Andrea and I have really grown to love watching the Wheel of Fortune together in the evenings. Tonight, however, we were interrupted by "breaking news" in the Oklahoma City area of a fire that was engulfing an unoccupied apartment complex. Let's get to the point: the news is ridiculous and I personally believe that 75% of the stories covered are completely irrelevant, unimportant and unproductive. Also, over 50% of news stories are utterly depressing. (i.e. - I watched a clip yesterday of an elderly man found dead in his living room... why does this make the news?)
For example - don't take 45 minutes of television time to repeat yourself 50+ times about a fire that has no one in danger. (The graphic below says, "Apartment Fire Fight" - Even the firefighters weren't being aggressive with the fire - they were letting it take its course because the building wasn't salvageable). If the apartment complex was occupied, of course we'd be concerned. The people on the news tonight were not at all informative and I'd rather watch paint dry than listen to them talk again.
I'm convinced that our news takes us way too far into people's business (where we don't belong) and only stirs up drama, concern and fear. Here's the criteria that I think news should have to follow (other than the two main areas of news that are primarily focused on information: sports and weather):
- News should inform you of world issues and concerns
- News should alarm people if we are at any type of risk
- News should update people on political decisions by our government
- News should explain local issues (health, education, etc.)
This is my blunt opinion of our current news-stations. Fear-inducing companies that are simply looking for any type of story to tell. I just wish the ones they told were informative, education, inspired people and made sense!