As a teenager, how can I educate myself politically?

Question

I keep being told to watch the news. But I don't want to learn from the news, because the media can and probably will tell me twisted versions of the truth.

My parents are the type of people who like to talk about how they are interested in politics, but really don't know very much.

And I don't think asking kids at school is a good way to go about it.

I want to teach myself about things, so that other people can't put ideas in my head. I want to be able to form opinions based on fact rather than biased renditions of stories. In two years I will be able to vote, and I see that as a big responsibility as well as a privelige, so I feel that I should learn how to form actual, mature opinions on such matters, but I'm not sure how. Especially being a teenager, and being constantly surrounded by media sources, songs everywhere saying "**** this, **** that", and people who generally don't know what the h**l they're talking about, its hard nowadays to pick out the truth from the BS.

Answer 1

OUTSTANDING.  You are awesome.

The single method for ensuring a balanced, informed opinion is to read and listen to as much as you can from as many different sources as possible.

A few hints if I may...

Steer clear of sources that are widely considered extremely controversial or lean in a particular direction all the time.  A great example is Fox News and MSNBC.

For TV, I would recommend CNN and BBC World News if you can get it.

For radio, I would recommend NPR.  Steer clear of Rush Limbaugh, Hannity, Savage.

For online, I would visit the sites of:

www.cnn.com

http://news.bbc.co.uk/

http://www.nytimes.com/pages/aponline/ne... (for the AP news wire)

http://www.iht.com/

http://www.csmonitor.com/ (despite being Christian, this is actually regarded worldwide as one of the most outstanding journalism outlets)

http://www.reuters.com/news/politics is a good politics source to add to the pile.

For magazines, I really recommend the following quite heavily:

Foreign Affairs - amazing magazine, you will see what I mean.  Notice the authors of the articles.

The Atlantic

The Economist

Now, that's all just for keeping up with current affairs.  Otherwise, as you delve into various issues, start searching around for balanced historical accounts (books) of the subjects and read them as well.  This is an ongoign lifetime pursuit, but one that is valuable and fascinating.

If you have more questions to this end, email me through my profile.

Answer 2

Sounds like you're already half way there to me. And I must say what a pleasure it is to read something written by a young person that has a thought process behind it, isn't centered on her drunken estranged "BF" (whatever one of those is) and where most words are correctly spelled. Perhaps there is hope for the future afterall.

Answer 3

I think the best way to start is to go to a website like CNN. http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/issues/ You can look at the different issues and see the 2 main candidates' stances on them. It includes their voting record with respect to certain policies, as well as quotes about certain issues. It's a good way to just get the basics so at least you know where a candidate stands. In addition to that, watch the debates when they are televised.  

Answer 4

wwww.ontheissues.com www.factcheck.org  www.votesmart.com (www.votesmart.org)  Then it's up to you to find your personal beliefs about the said issues...Good luck on becoming a rarity these days... an educated voter

Answer 5

DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME ON POLITICS  

Answer 6

get into the alternative media  and research stories to reach your own goals  

Answer 7

that's a very hard task,i think best thing you can do is read the constitution ,and at least then you have a base to Gage what they say. some will depend on if you are conservative or liberal,but most of the time just take it for granted all politicians lie. good luck,i really hope you can sort it all out  

Answer 8

not yahoo answers i tell you this much

good for you wanting to learn you can email me any questions and ill try to help you find the answers if you like even with what i find i would hope you would check it out as well

steer clear of CNN MSNBC NBC CBS ABC

almost all major city newspapers and mags or rather rags like time and newsweek

or better yet dont steer clear of those but also listen to talk radio (not npr) id recommend the Glenn Beck program who is very fair and honest he isnt supporting mccain or obama so i would say he would be a good measuring stick

http://glennbeck.com

even listening to glenn beck discern for yourself and check out what he says as well but i find him very credible and entertaining at the same time. You and your friends would enjoy learning about politics and the government while laughing and being entertained at same time

Best of Luck