I always try to rely on what I consider “reliable” sources. Sometimes I must use less dependable sources, but I always try to cross reference to ensure accuracy. However, I’ve decided I need to expand my horizons and adopt new sources of information. I’m obviously doing it wrong because most of my fellow Americans seem to rely on other sources.

Maybe I should consider following the most popular political pundits and commentators since that seems to be the trend. I guess I should start with Tucker Carlson since he is the most watched commentator in the history of cable news and, one must assume, the pundit having the most significant influence on Americans’ political opinions. Yes, Tucker Carlson (FoxNews) supported anti-vaxxers and Covid-19 conspiracies, but maybe he was right! I’m confident Tucker’s bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Trinity qualifies him much more than all those silly medical doctors and hard science PhD’s.

I’ll also just ignore the fact that in an interview with Dave Rubin, a conservative talk show host, Carlson stated that “…I lie if I’m really cornered or something. I lie…I really try not to. I try never to lie on TV.” So he at least TRIES to avoid lying. Read this story about Fox News attorneys and a federal judge agreeing that Carlson’s comments are not reliable, this story about him using false data, or this story about his rant against “woke M & M’s”.

On second thought, I don’t think I feel comfortable using Tucker Carlson as a reliable source even though he is America’s most-watched pundit.

If I can’t rely on Mr. Carlson, what other media personalities and sources can I trust? Who else do my fellow Americans trust? Well…it depends on their political affiliation; Democrats trust different sources than do Republicans. Interestingly, the only real agreement between partisans is regarding The Weather Channel, which both groups rate highly (I personally find that odd). Otherwise:

The top five media personalities trusted by Democrats are, in order:

• Anderson Cooper

• Rachel Maddow

• George Stephanopoulos

• Wolf Blitzer

• David Muir

The top five media personalities Republicans trust most are, in order:

• Tucker Carlson

• Laura Ingraham

• Sean Hannity

• Bret Baier

• Alex Jones

The five media outlets Democrats trust most are, in order:

• Public Broadcasting

• CNN

• CBS

• ABC

• NBC

The five most-trusted Republican sources are, in order:

• FoxNews

• Newsmax

• One American News (OAN)

• The Wall Street Journal

• Breitbart

(NOTE: All these rankings are based on 2022 data)

Hmmmm…. Now I’m beginning to see the problem. Back in 2017 I wrote a piece on the topic of “confirmation bias”, the notion that we all seek out sources that confirm our own political biases. So, if I’m a liberal Democrat I’m likely to watch Anderson Cooper and Rachel Maddow, but if I’m a conservative Republican I’ll more closely follow Tucker Carlson or Laura Ingraham. And, Democrats will turn on PBS or CNN while Republicans tune in to FoxNews or Newsmax.

If Americans get their news from such wildly conflicting sources, is it any wonder the country is so divided? To make matters worse, people tend to only interact with others with whom they agree, both in person and online, so we all live in our own personal echo chambers and are rarely exposed to differing opinions.

A very thorough (though slightly dated) analysis by Pew Research Center found that the most consistently liberal or conservative people and media outlets “tend to drive political discussions”. In other words, the most extreme liberal and conservative sources are followed more frequently, and they are the ones we trust for most of our information. Our willingness to 1) follow sources that confirm what we already believe, and 2) to rely almost exclusively on those extreme sources means most people become “followers” in political conversations, and the people they are following are quite often the most extreme politically.

Sadly, the Pew research found that people with “mixed ideological views”, and I place myself in that category, have MUCH less influence on Americans’ political views than do people at the extremes. I’m crushed but not surprised. Maybe I should pick a corner?

In Federalist #10, one of America’s most important political documents, James Madison argued that Republican government (one in which citizens choose their representatives) is the only system capable of controlling interest groups, political parties, extremist groups, and other “factions”. Without a large republic these factions could gain control over government and would likely not rule in favor of the citizens’ best interests. The only way to avoid this catastrophe is having citizens vote for the best people, and the only way we can do that is by ensuring citizens are well-informed.

And this is one reason America is in trouble.