The beginning of Aristotle’s On Rhetoric has a lesson for staying informed despite today’s dominant political strategy:
Appeals to the emotions warp the judgment.
One of Aristotle’s main points is that rhetoric by itself is morally and ideologically neutral. A skilled rhetorician can use this weakness in human cognition for either good or evil. To do sound policy analysis, one must be aware when the emotional appeal strategy is being used, especially towards illiberal ends.
Inertia Wins! 