I often hear people complain that all they see in the news is either horrific tragedies or celebrity drama and saying how nice it would be if the news reported more positive things like community events or just good things that happened that day rather than just shootings and illnesses. Many of us tell ourselves that we only watch it to stay informed or for the parts like the weather forecast. But the reality is the news only reports what you want to see. Whether or not you agree, most of the things they show are the things that get you interested and make you want to keep watching. News is a billion dollar industry that really seems to know you better than you do. They don’t put things out because they want to or even because they think they are important, they put things on the news that they know people will want to watch so that they can make as much money as possible. For every time you turn on the news and think to yourself “why do they keep showing these things” you might want to think “why am I continuing to come back and watch this every day when I can just check the weather on my phone”.
I do agree with you on the fact that celebrity drama is something that is unnecessary to showcase on the news and they should instead show the "more positive things like community events". But I also believe that showing the horrific tragedies is the best way for people to get informed of them. Of course, they are trying to make money just like any industry. But if its not shown in the news, people won't understand or be informed of what is going on in other parts of the world.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the concept that news only provides what people want to see. As an industry that requires a product to put out that will continue to draw consumers in, the more tragic stories are doing just that. Without constant updates on how horrible the world can be, the news seems to lack the "excitement" that people have grown accustomed to. With shorter attention spans and a higher capacity for tragedy or drama, anything to keep us hooked, news outlets are simply trying to keep up with our developing tastes in entertainment. And though we like to trash talk reality TV the fact is there is a consumer market out their for that type of entertainment, or else the Kardashians would be out of jobs (which they clearly aren't). So while we wish for more uplifting stories, the reality is that news outlets are simply providing what people have wanted for decades, the tragic story.
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