It seems that bad news is at every turn. I spent much of November trying to avert my eyes, but the truth is the “media,” that thing that seeps into our psyche whether we choose to look or not, seems hell-bent on making mulch of my mirth.
Like many families, Steve and I start each day by reading the paper. His “paper” is delivered to the driveway by covered wagon each morning, while mine has a power cord and requires an occasional reboot, but our news is the same. This morning, we were treated to reports that our governor was predicting fiscal “Armageddon” by noon, stories of plane crashes, and news that Chicago politicians are corrupt. (OK, that last one may not be news, but you get the point.) Joblessness is up, housing prices are down, and just in case we missed the memo, we were treated to more parallels between our current hijinks and 1930.
I am ready for some stories about fuzzy bunnies and rainbows, already!
The media is not to blame for the news itself, but I do think they thrive on stoking the fire. Delirium and panic cut both ways. In 2005, it was the panic associated with home buying. Act now or that $400,000 home will cost you $1.7 million by Thursday. Today, we are playing the new album cut called “We’re all going to starve.” Well, we aren’t, but with all the stations giving it air time, it is hard to keep a hop in one’s step. I give it a three; it’s got a catchy beat, but it’s really hard to dance to. (Editor’s note: Reference to American Bandstand is a popular blogger carbon dating method.)
I am going to be moderating a couple of panel discussions in January at the Inman News Real Estate Connect conference. I am particularly looking forward to my role because having gone from pre-conference speaker to main conference speaker to moderator, I fear I have peaked. I suspect their next event will see me in charge of the coffee trolley.
One of the sessions is titled “Breaking the News: How to Deal with the Media During a Downturn.” Specifically, the conference program reads, “Can agents use social media to turn bad press around?” Beats me. I’m just the moderator. But I will report back. I do know first-hand, though, that we live in an echo chamber, and optimism like negativity does resonate.
So, this morning I briefly put down my paper to glance at Steve’s. These days you have to dig deep to find that happy place, and I was hoping to find mine in the Quest section. This is the weekly insert that dares to go where the Business section cannot. Like the casino gives Keno players crayons so they don’t hurt themselves, Quest gives fun science facts without driving me straight to the Tylenol. This morning I played “match the photos with the names,” a game in which I had to properly attach the names of a “diverse collection of organisms” with their photos. The confused meganola? I was certain this was someone in the Treasury Department, but it turns out it is a moth. The candle snuff I learned is not the code name for Wall Street but a fungus that grows out of rotting deciduous wood. Maybe it is Wall Street after all. What about the Stinkhorn? That would be my 401k. So this was not turning out to be the pick-me-up I was searching for — until I discovered the Bilby. The picture was of a cute little marsupial with big, playful ears. Then came the description. The name comes from an Aboriginal word meaning “long-nosed rat.”
I think I am moving on to the Food section.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Kris Berg is Co-Owner and Designated Broker of San Diego Castles Realty. If not-so static web sites are your thing, go here at once where you will find loads of real estate information including homes for sale, market trends, floor plans and more. Kris's hobbies include fencing and spot welding. She likes kittens. 
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I used to love the news… ok, well that may be a bit of a stretch. But at least at one point I thought they were taking on an unbiased role in providing us with information as opposed to providing us with a point of view.
But the disenchantment that had been brewing since the “bubble burst”, exploded full bore during the recent election circus. Now I’m left sorting through the remains of what passes for journalism these days. Case in point… a recent headline in one of our major metropolitan papers proclaimed “Home Prices Tumble!” (Ok, the exclamation point may be mine, but the headline is a quote). I laughed and cried when after a few paragraphs the author let slip that this “tumble” was a 1.8% decline from the same time last year. Tumble???
I truly believe that the media has to take a great responsibility for the state of the Nation. They are more worried about sensational headlines and market share to really be responsible with their reporting. Ever notice how we don’t hear about the Iraq war as the leading story anymore? Did that go away or does stock market disaster make better headlines?
