--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We can be skeptical, suitably skeptical…" description: "\"We can be skeptical, suitably skeptical, and we can trust news outlets, some more than others.\" — Daniel Levitin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c3/daniel-levitin-2988_journalism_we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-a_2083556.png" --- # We can be skeptical, suitably skeptical, and we can trust… ![“We can be skeptical, suitably skeptical, and we can trust news outlets, some more than others.” quote by Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c3/daniel-levitin-2988_journalism_we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-a_2083556.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c3/daniel-levitin-2988_journalism_we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-a_2083556.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c3/daniel-levitin-2988_journalism_we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-a_2083556.png) > “We can be skeptical, suitably skeptical, and we can trust news outlets, some more than others.” [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Balance healthy skepticism with selective trust in media sources. **In simple terms:** Be skeptical but trust reliable news. Key Takeaway Critically evaluate information sources. Themes media literacy critical thinking trust Mood cautious analytical Type philosophical advice When to use this quote - reading news - social media - research - decision making Key Concepts cognitive bias information quality Questions to Reflect On - Which outlets earn your trust? - How do you verify facts? A Different Perspective Over‑skepticism can lead to cynicism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Journalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) [News Outlets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/news-outlets-487175/) [Skeptical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skeptical/) [Skeptical Suitably](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skeptical-suitably-4082337/) [Skeptical Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skeptical-trust-4082336/) [Suitably Skeptical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suitably-skeptical-4082338/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) ## Related quotes > [News outlets use words like erratic, volatile, unstable but rarely are Trump's words and actions covered as a whole and rarely do news outlets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-stelter/news-outlets-use-words-like-erratic-volatile-unstable-but-rarely-are/) [Brian Stelter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-stelter/) > [There's so much to consume that it's very easy to read a headline in the news outlets that you subscribe to that you maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-hope-ashitey/there-s-so-much-to-consume-that-it-s-very-easy-to-read-a-headline-in/) [Clare-Hope Ashitey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-hope-ashitey/) > [I do think people would be surprised to know that journalists from various news outlets are in this together in many ways in terms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-welker/i-do-think-people-would-be-surprised-to-know-that-journalists-from/) [Kristen Welker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-welker/) > [Our go-to source is no longer dictated by a small group of cable news outlets. We have to expand our view. Sometimes, a story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-noah/our-go-to-source-is-no-longer-dictated-by-a-small-group-of-cable-news/) [Trevor Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-noah/) > [Well, I think the public has been well-served by the increase in fact-checking. And I find it shocking that not all news outlets have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-stelter/well-i-think-the-public-has-been-well-served-by-the-increase-in-fact/) [Brian Stelter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-stelter/) > [Hundreds upon hundreds of news outlets - okay, thousands - are interested in following the happenings at the White House. Yet the number of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-wemple/hundreds-upon-hundreds-of-news-outlets-okay-thousands-are-interested/) [Erik Wemple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-wemple/) > [Fox News covers stories that some other news outlets won't cover. We ask some questions that other news outlets wouldn't ask. And sometimes that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megyn-kelly/fox-news-covers-stories-that-some-other-news-outlets-won-t-cover-we/) [Megyn Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megyn-kelly/) > [News outlets have become like social media. They're not telling the whole story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-real/news-outlets-have-become-like-social-media-they-re-not-telling-the/) [B-Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-real/) > [This media era is amazing. Twitter, Facebook, ESPN, news outlets everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/metta-world-peace/this-media-era-is-amazing-twitter-facebook-espn-news-outlets/) [Metta World Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/metta-world-peace/) > [One of the principles of White House coverage is that a wide variety of news outlets should be represented at briefings and press conferences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-stelter/one-of-the-principles-of-white-house-coverage-is-that-a-wide-variety/) [Brian Stelter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-stelter/) > [You'd find out more truth by just walking down the street with a musical instrument than by looking at any of the news outlets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-borrell/you-d-find-out-more-truth-by-just-walking-down-the-street-with-a/) [Johnny Borrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-borrell/) > [Trump may not like the fact that 20-plus anonymous sources provided the 'Times' with an unflattering portrait of his campaign, but that doesn't make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsten-powers/trump-may-not-like-the-fact-that-20-plus-anonymous-sources-provided/) [Kirsten Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsten-powers/) > [Americans are in need of very objective information, and sometimes it's easier to absorb the message through entertainment and through a great story than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nia-long/americans-are-in-need-of-very-objective-information-and-sometimes-it/) [Nia Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nia-long/) > [My local paper, The New York Times, Yahoo News, CBS, and The Washington Post, all agreed to stop using the word 'mistress.' The big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-broadwell/my-local-paper-the-new-york-times-yahoo-news-cbs-and-the-washington/) [Paula Broadwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-broadwell/) > [I don't think a lot of the news outlets examine the effect of war on a family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-macfarlane/i-don-t-think-a-lot-of-the-news-outlets-examine-the-effect-of-war-on/) [Luke Macfarlane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-macfarlane/) ## More by Daniel Levitin > [What music is better able to do than language is to represent the complexity of human emotional states.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/what-music-is-better-able-to-do-than-language-is-to-represent-the/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [Procrastination comes in two types. Some of us procrastinate in order to pursue restful activities - spending time in bed, watching TV - while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/procrastination-comes-in-two-types-some-of-us-procrastinate-in-order/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [In a country that was still racially segregated and prejudiced, music was among the first domains in which African-Americans thrived alongside whites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/in-a-country-that-was-still-racially-segregated-and-prejudiced-music/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [Because our ancestors lived in social groups that changed slowly, because they encountered the same people throughout their lives, they could keep almost every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/because-our-ancestors-lived-in-social-groups-that-changed-slowly/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [Because you've been exposed to Western tonal music, you know after a certain chord sequence what the next possibilities are. Your brain has