From a Washington Post column by Kathleen Parker headlined “We’re not as divided as we think”:
If you watch cable news, you’d be forgiven for thinking the United States is a country that has split itself in two, divided not only by divergent opinions but also by two very different political realities. This is the way cable news likes it, mind you. A pot well stirred keeps viewers turning in.
On the Tuesday after Labor Day, my lap through the usual morning news shows proved more cognitively dissonant than usual. This was primarily because CNN’s “New Day” programing included John Avlon’s consistently eye-opening segment, “Reality Check.” His lesson focused on whether the United States is as extremist as people seem to think it is.