stunningly obvious, which makes it largely less harmful. When you introduce your own bias in to the news you consume, it is easy to think that the whole world sees things the same way you do. No matter how shitty and biased tv news is, at least it is another perspective.

Some folks do choose their television news source based on their own biases. It may not match your biases, as an educated, Internet-savvy, viewer...but you're not the norm. So, I can see how watching the mainstream television news could be useful as a tool for remaining in touch with what the majority is hearing and believing. I've been overhearing the news lately, as I'm staying with my folks for a few weeks to help out while my dad's sick, and I'm definitely getting a view of the world I hadn't seen in a while. I don't know that it is elevating my mind or spirit in any way, however.

So there's no bias on the Internet? Come on, that's not even serious. Even on HN there is a groupthink. In fact, most of the major new sites are associated with having some supposed bias or another. Can you just go to straight AP reports, sure? Could you just watch C-SPAN yourself? Sure, why not?

I would recommend NPR as a far better fit for that, with that added bonus that it let's you do other things such as housework while you listen.

But if you're the kind of person that thinks alien abductions are real, climate change is not, evolutionary theory is a fraud, government should stay out of our lives except for abortion, and so on then you will probably think NPR is a biased hedonistic den of sin.

NPR is far from unbiased.

Here's a serious and legitimate challenge, find me a concrete example of bias in any of NPRs news programs. (Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Top of the hour news updates).

The more editorial programs on public radio (This American Life, On The Media) are more opinionated, and the quality of local news is only as good as your public radio station, but NPR News is as clean as an organization as there has ever been.

NPR is roughly middle of the pack for the left-leaning organizations.

Here is a well done statistical study on the subject (jump to the end for nifty charts):

http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/polisci/faculty/groseclose/Media....

That's a fundamentally biased study that put Fox News in the top 5 least biased news sources.

Unbiased media doesn't exist anymore (if it ever did).

It never did

Sure, but what in your option is a less biased TV or Radio news source?

There aren't any. People use the words "biased" and "unbiased" mainly to express degrees of agreement.

Everyone's view is fair and balanced in their own eyes.

The biggest source of bias for PBS Newshour and NPR is the ITV reporting pieces that they occasionally use.

It's so obviously biased and emotionally charged. Makes me cringe. But it's pretty detectable bias so it's easy to disregard.

Then watch good news, like PBS NewsHour.

A far better recommendation than NPR, which is also "ok" but far from unbiased. PBS's coverage is generally far more even handed, far more informative, and far more thoughtful.