compiled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/because-you-ve-been-exposed-to-western-tonal-music-you-know-after-a/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [People who organize their time in a way that allows them to focus are not only going to get more done, but they'll be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/people-who-organize-their-time-in-a-way-that-allows-them-to-focus-are/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [I have never seen a proton or electron spinning around it. I have never actually seen a chromosome. I trust that they exist because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/i-have-never-seen-a-proton-or-electron-spinning-around-it-i-have/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [If you're studying from a book and trying to listen in on a conversation at the same time, those are two separate projects, each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/if-you-re-studying-from-a-book-and-trying-to-listen-in-on-a/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [President Trump, when challenged on facts, says that many people feel the way he does. But feelings should not take the place of reason…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/president-trump-when-challenged-on-facts-says-that-many-people-feel/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [Our species uses music and dance to express various feelings: love, joy, comfort, ceremony, knowledge, and friendship. And each one is distinct and widely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/our-species-uses-music-and-dance-to-express-various-feelings-love-joy/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [The first forms of writing emerged not for art, literature, or love, not for spiritual or liturgical purposes, but for business--all literature could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/the-first-forms-of-writing-emerged-not-for-art-literature-or-love-not/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [When you're at work, be fully at work. And let your leisure time be what it's meant to be - restorative and fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/when-you-re-at-work-be-fully-at-work-and-let-your-leisure-time-be/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [The obvious rule of efficiency is you don't want to spend more time organizing than it's worth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/the-obvious-rule-of-efficiency-is-you-don-t-want-to-spend-more-time/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [When it comes to snowing people, one effective technique is to get a whole bunch of verifiable facts right and then add one or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/when-it-comes-to-snowing-people-one-effective-technique-is-to-get-a/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) > [The human brain long ago evolved a mechanism for rewarding us when we encountered new information: a little shot of dopamine in the brain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/the-human-brain-long-ago-evolved-a-mechanism-for-rewarding-us-when-we/) [Daniel Levitin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) [Explore all 143 Daniel Levitin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/) ## More Journalism quotes > [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/) [Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [I don't think about the press or the crowds or the other leaders of the race. The focus is only on myself. As soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magdalena-neuner/i-don-t-think-about-the-press-or-the-crowds-or-the-other-leaders-of/) [Magdalena Neuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magdalena-neuner/) > [Having small children and being an investigative reporter would seem like a difficult mix, but it worked well for me. I was often working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-abramson/having-small-children-and-being-an-investigative-reporter-would-seem/) [Jill Abramson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-abramson/) > [It goes to show you how we in the press so often miss the big stories that are right under our noses. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-goes-to-show-you-how-we-in-the-press-so-often-miss-the-big-stories/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [I have always been a big meta guy because I think the way journalism is practiced in Washington, and the way everyone sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leibovich/i-have-always-been-a-big-meta-guy-because-i-think-the-way-journalism/) [Mark Leibovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leibovich/) > [I didn't get how big it was until I went home, turned on the television and saw it on all the news, and later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/i-didn-t-get-how-big-it-was-until-i-went-home-turned-on-the/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [One lesson to learn is that the press and the broadcasters are not neutral. And it seems we have to learn it each time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-loach/one-lesson-to-learn-is-that-the-press-and-the-broadcasters-are-not/) [Ken Loach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-loach/) > [If you want to change something by Tuesday, theater is no good. Journalism is what does that. But, if you want to just alter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/if-you-want-to-change-something-by-tuesday-theater-is-no-good/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [Newspapers have an extraordinary amount of local content, including real estate listings and restaurant reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimbal-musk/newspapers-have-an-extraordinary-amount-of-local-content-including/) [Kimbal Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimbal-musk/) > [If, for instance, they have heard something from the postman, they attribute it to a semi-official statement; if they have fallen into conversation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/if-for-instance-they-have-heard-something-from-the-postman-they/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [In essence, I see the value of journalism as resting in a twofold mission: informing the public of accurate and vital information, and its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-greenwald/in-essence-i-see-the-value-of-journalism-as-resting-in-a-twofold/) [Glenn Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-greenwald/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Drill in exact translation is an excellent way of disposing the mind against that looseness and exaggeration with which the sensationalists have corrupted our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-weaver/drill-in-exact-translation-is-an-excellent-way-of-disposing-the-mind/) [Richard M. Weaver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-weaver/) > [People think they're getting objective information, but they're not. They're getting news wrapped up in opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-samuels/people-think-they-re-getting-objective-information-but-they-re-not/) [Lynn Samuels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-samuels/) [Browse all 8,189 Journalism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We can be skeptical, suitably skeptical, and we can trust news outlets, some more than others.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Daniel Levitin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-and-we-can-trust-news-outlets/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Journalism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-and-we-can-trust-news-outlets/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c3/daniel-levitin-2988_journalism_we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-a_2083556.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c3/daniel-levitin-2988_journalism_we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-a_2083556.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0c3/daniel-levitin-2988_journalism_we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-a_2083556.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We can be skeptical, suitably skeptical, and we can trust news outlets, some more than others.” — Daniel Levitin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Daniel Levitin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-levitin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We can be skeptical, suitably skeptical,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-and-we-can-trust-news-outlets/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-levitin/we-can-be-skeptical-suitably-skeptical-and-we-can-trust-news-outlets/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```