The Split Show: You control how partisan media skews the news

Younger and older viewers watch TV news differently.

On one side, there’s quick-witted comedians serving up playful mockeries of today’s elected officials and political battles; on the other, grizzled veterans of 1980s network broadcasts are paid millions to vent about how angry they are, and how much better it was in the old days. (You know, when they had to walk three miles in the snow just to watch the news.)

In other words, it’s a game of sorts. So why not make it one? Introducing The Split Show, an interactive video series in which viewers are given the ability to control the narratives around the current events they consume, switching back and forth between two faux news programs.

In this first episode, we illustrate the simplistic way in which people from both political persuasions tend to focus coverage of immigration reform on the U.S./Mexico border. The point? To exaggerate how discussions vary depending on the political leanings of the hosts and their audiences. The effect? Click on the Play button above and use your space bar to start switching sides.

Anna Holmes is a writer, editor and failed grade school spy. She is the founder of Jezebel, a columnist for the NYT Sunday Book Review, and the Editor of Fusion’s Digital Voices section.

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