A Nation of Sound Bytes

Sound bytes. Those simple little quotes, meant to capture the overall intent of someone's thoughts or message, seem to be our new way of getting news and determining the value of something as complex and challenging as health care. It seems as though every time I have a conversation with someone, they repeat the sound bytes they heard on CNN, Fox, MSNBC or talk radio as though they are absolute fact, not commentary or opinion, which they have become more and more frequently. It does not matter which side of the argument you sit on, we have lost our sense of real debate and replaced it with our side's key talking points, forgetting to learn as much as we can and really talk about the issues in front of us, preferring to cite short snippets that create a divide and limit our ability to have honest, open conversations.

Just recently, I noticed an exchange on Facebook that was a great example of how the debate has become centered around talking points ands sound bytes, not real facts:

original post:

Its official! Sarah "the quitter" Palin is nuts! She actually seems to be equating health care reform with eugenics when she writes in this note: "The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama’s 'death panel' so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their 'level of productivity in society,' whether they are worthy of health care. Such a system is downright evil."

Response to post:

Well, to quote Obama... "Maybe you're better off not having the surgery, but taking the painkiller."
-President Obama (healthcare town hall meeting, June 24, 2009.

If it's gonna be that way for old people, why not Downs Syndrome kids? Is it that big a stretch?

Response to response:

Yes, that is a giant stretch. And for the record here's the FULL quote from Obama at the town hall meeting you referenced: "End-of-life care is one of the most difficult, sensitive decisions we're going to have to make. I don't want bureaucracies making those decisions. But understand that those decisions are already being made in one way or another. If they're not being made under Medicare and Medicaid, they're being made by private insurers. We don't always make those decisions explicitly. We often make those decisions by just letting people run out of money or making the deductibles too high or the out-of-pocket expenses so onerous that they just can't afford the care.

And all we're suggesting -- and we're not going to solve every difficult problem in terms of end-of-life care; a lot of that is going to have to be we as a culture and as a society starting to make better decisions within our own families and for ourselves. But what we can do is make sure that at least some of the waste that exists in the system that's not making anybody's mom better, that is loading up on additional tests or additional drugs that the evidence shows is not necessarily going to improve care, that at least we can let doctors know, and your mom know, that you know what, maybe this isn't going to help, maybe you're better off not having the surgery, but taking the painkiller.

And those kinds of decisions between doctors and patients, and making sure that our incentives are not preventing those good decisions and that the doctors and hospitals all are aligned for patient care -- that's something we can achieve. We're not going to solve every single one of these very difficult decisions at end of life, and ultimately that's going to be between physicians and patients. But we can make real progress on this front if we work a little bit harder."

As you can see, the sound byte that was lifted from this long conversation became the talking point for one side of the argument and doesn't even really represent the whole point of the original conversation. This is just one small example of how talking points and sound bytes are defining our conversation and determining how we debate issues. As we continue to be a society of convenience and quick fixes, the sound bytes have become our way of learning and communicating news, which is not a good thing from my perspective. Gone seem to be meaningful, respectful debates and in their place we regurgitate the latest talking points from TV "news" hosts as though they are fact, when they are really opinions, perspectives and the concept of real reporting and news has escaped many people on TV and radio today. I am ready for the return to real differences and honest debate, not partisan, political sound bytes that don't do anyone justice.

I have challenged myself to learn more about the complex issues and stop relying on sound bytes and talking points - if I can have a real, honest debate with someone, that is one less conversation that is based in commentary and one more step toward a return to smart, thoughtful conversation.