266 Why bad news dominates the headlines

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When you read the news, sometimes it can feel like the only things reported are terrible, depressing events. Why does the media concentrate on the bad things in life, rather than the good? And what might this
depressing slant say about us, the audience?

It isn’t that these are the only things that happen. Perhaps journalists are drawn to reporting bad news because sudden disaster is more compelling than slow improvements. Or it could be that news gatherers believe that cynical reports of corrupt politicians or unfortunate events make for simpler stories. But another strong possibility is that we, the readers or viewers, have trained journalists to focus on these things. Many people often say that they would prefer good news: but is that actually true?

I – Word Understanding
slant – point of view
cynical – distrustful / believing the worst of people

II – Have Your Say
1. What people say about news:
News is bad for you – giving-up reading will make you happier Reading negative news makes you acknowledge you have better life
2. What news articles are you most interested?
* World news
* Local news
* Politics
* Business
* Sports
* Entertainment
* Health
* Technology
3 , Society is influenced by media in so many ways:
* information
* education
* entertainment
* advertising

266 Why bad news dominates the headlines