The Bad News

Yo Mamma

A lot of the time when I watch the news I ask myself why is it that we must always focus on the bad news?

Obviously there are a lot of fcuked up things that happen... rape, murder, robbery, corruption and such... but seriously, what is it about our species that makes those subjects so damned fascinating to us? And why is the "good" news so... boring?

Ask yourself honestly, do you need to know about the Junkie dad murder? Do you need to hear about the children that burned up in a fire, six miles away? Do you you need to know about the teens that crashed their car out on the M50?

I mean it's not to belittle anyone's tragedy and certainly there are things that are worth knowing for awareness and safety's sake and even just out of general interest about my local community and about the world at large.

But all that being said.. still.. what the hell, you know? Ninety percent of the crap they show me on the news basically just makes me sour and doesn't enrich or enlighten me.

Bah

The Sweeper

Hmm - interesting point.

To reinforce it, years ago they always put a good news human interest story at the end of the news bulletin - some of you may recall such fascinating things as the skateboarding dog, the surfing dog, the rabbit who sat submerged in a bucket of cold water with sunglasses on in a heatwave etc. etc.

The whole notion being that it was important to leave the public with something good to think about.

What ever happened to that? What is it, we're not worthy of being left with something happy to think about?

(Or is submerging the family pet in a bucket of water for the camera no longer PC?)

WhiteWashMan

because if 90% of news reported said good things, youd be up in arms complaining that there is no news being reported and that youd like some more hard hitting truths instead of this phoney, mr. rogers neighboughood, happy happy american, arent we great, patronising crap.

god, never happy are you?

amp

What ever about the News being depressing, bad whatever, why do people voluntarially watch fictional shows where things are depressing, bad whatever? Like Eastenders or Coronation street.

Because at the end of the day the things happening on the news or in soaps are usually worse than what's happening to us, and so make us feel relatively better.

QED

The Sweeper

Originally posted by WhiteWashMan
because if 90% of news reported said good things, youd be up in arms complaining that there is no news being reported and that youd like some more hard hitting truths instead of this phoney, mr. rogers neighboughood, happy happy american, arent we great, patronising crap.

god, never happy are you?

If we were all happy, boards wouldn't exist and you'd be out of a job.

The problem is, not even 10% of what's reported is good.

Karl Hungus

What I personaly think...

Humans are in general sick little perverts.

Inbuilt into humanity is a rather grim fascination of death.

It's the same reason that cars always slow down to see the accident they're driving by where 3 people got their heads split open.

Who wants to hear about the cat getting rescued from a tree?
It's far more interesting hearing about the cat that got stuck in the car's engine.

Like it or not, it's as amp said.
It's somewhat life-affirming, in a twisted kind of way.

Baz_

angelwhore you surely are some can of piss...

"Humans are in general sick little perverts. "

rofl

WhiteWashMan

Originally posted by Minesajackdaniels


If we were all happy, boards wouldn't exist and you'd be out of a job.

The problem is, not even 10% of what's reported is good.

no, but news is news is news.
man flies to the moon - is that good or bad news?
neither, its just news.
anyway, i listen to bbc five live so i get nothing but news in the car
oh, and sport!

Cake Fiend

Yup, I feel we have an inbuilt morbid fascination with bad things happening to other people.