T&T: Bad news

[Lawrence Zeitlin]

On Mar 23, 2009, at 12:00 AM, Georg wrote:

> Another common feature of tough times is that the media gets blamed
> for everything.
>
> Let's get back to trawlers and trawlering, eh?
>
> --Georgs


I echo Georg's sentiments. Bad news in the boating market, lies about  
sunscreen. I'm shocked, shocked!

But don't be too hard on the media. In this era of instant internet  
communication most of newspapers and TV stations are in as much  
trouble as the auto manufacturers. Many have failed, the rest are  
desperately trying to survive. My daughter and son-in-law, one a  
senior TV producer, the other a TV news anchor in a major East coast  
news market, maintain that the only way to attract an audience is by  
following the three "S" formula. SHOCK, SEX, and SECURITY are what  
sell. (Reporting the basketball scores helps too.) Bad news gets top  
billing. "If it bleeds, it leads." Induced paranoia is the stock in  
trade of most news outlets.

Yesterday there were 12,531 airline flights which occurred without  
incident. There were two crashes on opposite sides of the world.  
Guess which stories monopolized the news.

Tens of thousands of people spent quality time on the water in the  
last month. A couple of weeks ago there was a boating accident in  
which a small boat ventured out in bad weather, capsized, and two of  
the three occupants, all professional athletes, were lost. Guess  
which story was featured in the media.

Only 8% of mortgages are in default. The rest of us pay on time. Most  
of us (except the retirees on the T&T list) are still working.  
Unemployment  claims are, indeed,  slightly higher than they were  
during the 1980's recession. But remember that the country's work  
force is nearly 40% larger. Guess what the business section of the  
newspaper will report.

So put things in perspective. The world has been spinning on its axis  
for 4.5 billion years. Mankind has survived and prospered for at  
least 150,000 years. The USA has muddled along for 233 years and  
survived 27 financial boom and bust cycles - and the sun will rise  
tomorrow. Don't worry. Be happy. With a liberal application of  
sunscreen you will be OK.

Larry Z