I have a very real example of the media trying to get headlines. A few months ago there was a rumor that Washington Mutual Savings Bank might be having trouble. The Feds looked into it and found that they were fully capitalized. Unfortunately the news media didn’t report it with that much restraint, and in the following two days there was a run on the bank to the tune of over 260 Billion. Just think, 260 Billion dollars were withdrawn in two days because some news service decided to make ‘news’ of something that wasn’t real. Needless to say the bank failed and Chase came in to buy them out. This Bank had been in business for over 120 years and was not a financial risk until an irresponsible news service decided to label it as such.
So much for my two cents. I wonder what would happen it the media started reporting that housing prices are going up? Would that make it true? I’ll bet it would.
Jolynne,
Not to excuse the media – they were equally worthless suring the unsupportabe run-up as they will be during the next few years of doom and gloom – but WAMU was going BLAMU sooner or later. It’s demise may have been accelerated a few weeks or months at most, but the end result did not change. They gave money away loan after loan, and tried to make it up on volume. Turns out, that’s a bad business model.
Keep your eyes on “too big too fail” Chase. Let’s see who gets more gubment money, Citi or Chase….
I think both the media and the public are to blame. Media covers the stories the general public is interested in. If the public don’t want to hear the negative news, they shouldn’t pay attention to the media outlets covering it. If consumers stop paying attention to their content, media outlets will move on to something else that people want to hear about. That said, I do agree that the mainstream media should make a better effort to cover the “good” that is ocurring everyday. I actually think if there was a media outlet who put a huge focus on the good rather than the bad, there would be a decent chance they could differentiate themselves and attract an audience.
just my 2 cents…
My 2 cents – Freedom of the press is one of the foundations of a democracy. But individuals have the responsibility to educate themselves to a level of understanding that allows for a reasonable assessment of the facts vs. the spin. Unfortunately, this responsibility thing has been in short supply for too many years.
I agree with you, Dad, that individuals have the responsibility to educate themselves. Currently, I think the problem with the news–and this is not the fault of anyone or anything but, rather, an unavoidable consequence of technological progress–is simply that there is too much. This is a subject that has been discussed in great length in my journalism classes. Consumers of the news have reached the point where their Google feed readers, and their minds, are simply too full of information because it is now so readily available. The task that must now be taken up by the reputable news sources is to provide context for readers, rather than just reports of the news. In this way, objective guidance will be provided to those readers who are sinking beneath the weight of information overload.
Now, to address some of the points made in the original post.
First, it is true that some media outlets sensationalize current events, but it is important to note that good journalism still exists, and should not be confused with entertainment programs on which pundits with no journalistic training discuss the news. “The Media” is not “journalism.” Period.
Second, journalists should be applauded for reporting upon the stories people don’t necessarily wish to hear, as long as these stories are relevant and deserve attention by the public (I feel that the current state of the economy is an example of such a relevant, important story). Immediately following 9/11, journalists and the media, in an attempt to be “patriotic” and to maintain a cheery mood, chose not to fully report on such stories as the Patriot Act and the “evidence” of WMDs in Iraq. It is never the job of journalists to be positive when the news is negative; it is their job to seek the truth and report it, no matter how depressing that truth may be.
Finally, an unrelated comment: there need not be any bad blood between blogging and more traditional journalism. Ultimately, the two share similar goals. And in this economic climate, the formerly elitist journalists have lost their jobs or been greatly humbled. In my journalism school, at least, the focus is on the future–and the future will not be printed on any paper.
That’s my girl!
Always nice to see your tuition dollars at work.
Well done, Becky!
>The task that must now be taken up by the reputable news sources is to provide context for readers, rather than just reports of the news. In this way, objective guidance will be provided to those readers who are sinking beneath the weight of information overload.
Graduate soon so you can make some sense of this blog!
Kris – laughed out loud at the humor in this post. I think this is really an evolving conversation with no one right answer.
And to you and Steve – you must be quite proud. Rebecca – that was so well said. I think that part of what is unfortunate about some of the media sources that are generally deemed ‘responsible’, is that although a report may be true, it may not contain the entire truth because it fails to create the type of headline that generates interest.
I am fascinated with the number of my clients that love to forward me these horror story articles about the housing market/economy. I appreciate them, but it is interesting that the ones that are the bleakest are the ones they feel compelled to forward. Media sources are providing legitimate news, but clearly, they are also providing the headlines that consumers are seeking.