Current Events > Mom said she found a completely unbiased news source... Newsmax.

(+) Yeah! (+)

I guess I should give her credit for trying. She's been admitting that she's completely uninformed when it comes to politics, but still argues with me over Trump.

A couple of weeks ago we got into argument when she was basically calling anyone that didn't like Trump stupid, hate filled, anti-Americans. So I responded by calling out all the illegal, constitution breaking, and hate filled racism his followers display. She got absolutely furious, and started yelling at me that I don't know what I'm talking about about. So I reminded her that she's the one who admits to being uninformed.

She then said we're no longer allowed to discuss politics with each other. But as I agreed, I told her I wished she'd stop taking people's Facebook posts as fact and just look at the actual facts.

Tonight she came to me and said she had been looking to find a completely impartial news source that just lists events as they happen with no bias either way. She was very proud of the fact that she found one that wasn't biased at all. I said that was great and asked which one it was... My heart sank when she said Newsmax. I told her that I think that one has a heavy bias towards supporting Trump and promoting fake news for him. She didn't want to believe it, so I had her Google it with me and almost everything listed said it was heavily far right conservative leaning.

So now she's using that as an excuse to say you can't trust any news source. I agreed and said at this point, there probably isn't any unbiased news. But that she should still just watch what he does and says rather than taking what she's on Facebook as fact.

So... She is trying. But I fear if she sees anything that he does wrong that she'll immediately flip to thinking it's fake. My mom, who I love and care for would never support these things. She's still in there, I can see her sometimes. But there's just this whole other persona that takes over when Trump is mentioned, and I just want her to wake up and see the truth.

I knew someone who told me she found a good news site called Truu News. When I asked how the ridiculous articles and videos were real, she said The title says its true.

I lost a lot of faith in humanity that day

Sometimes I think it's that some people can't reconcile that terrible people are allowed to be important and that they can use Christianity as a platform.

At least some of it is just being unable to untangle an idea and it gets caught up like "Blank mentioned BIble, Bible not bad, so Blank good. People say he bad but he like Bible! He can't be bad! They're bad!"

direct her to ground news and ittls spoonfeed her all that nis shiet for you.

_____Cait posted...

I knew someone who told me she found a good news site called Truu News. When I asked how the ridiculous articles and videos were real, she said The title says its true.

I lost a lot of faith in humanity that day

My faith in humanity has plummeted in the last decade. Ever since I started working a public facing job.

wanderingshade posted...

Sometimes I think it's that some people can't reconcile that terrible people are allowed to be important and that they can use Christianity as a platform.

At least some of it is just being unable to untangle an idea and it gets caught up like "Blank mentioned BIble, Bible not bad, so Blank good. People say he bad but he like Bible! He can't be bad! They're bad!"

Even mom's super conservative bible thumping friend questioned things. She said to Mom "I think Trump might be the antichrist." And Mom came to me trying to convince me he's not. And I just said that he does in fact check all the boxes.

orcus_snake posted...

direct her to ground news and ittls spoonfeed her all that nis shiet for you.

Thank you so much. I will.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

Sorry if you're dealing similar struggles. My mom is generally a wonderful person.

Also, it's her sister and church friends that suggested Newsmax as "the most trustworthy" one. So I think she's been talking about me to them. >_>

https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/newsmax-agreed-pay-40-million-settle-defamation-suit-over-2020-false-election-2025-03-13/

Cable outlet Newsmax Media has paid $40 million to settle allegations it defamed Smartmatic by reporting false claims that the voting machine company helped rig the 2020 U.S. election for Joe Biden over Donald Trump, according to a regulatory filing.

I could post scores of instances of Newsmax lying to or misleading its audience, but I don't have to because this sufficiently proves Newsmax isn't a reliable news source. Not that this will matter to your mom, but it's all the proof you need to demonstrate their bias.

darkace77450 posted...

https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/newsmax-agreed-pay-40-million-settle-defamation-suit-over-2020-false-election-2025-03-13/

I could post scores of instances of Newsmax lying to or misleading its audience, but I don't have to because this sufficiently proves Newsmax isn't a reliable news source. Not that this will matter to your mom, but it's all the proof you need to demonstrate their bias.

