You are right. We have a lot of that going on in Venezuela (from all sides). Part of our desperation lies precisely on not knowing what or who to believe.
I disagree with you in one aspect, though. The no-watching of the news. If we are critical enough, which most adults should be (i know it does not work that easily) we should be able to discern and sometimes it is necessary to collect all those sound bites and agendas in order for us to be able to construct an argument against media or political manipulation (which are ultimately connected).
In Venezuela, Maduro's administration, like Chavez's before him, has deviated attention to their incapacity and corruption uttering all kinds of platitudes that have been believed by some people, enough i'd say to keep him in office. The "economic war", "the empire", "the fascist of the right", "the terrorist university students"; while they are the "revolution of love and peace."
It's sickening. But we should see and read what they put out to create arguments against them, memories for the future.