why is it all bad ?

[funkymoped]

i dont watch the news or read the papers anymore... im sick of hearing/reading of doom and gloom.

i know its personal choice, but why do we get force fed the bad stuff ?

[sexyrussian]

I know we should have a happy news with all the good stuff that has happened around the world.

[unruliejulie]

i think you'll find, its because it sells newspapers, unfortunately, and thats what counts.

[kevb0444]

Its like the gossip mags...full of shyte but sell by the bucket load.

[jno]

here's a few headlines from my paper this morning.

Lord chancellor defends Britain's commitment to human rights
School dinner firms feel cost of parental backlash
Turner prize shortlist: There's even a painter
Nuclear reactors can be ready by 2017
Craving for food lights up the brain
Book winner donates prize to David Kelly's family
Drugs minister smoked cannabis

... and so on. Obviously, that's just a selection. I've deliberately left out a lot of bad news ones. But it seems to me there's quite a lot of quirky and generally upbeat stuff there. What's more, whether some of it is bad news depends on who you are: bad news for school dinner firms is good news for parents. Nuclear plants are good news for nuclear power firms.

My guess is there's plenty of good news in the paper and you're just blanking it out. You're looking for bad news. I think most people do this, which is why newspapers consiting of nothing but good news don't sell. People want to hear bad news. Look how excited they get in the AB News section condemning criminals and politicians, calling for the guillotine to come back. Would they get that adrenaline rush if a cat had been rescued from a tree?

People like bad news. I think that's the truth of it.

[rugeleyboy]

in our local rag an elderly woman won the egg and spoon race!!

[jno]

I take it that was some sort of IVF pregnancy story rugeleyboy?

[unruliejulie]

RB, must have been a slow news day in rugley!! Im hoping anyway and thats not as exciting as it gets!!!

[ugly_bob]

That's nothing. I remember last summer, front page news in local rag about a fight caused by the local groundskeeper cutting the cricket pitch too noisily!!!

Don't know what's worse, that making the front page, or me remembering it!!

[Fat Boy]

The bad stuff is in papers because that's what sells. People like juicy gossip because it makes them feel better about themselves; they lap up scare stories because they don't think for themselves; and they like doom & gloom because they all love a good moan. Oh, and who cares how much of it is actually true.....?

We don't get force fed it though, as you've already discovered by not buying papers or watching the news.

[ali_alic]

maybe reporting about the bad stuff may prevent it from happening again. After all the only way to try and stop history repeating itself is not to forget it. Also I am not sure I would like it if something awful had happened to a relative of mine and the world ignored it like it didn't happen!