Thankfully it seems like she trusted me on it being biased. I'll still show her, she might pass the info along to her friends and hopefully start influencing her social circle a bit. I know it won't change their minds, but if it can get them to start thinking a bit more critically might be able to loosen their minds to open a bit.

Yeah I have a very similar problem. I've nearly been in fist fights with family over this kind of nonsense. Surprisingly, I find Phillip DeFrancos videos to be pretty fair, in that it's mostly just reporting and very little opinion. Ground News is also good for just reporting.

I remember my coworker telling me ten years ago he found a clear no BS news outlet called One American News. I never followed up on it but certainly saw it a few years later and it was definitely anything but clear or no BS

KogaSteelfang posted...

I guess I should give her credit for trying. She's been admitting that she's completely uninformed when it comes to politics, but still argues with me over Trump.

A couple of weeks ago we got into argument when she was basically calling anyone that didn't like Trump stupid, hate filled, anti-Americans. So I responded by calling out all the illegal, constitution breaking, and hate filled racism his followers display. She got absolutely furious, and started yelling at me that I don't know what I'm talking about about. So I reminded her that she's the one who admits to being uninformed.

She then said we're no longer allowed to discuss politics with each other. But as I agreed, I told her I wished she'd stop taking people's Facebook posts as fact and just look at the actual facts.

Tonight she came to me and said she had been looking to find a completely impartial news source that just lists events as they happen with no bias either way. She was very proud of the fact that she found one that wasn't biased at all. I said that was great and asked which one it was... My heart sank when she said Newsmax. I told her that I think that one has a heavy bias towards supporting Trump and promoting fake news for him. She didn't want to believe it, so I had her Google it with me and almost everything listed said it was heavily far right conservative leaning.

So now she's using that as an excuse to say you can't trust any news source. I agreed and said at this point, there probably isn't any unbiased news. But that she should still just watch what he does and says rather than taking what she's on Facebook as fact.

So... She is trying. But I fear if she sees anything that he does wrong that she'll immediately flip to thinking it's fake. My mom, who I love and care for would never support these things. She's still in there, I can see her sometimes. But there's just this whole other persona that takes over when Trump is mentioned, and I just want her to wake up and see the truth.

Did you unfriend her on Facebook yet?

Link_of_time posted...

Yeah I have a very similar problem. I've nearly been in fist fights with family over this kind of nonsense. Surprisingly, I find Phillip DeFrancos videos to be pretty fair, in that it's mostly just reporting and very little opinion. Ground News is also good for just reporting.

Thanks, I'll check out those videos too. I've been seeing a bunch on YouTube, but they'd definitely too biased and push her away.
Hexenherz posted...

I remember my coworker telling me ten years ago he found a clear no BS news outlet called One American News. I never followed up on it but certainly saw it a few years later and it was definitely anything but clear or no BS

I guess people can easily fall for stuff that they like to hear.

omgbsdude posted...

Did you unfriend her on Facebook yet?

No, but I also haven't used Facebook in like 10 years either.

"See, young people have no understanding of civics or basic media literacy."

Old people:

KogaSteelfang posted...

I guess people can easily fall for stuff that they like to hear.

Unfortunately, those same ppl have very little self awareness. Even my parents who went from Republican to Democrats, often seem to fall under various misinformation from "Liberal" sources.

KogaSteelfang posted...

My faith in humanity has plummeted in the last decade. Ever since I started working a public facing job.

Even mom's super conservative bible thumping friend questioned things. She said to Mom "I think Trump might be the antichrist." And Mom came to me trying to convince me he's not. And I just said that he does in fact check all the boxes.

There is no anti-christ because whats in the bible isnt literal. Revelations was first a admonitions to the churches for the 1st century. Second is the "prophecy" part is talking about retribution for the Romans and how everything is going be alright. This is what to expect. Joseph couldn't just put all that to paper literal so its all cryptic. They had persecutions from the the emperors

Yeah I'm in a similar position. At one point she stopped watching mainstream news media and instead started watching Newsmax and One America News only. I haven't had the heart to completely push back on the BS they're feeding her (I have a bad habit of avoiding any kind of conflict), but I kept telling her it's better to look at multiple news source like I do, because any one source is always gonna be biased.

Eventually I saw her going back to watching the other news channels alongside those right-wing channels, but she still mostly sides with the right-wing ones. I at least made a little progress.

