the moon landing was faked, version 2

A few weeks ago, veteran broadcaster Ted Koppel interviewed FOX commentator Sean Hannity. At the end of the interview, Mr. Koppel told Michael Cohen’s “mystery client” Sean Hannity that he was bad for America. In Koppel’s words, “you have attracted people who are determined that ideology is more important than facts.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmaKl0Zm2c4

Koppel is absolutely correct, but Sean Hannity is far from the first person to use “fake news” to attract an audience. The phrase “yellow journalism” first came into being in the late 1800’s, when William Randolph Hearst competed with Joseph Pulitzer for circulation. Although both men occasionally would publish sensational stories to move their papers, Pulitzer “got religion in the early 1900’s, and focused only on solidly researched articles.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_journalism

Seven years before his death in 1911, Pulitzer made a provision in his will for the establishment of Pulitzer Prizes as an incentive for newspaper journalism. To date, the New York Times and the Washington Post have won the most Pulitzer Prizes, which is why I read both newspapers every day that I can.

http://www.pulitzer.org/page/history-pulitzer-prizesNote

Not everyone in this country relies on reliable news sources for information, which is why some of our fellow citizens hold some very wacky views, and theories about the moon landing are among those views. The link below mentions that as much as 20% of our population believes that the moon landing was faked, and nothing you can do or say will change their minds.

http://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2012/01/moon-landing-was-faked.html

Despite the fact that over 90% of the scientific community believe that global warming is happening, and is caused by human activity, there are a LOT of people who simply do not believe it. In our general population, only about 25% believe that global warming is real, and that it is caused by human activity.

https://www.salon.com/2014/12/20/7_things_americans _think_are_more_plausible_than_global_warming_partner/

So, if a whole bunch of people do not believe the FACTS about global warming, what DO we believe in more than global warming? Well, here is a short list for you:

1)    Only 38% of Americans believe that the Civil War was fought about slavery.

2)   Only 44% of our population are confident that vaccines don’t cause autism.

3)   51% of our population does not trust the Big Bang theory (which was discovered by a Catholic priest named Georges Lemaitre).

4)   Over 40% of our population believes that the earth is less than 10,000 years old, and only 27% believe that the earth is 4.5 billion years old, which is the consensus figure amount scientists.

5)   Only 60% of our population believe in evolution, compared to 97% of scientists who do.

6)   25% of Americans believe that the sun revolves around the Earth, despite the fact that Copernicus proved otherwise in the 16^th Century. Because the teachings of Copernicus contradicted the teachings of the Catholic Church, he was placed under house arrest. The Church did not admit its error until the 20^th century.

7)   55% of our population believe that America was founded as a Christian nation. Although it IS true that roughly 70% of our population would consider themselves to be Christian, our Founding Fathers (after considering history’s wars of religion and religious abuses in the American colonies) wisely chose to establish our new country as a sectarian (non religious) nation.

8)   77% of our population believe in angels, a much higher percentage than the views held by the rest of the country’s in the world. (Only one third of British citizens believe in angels, and less than 15% of the Scandinavian countries even believe in the existence of God).   I’ve experienced enough “miraculous” good fortune in my life that I would consider myself to be a believer also, but I don’t believe that angels can moved buildings – but there are people that do. The video below claims that the home of Mary in Nazareth was ultimately transported to Loreto, Italy by four angels, who literally made it happen overnight.

http://stfrancispilgrimages.com/blog/tom-zimmer-the-hermit-of-loreto

Pius devotees believe that the 4 angels transported Mary’s home from Jerusalem to Tersatto, Croatia in the 13^th century, and later transported the home to Recanati, Italy. Ultimately, it was again transported by angels to its current location in Loreto, Italy, which is today the site of the Basilica della Santa Casa, which has been a popular pilgrimage site since at least the 14^th century.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_della_Santa_Casa

I’m of the opinion that the house that was originally located in Jerusalem COULD have been moved to other locations by the Crusaders at various points in time, but I’m a little skeptical about “the rest of the story”.

I’ve often said that nobody’s opinion is ever wrong – it’s simply their opinion. However, regardless of what you belief, it’s always important to consider the source of your information.

Edward James Martin “Ted” Koppel earned his bachelors degree from Syracuse University, and his masters from Stanford. Koppel’s broadcasting career started in 1963, when he became the youngest correspondent ever hired by ABC Radio News, and he is still active today, at the age of 78. He is best known as the host of Nightline, which he was associated with from 1979 until 2005. During his broadcasting career, he has won numerous awards, including an incredible 25 Emmy awards.

Sean Hannity attended New York University, UC Santa Barbara, and Adelphi University, but never graduated. He started working for FOX in 1996, where he became the proponent of a wide variety of conspiracy theories. He HAS received a few rewards, but they pale in comparison to the achievements of Ted Koppel. Hannity’s aversion to truth has not hurt him financially, since his income in 2017 was $36 million. His net worth is estimated to be $80 million, which is considerably higher than Ted Koppel’s estimated net worth of $30 million.

At the time of his death, Joseph Pulitzer was worth an estimated $30 million, which was an enormous amount of money in 1911. His competitor, William Randolph Hearst, was a poor money manager, and was forced to sell most of his assets in the 1930’s.

Joseph Pulitzer exemplified the fact that acting with honesty and integrity can often be very rewarding financially. Sean exemplifies that fact that sometimes crime (and lying) pay very well - so be careful who you listen to.