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I think the problems with television news are greater than a reliance on commentators with conflicts of interest.
The problem is with the medium itself. It's inherently so condensed that the actual amount of content is minimal, compared to text-based media- whether in terms of factual details, reference material, or the presence of counterbalancing viewpoints.
The best solution is to simply turn off the TV.
It would also be helpful if the schools had courses in media awareness and public affairs information verification, including incisive critiques of the relative amount and worth of the content that its possible to purvey on the same story within the space of two hours by watching television shows; listening to the radio; reading print news articles; and reading journalism (including the on-line versions of print news articles) with on-line access to hyperlinks. (I also think that as early as the elementary grades, students should be educated in the techniques of manipulative and/or deceptive advertising.)
As far as I'm concerned, the only arena where electronic media have superiority is 1-to-1 interviews (especially when done with with minimal interruptions.) Otherwise, television and radio are inherently inferior media for obtaining news information.
