This & That, Ceci et Cela

You know what would be great? News alerts that differentiate between an actual news update and just another published opinion.

For example: Say the sky is falling and Chicken Little wasn’t just high/drunk/whatever her original problem was. Meteorologists confirm that the cloud/candy floss layer of the sky is 2 feet lower than it should be, especially in Ireland. They say its falling at a rate of 2 inches per year and if it isn’t halted, it’ll touch the ground by the year 2050 and snuff out all mankind.

So, I decide to use Google news alerts to track any update on this topic. Currently, Google news alerts collates all new information from avenues like news outlets (e.g. Reuters, AP, etc), analysis (e.g. evaluation by cloud expert), and opinion pieces (e.g. editorials by newspaper columnists sharing their perspective on the issue).

But in this case and practically whenever I seek a news update, I want word on changes or developments in the issue at hand, not in the opinions being voiced on the issue. I.e. I want to know if/when the sky falls another few inches, not what Joe Schmo now thinks about it.

If any Google’s or any other news alert utility could implement that, it would make my web world feel so 3.0 that I would consider getting Chicken Little off the drugs.