Quote (nineinchnailz @ Oct 12 2014 11:52am)
The media has a history of hyping threats to attract attention. (See terrorism) I wonder if down the line or perhaps now with ebola, if people will be unable to respond appropriately to a real threat. I wonder if people have become desensitized by sensationalism.
Your thoughts?
I don't think most people take cable news to be sacrosanct or even that legitimate. I think in most cases people who are fans of cable news watch whatever news station matches their biases so they can get all riled up in righteous indignation. It is an activity people engage in because they enjoy it. And the cable news stations isn't really presenting new data or presenting it in a new way....anybody who is actually trying to be informed is looking elsewhere and then go to Fox or MSNBC when they want to have their biases confirmed and get all riled up by Rachael Maddow or Bill O'Reilly.
There is something most people fail to consider: the third-person effect. We at PaRD aren't the enlightened few who know that cable news is mostly bullshit....in fact most people know that cable news is mostly bullshit. Glen Beck kind of got a cult out of his show but Olberman was properly struck down when he acted out in the same ways so there is hope
But most people are right with us in know in that cable news is mostly BS and the people who do watch cable news do so for reasons beside being informed.