I love the news. I especially like getting beyond the headlines. I listen only to our all-news station in order to hear the weather and traffic. That station used to advertise that they would give me the world in 20 minutes. Well, maybe…but only if the world exists in teaser headlines.
But lately I’m irritated by my other standbys such as NPR and the BBC. Their programs tend to go much deeper than the papers and the nightly news. But if you listen carefully, you’ll find that their is a pattern to most of their stories. A good story, it seems, must show one of several things: (a) government leaders are idiots and/or liars, (b) whatever you used to believe is wrong, or (c) Things are worse than you thought. I don’t think NPR is anti-Bush. But they do love pointing out his mis-steps. I suspect they’ll do the same for the next Democrat president. Or they tell us that company x was off in their accounting by 3% and so the stock market is going to crash. And then they use commentators like Daniel Shore (a very bright man I must say) to drip disdain in their cutting viewpoints.
Not that these stories shouldn’t be run. But, I’m not sure they know any other story. If the story doesn’t show death, corruption, leader stupidity, environmental decay, then is it worth telling? Apparently not as the lead story. If you listen to All Things Considered (NPR) all the way to the end of the program, you usually get at least one interesting story that doesn’t end in negativity.
In Philadelphia, the TV news consists of body count/crime reports, weather, sports, and some canned medical or health report that was likely produced by a national media company. The TV news my parents get (Portland, Maine) is much less crime and more interesting stories (the 500 lb pumpkin some kid grew, maple syrup futures). Portland is a city and has some city crime, but I suspect they don’t include all of the crime they could.
I think the heart of this style of news-reporting is anxiety–anxiety that the desired qualities of America are being systematically destroyed. This is not some new worry. As I watched a PBS special on Andrew Jackson, I saw similar media response to one of his cabinet members who had an affair with a married woman. The scandal was covered because the entire fabric of society would be ruined by the woman (who had since been widowed and then married her lover).
When I was a kid, I delivered the Grit. It was a weekly feel good newspaper. For 35 cents you could get a paper filled with interesting stories. I don’t think it covered current events but you got something new and interesting. I guess I’d like something somewhere between the Grit/rural news and crises coverage. For example, I saw a short story about an 83 year old doctor (somewhere in the South) who has been delivering underweight babies since forever. He had hoped to wipe out this problem. Though he hadn’t he still labored to help these mothers and their babies survive. Here you get a story of courage and hard-work while still acknowledging a growing problem of underweight babies born to impoverished minority women.
Musings on Faith and Psychology 
Hey Phil,
You know I work for a newspaper, so this is of interest to me. The main paper I work for has a fair balance of crime/feel good information. The smaller paper I work at does not do late-breaking news, it is primarily community related happenings. While the news staff sometimes complains about it, our readers love our paper and we have a loyal following. I refuse to watch the news on TV because it is basically a crime count. The newspaper allows me to scan the headlines and choose what I want to know about.
But, it’s a reality that tragedy sells and the media in all its forms, print, radio & TV is a business. They have a product to sell. I’m thankful we have diverse sources to learn about things happening around us and away from us. It is idealistic to think we can change the media to suit our tastes, but we can certainly change how we react to what we learn.
It’s important to note that all reporters have a worldview and how they perceive something as newsworthy is filtered through that worldview. There is no such thing as unbiased reporting. I remember going to the AP ticker one day and seeing images and stories pouring through. Very few made it in print. The ones that did were at the discretion of the editor and his perception of what is important. I am sure this is the same for radio and TV.
I can remember when you were studying in Jerusalem and I heard about all the riots, gunfire and bloodshed, I was so concerned for your safety. You told me those things happened in other parts of the city and reassured me you were fine. While we only heard about one or two shootings, our perception, several thousand miles away, was that it was rampant and that the entire population was being murdered bit by bit.
It’s important to keep things in perspective. Not an easy task, but something to strive for. I find it amazing how much the media can influence a society. I did a paper once on Jean Paul Marat. He had an underground newspaper during the French Revolution. His paper and his influence helped bring an end to the French Monarchy. He is also attributed as saying, “I don’t agree with what you say, but I’ll defend to the death your right to say it.” Throughout history public opinion has been swayed by a well written line. Amazing the power of the pen. Can’t you just see the Jerusalem Times heralding the coming of the king at Passover and then a few days later condemning him because he didn’t “do it right”? Look what happened there! Ok, that was God’s will and not the power of the pen and I digress.
So the next time you hear a headline and after the story is over, think about what wasn’t said. Think about the impact that story had on the people involved and the other people like you who heard it.
Have an awesome day!
Don, what a great comment. You have articulated several things here I hope readers consider. I like what you have to say about worldview and what is not printed. One of the reasons I do not watch the local 6 pm news is that I do not want my African American kids to see that 90 percent of the mug shots are black. Despite my protecting them, they feel anxious when we drive 1/2 mile to the local pool and by a basketball court that is 100% black teens. Once, my son said, “lets get out of here.” He imagined that they all had guns. Where did he get that assumption? The news. Mind you this isn’t in the city and the crime around us is extremely low.
So, your comments about noticing what is not printed is helpful. Problem is that its hard to know what you don’t know.