There isn't any unbiased news, but that absolutely doesn't mean that there aren't good news sources. OANN and Newsmax aren't bad because they're biased, they're bad because they lie while also trying to pretend they're unbiased. You literally don't get the truth from them.

It's kinda impossible to actually do unbiased news because even the words one uses to just describe an event can have an impact. The current headline on BBC is "Iran missiles cause multiple casualties in Israel as Israeli strikes hit Tehran oil depot". You could equally report that as "Iranian counterattack kills at least 10 following Israeli strikes on Iranian power infrastructure" and remain factually accurate while changing the bias and urgency of the headline.

The only real solution is using several sources. You can't trust any single source, even the good ones.

I'm so glad the worst politically I need to worry about with regards to my mom is her incredible NIMBYism, what some of you need to deal with is so much more.

My sister is pretty prone to conspiracy think but she's easy enough to get sorted out at least.

reincarnator07 posted...

There isn't any unbiased news

True.

reincarnator07 posted...

they're bad because they lie while also trying to pretend they're unbiased. You literally don't get the truth from them.

Exactly. We've kind of just accepted lies and misinformation will be part of it. I'm glad that she's realized the possibility that the good things she hears may not be fully true and is looking for a more trustworthy source.

I'm going to show her that Ground News site when I get home from work in about an hour. Then, if she's still open to discussing things this evening after I wake up, I might try and get her to compare his executive orders with project 2025 for herself and see that he's following it to the letter. Though, that may be a touch too far at the moment. I think getting her an actual source of news is a good step, and I thank all of you for helping me out with that.

My brother turned into a nutjob conspiracy theorist during the pandemic and we basically just stopped talking at some point. Been over a year since we last spoke. He probably voted for Trump (or maybe Jill Stein, who knows) due to him being endorsed by RFK Jr.

Do they not have PBS where they live?
That channel shows news from all over the world.

Be glad shes sensible enough to acknowledge some truth. My coworker claims that Israel can never do anything wrong because theyre Gods people, and that all the news just hates Christians. Also she likes to use Rumble as a source, because they show things that would be censored by YouTube that the government doesnt want us to see. Stuff like how vaccines have mind controlling microchips, and videos of space lasers starting the Maui fires. You know, all that good stuff <_<

Well, I gave her the link to Ground News and told her it's a trustworthy source of info, and that Newsmax isn't trustworthy at all. She said she'd rather just keep watching Facebook reels and stay ignorant. So I said that's fine as long as we continue to not discuss anything about it then.

She asked if I had heard of the 2 murders yesterday, and said the protestors did it. I corrected her and told her they were Democrat that were killed and she refused to believe me. So I looked it up, and as I was trying to find an article that mentioned it, she was telling me to stop. But I showed her that they were Democrats that were killed when she was claiming the protestors were killing Republicans.

So I just went ahead and unloaded with all the awful stuff Trump has done. She just brushed it off and said god will punish him if he's done anything wrong. Now she's lecturing me on Biden having dementia.

Not good.

Now she's talking about gay people, and how stupid it is that they want equal rights.

KogaSteelfang posted...

Now she's talking about gay people, and how stupid it is that they want equal rights.

So how is she a good and sweet person?

bsp77 posted...

So how is she a good and sweet person?

She generally is. She seems to think they're just gay for attention and doesn't like them being flamboyant. But I managed to expose her being a hypocrite over gay people. I think she realized that she was being unreasonable.

She's really not a bigot, but gay and transgender people are a big hangup for her. Just because she thinks it's a choice and it's for attention, and feels that they expect the world to cater to their life choices. After some back and forth I got her to admit that they should live their lives like a regular person, and I said that's all they want. Then she seemed to realize that she'd been arguing against letting them live their lives.

Anyway, discussion is over now. She seems kind of defeated. So I think I made a point that landed. And I'm about to go to bed anyway. So I think we're probably done for today.

https://factually.co/

Would this help? Must be so exhausting to keep having to deal with such attitudes...

I also have a NewsMax mom. Youre not alone TC.

Sorry OP but your mother is indeed a bigot. On top of that, if she's straight up admitting that she'd rather remain ignorant then there's nothing you can do for her until her mindset changes. It's not possible to enlighten people who actively want to remain ignorant.

KogaSteelfang posted...

