It's Not News, It's FARK
Encyclopedia
It's Not News, It's Fark: How Mass Media Tries to Pass off Crap as News is the first book by
Fark.com
founder Drew Curtis
. It is a critical look at the Mass Media
industry and the go-to stories used when there is a lack of hard news to report.
is one of the 100 largest English speaking sites receiving over 2,000 submissions a day and over 4 million unique visitors per month, often from the news sources themselves. It is generally seen as the destination for strange news stories. In the introduction to his book, Curtis noted that running Fark caused him to notice specific patterns within the mass media.
discussion thread which covered the news story. The topics are:
's non-fiction
bestseller list. It was reviewed positively by Stephen King
, Dave Barry
, and Chez Pazienza
—a former CNN
producer. Despite its success, Slate.com reviewer Jack Shafer
noted that it received "scant attention" from the mainstream press, noting that the Tucson Citizen
was the largest American newspaper to review it. Shafer implied that the book's criticism of mainstream media and acerbic tone may have been responsible. However, the book was more widely recognized in broadcasting, with profiles in NPR, Fox News, and G4TV. The book was later released in paperback.
Fark.com
Fark.com
Fark is a community website created by Drew Curtis that allows members to comment on a daily batch of news articles and other items from various websites. As of June 2009, the site boasts approximately four million unique visitors per month, which puts it among the top 100 English language websites...
founder Drew Curtis
Drew Curtis
Drew Curtis is the founder and an administrator of Fark.com, an Internet link dump site. He is also the author of It's Not News, It's FARK: How Mass Media Tries to Pass off Crap as News in May 2007.-Bio:...
. It is a critical look at the Mass Media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
industry and the go-to stories used when there is a lack of hard news to report.
Background
Curtis' site Fark.comFark.com
Fark is a community website created by Drew Curtis that allows members to comment on a daily batch of news articles and other items from various websites. As of June 2009, the site boasts approximately four million unique visitors per month, which puts it among the top 100 English language websites...
is one of the 100 largest English speaking sites receiving over 2,000 submissions a day and over 4 million unique visitors per month, often from the news sources themselves. It is generally seen as the destination for strange news stories. In the introduction to his book, Curtis noted that running Fark caused him to notice specific patterns within the mass media.
Overview
The book is divided into eight sections, each dealing with a different pattern exhibited by the media industry. Within each section are several specific news stories exemplifying that pattern. At the end of each example, Curtis also lists humorous comments from the original Fark.comFark.com
Fark is a community website created by Drew Curtis that allows members to comment on a daily batch of news articles and other items from various websites. As of June 2009, the site boasts approximately four million unique visitors per month, which puts it among the top 100 English language websites...
discussion thread which covered the news story. The topics are:
- Media Fearmongering contains news stories used to scare the audience. Examples are terrorists attacking, the San Andreas FaultSan Andreas FaultThe San Andreas Fault is a continental strike-slip fault that runs a length of roughly through California in the United States. The fault's motion is right-lateral strike-slip...
, and the Avian FluAvian fluAvian influenza, sometimes avian flu, and commonly bird flu, refers to "influenza caused by viruses adapted to birds." Of the greatest concern is highly pathogenic avian influenza ....
. - Unpaid Placement Masquerading as Actual Article is about news stories which, whether intentionally or not, advertise a product or organization. An example is an article indicating that 90 percent of the ocean's large fish are extinct—an unconfirmed statistic written by an author promoting a book about damage to the environment.
- Headline Contradicted by Actual Article are news stories which have misleading or contradictory headlines that are the opposite of what is implied by the article. An example is an article run by the Detroit Free PressDetroit Free PressThe Detroit Free Press is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, USA. The Sunday edition is entitled the Sunday Free Press. It is sometimes informally referred to as the "Freep"...
titled "Asian Vehicles Rank Low in Survey" which later contained the statistic that 29 of the 31 cars that earned a top reliability rating were Japanese. - Equal Time for Nutjobs is about articles published just to give an opposite side to a story, even if that opposite side has been proven false. Examples include 9/11 Truthers, the anti-vaccination movement, and Creationists.
- The Out-of-Context Celebrity Comment relates to articles which give a disproportionate amount of attention to a comment made by a celebrity, like Brad PittBrad PittWilliam Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
's position on stem cell research or the Dixie ChicksDixie ChicksThe Dixie Chicks are an American country band which has also successfully crossed over into other genres. The band is composed of founding members Martie Erwin Maguire and Emily Erwin Robison, and lead singer Natalie Maines...
' position on the Iraq War. - Seasonal Articles focuses on recurring articles published the same time every year. An example is AAAAmerican Automobile AssociationAAA , formerly known as the American Automobile Association, is a federation of 51 independently operated motor clubs throughout North America. AAA is a not-for-profit member service organization with more than 51 million members. AAA provides services to its members such as travel, automotive,...
reports related to increases in traffic during the ChristmasChristmasChristmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
holidays. - Media Fatigue refers to stories examined and exhausted past their relevance. Examples would include 9/11 and the Janet JacksonJanet JacksonJanet Damita Jo Jackson is an American recording artist and actress. Known for a series of sonically innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows, television and film roles, she has been a prominent figure in popular culture for over 25 years...
Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversySuper Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversySuper Bowl XXXVIII, which was broadcast live on February 1, 2004 from Houston, Texas on the CBS television network in the United States, was noted for a controversial halftime show in which Janet Jackson's breast, adorned with a nipple shield, was exposed by Justin Timberlake for about half a...
. - Lesser Media Space Fillers are non-categorical articles which consistently reappear. Examples include the coverage of missing white womenMissing white woman syndromeMissing white woman syndrome or missing pretty girl syndrome is a term used by some media and social critics to describe the seemingly disproportionate degree of coverage in television, radio, newspaper and magazine reporting of a misfortune, most often a missing person case, involving a young,...
and hurricanes.
Reviews and press
The book peaked at #12 on Amazon.comAmazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
's non-fiction
Non-fiction
Non-fiction is the form of any narrative, account, or other communicative work whose assertions and descriptions are understood to be fact...
bestseller list. It was reviewed positively by Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
, Dave Barry
Dave Barry
David "Dave" Barry is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American author and columnist, who wrote a nationally syndicated humor column for The Miami Herald from 1983 to 2005. He has also written numerous books of humor and parody, as well as comedic novels.-Biography:Barry was born in Armonk, New York,...
, and Chez Pazienza
Chez Pazienza
Cesare Dominic Pazienza is an American journalist, author and media consultant. He is the founder and managing editor of Deus Ex Malcontent, a blog which rose to prominence after Pazienza was fired from his job as a senior producer at CNN in 2008, as well as the CEO of DXM Media-Early...
—a former CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
producer. Despite its success, Slate.com reviewer Jack Shafer
Jack Shafer
Jack Shafer covers media for Reuters.com Opinion section. Prior to joining Reuters, he edited and wrote the column Press Box for Slate, an online magazine. Before his stay at Slate, Shafer edited two city weeklies, Washington City Paper and SF Weekly...
noted that it received "scant attention" from the mainstream press, noting that the Tucson Citizen
Tucson Citizen
The Tucson Citizen was a daily newspaper in Tucson, Arizona. It was founded by Richard C. McCormick with John Wasson as publisher and editor on October 15, 1870 as the Arizona Citizen....
was the largest American newspaper to review it. Shafer implied that the book's criticism of mainstream media and acerbic tone may have been responsible. However, the book was more widely recognized in broadcasting, with profiles in NPR, Fox News, and G4TV. The book was later released in paperback.