by G.K. Dickey

Created on: May 01, 2008

The mainstream media is regularly and rightfully repudiated for reporting far more bad news than good. At the same time, this overemphasis is not entirely based on malfeasance or ill-will. News consumers can get more out of their observations by better understanding the forces that drive this phenomenon.

Sure, arguments are put forth that broadcasting or printing the day's disasters and mayhem make for better market ratings and circulation. Undoubtedly, statistics can be cobbled together to lend a degree of support for the notion that sensationalism sells.

Judging the news, however, is a far more complicated process for those charged with selecting the story lineup for the evening news or deciding how articles are positioned on the front page of your daily newspaper.

Any current development can be construed as news. Journalistically, judging what priority a specific news item is given begins with assessing "the loss of life and property" caused by a recent event. This long-accepted parameter properly places tragedy at the top of the list.

In its watchdog role as The Fourth Estate, the media's next priority is to keep the public informed about how the people's tax dollars are being spent. Therefore, government and political stories rise to the top of the daily news menu. Somewhat in that same vain, informing the public about matters closest to a media outlet's audience is the third priority. In this case, news stories concerning water rates and garbage collection, or other developments directly affecting the everyday lives of people, receive close scrutiny.

These guidelines in determining the latest news of the minute, hour and day do not lend themselves to focusing on "happy" news. In fact, regular news watchers instinctively sense when a story is "out-of-place" in relation to stories before and after. At the same time, these news veterans can also readily tell when a story is being hyped or sensationalized over and above its proper news value. This also goes for misplaced "good" stories.

The mainstream media outlets are under constant and severe scrutiny. Radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh unloads a daily barrage against his "drive-by media" for their superficiality. His cohort, Sean Hannity, unabashedly rails against the liberal media for attempting to influence the presidential election while, in the same breath, he promotes his "stop Hillary express" campaign. These voices aside, the toughest judge of the mainstream media is the critically thinking individual

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