She asked if I had heard of the 2 murders yesterday, and said the protestors did it. I corrected her and told her they were Democrat that were killed and she refused to believe me. So I looked it up, and as I was trying to find an article that mentioned it, she was telling me to stop. But I showed her that they were Democrats that were killed when she was claiming the protestors were killing Republicans.

The police chief said during his press conference that the people killed where Democrats, and that their killer was a man impersonating a police officer. It takes all of 90 seconds to prove her wrong, but since she can't be wrong, she'll pivot and say the police chief is lying.

When it comes to politics or news in generals, a difference of opinion is fine (usually; human rights are shouldn't be negotiable). The problem is these people won't even agree on established facts, and you can't reason with someone like that. So for the good of your relationship, I'd advice you, TC, to not bother.

reincarnator07 posted...

Sorry OP but your mother is indeed a bigot. On top of that, if she's straight up admitting that she'd rather remain ignorant then there's nothing you can do for her until her mindset changes. It's not possible to enlighten people who actively want to remain ignorant.

I think TC should at least remain vigilant of what their mother is watching just to be absolutely sure.

There are no completely unbiased news sources and there never has been.

Okay, I think I may have gotten through to her a bit. She's definitely acting like something is bothering her. Less like she's upset, and more like she's learned something and is processing it. I can tell she's trying to hide it, but since she's not angry at me, I can only guess what she learned this morning is sinking in a bit. At least I hope.

I'm not going to push it any further, because I feel like I dumped a lot on her already and she can only handle so much before feeling like I'm just antagonizing her and she shuts out anything I've said.

But, it feels like progress. It looks like there may be a crack forming in the shell and actual info is getting in. And that's all it takes. If she can start seeing things as they are, she will wake up.

KogaSteelfang posted...

She's really not a bigot, but gay and transgender people are a big hangup for her. Just because she thinks it's a choice and it's for attention, and feels that they expect the world to cater to their life choices.

I, uh.

I have some news for you regarding what makes a person be considered bigoted.

DrizztLink posted...

I, uh.

I have some news for you regarding what makes a person be considered bigoted.

It's not exactly how it sounds. I don't know how to better explain it, but it's more of her misunderstanding what it means to be gay or trans. Not exactly her disliking them for being that way. She supports and defends the gay people she knows, but she thinks they're making dumb choices. So yeah, she's judgemental over that life, but it's not from a place of hate. If that makes any sense. I know that's not much better though.

Edit: Though, I suppose it's possible I'm just deluding myself and not wanting to see her that way. So, idk... I guess maybe I take after her in that regard then.

KogaSteelfang posted...

It's not exactly how it sounds. I don't know how to better explain it, but it's more of her misunderstanding what it means to be gay or trans. Not exactly her disliking them for being that way. She supports and defends the gay people she knows, but she thinks they're making dumb choices. So yeah, she's judgemental over that life, but it's not from a place of hate. If that makes any sense. I know that's not much better though.

Edit: Though, I suppose it's possible I'm just deluding myself and not wanting to see her that way. So, idk... I guess maybe I take after her in that regard then.

With respect, I think you clearly care for your mother and don't want to see her as a bad person. Based on what you've told us here though, she's absolutely a bigot. Bigotry doesn't always take the form of outright hatred and active persecution. Sometimes, it's "just" disapproving of "those people" for their "choices and lifestyle". Ultimately, she's judging people for immutable factors that they have. That's a textbook example of prejudice.

I can only assume she's looking for a reason for some perceived slight or injustice. Not being funny those content with life aren't usually looking for reasons why they're not content.

Reminds me of my mom. Hopefully you can get through to her.

That's unfortunate, but it does sound like she's trying and that there is hope for her.

Jupiter posted...

That's unfortunate, but it does sound like she's trying and that there is hope for her.

I hope so. We haven't discussed much since the day I made this topic. But she has brought up a few points that she read on Facebook that I was able to disprove pretty quickly. Then I mentioned a few things that she doesn't agree with, like unbanning asbestos and fighting a war for Israel simply because Trump benefits from it.

No serious disagreements since then, and each time I show her that she's being misled, she quietly backs down and seemingly accepts it. I think she's seeing more of the truth and just doesn't want to admit that she's wrong.

So, we're both back to trying not to bring it up too much.