Do you feel depressed watching news and reading newspaper?

Hi Nanayangel, actually if the newspapers and reports are neutral, and just report fact, then it's not so bad. But it seems that they are hunger for all kind of disasters, and always highlight death and suffering.
Sometimes I skip the sad news too, especially now the swine flu is all over the newspaper and TV. Most people recover within a few days, wonder why they have to keep on showing those hospital scenes.
Even in a diaaster, they should have focus on survivors, instead of keep on updating the number of death and injured, it doesn't benefit us at all. What we want to know is how to survive, and how to prevent sickness and death.

Hi Med, actually what we need to know is not the crime statistics. We are more interested in the prevention of crime.
If the newspapers could use more effort in telling us how to prevent crimes, that will be better. I do not mind the front page of the newspaper showing positive news and advice, and I do not mind reading good advice everyday.
The world is still a beautiful place, and most places are safe with good neighbors. It's the distortion of the newspaper and TV that makes us feel the world is a dangerous place.

Sorry incomplete... I want to say that I don't like to hear news like that because it will just cause me a bad feeling. Thanks and have a nice day!

Hi Francheskie, I understand how you feel. The way the newspapers and TV programs make money is to highlight all the sad events.
They should tell us how we can help, or how to prevent disasters, accidents, sickness from happening. At least we can learn, and help out. We will feel better knowing what to do and how to help.

Thanks a lot scheng. I know hearing bad news about your country is difficult because you are also concern with your fellowmen so I am happy that you are also concern. Thanks to you!

Hi Gamesurfer, I think we feel helpless when we know that we can't help them. If the newspaper and TV tells us how to help them, or how to prevent accidents from happening, then we might not feel so bad.
Those reports on earthquakes always tell us how many die, and the expected death rate, and the sickness that will happen a few days after the earthquake. But actually what we want is to know how to survive the earthquake. Newspapers seldom tell us that, we have to check the information on the Internet.

This post contains content of a mature nature. You must be Signed in or Registered to have the option to view this content.

Hi Nzalheart, actually if we stop to think, the world is not getting any more dangerous than before.
In ancient times, they had the custom of offering humans to whatever gods they worshiped, including the act of killing babies.
Earthquakes and other natural disasters happened too. Crimes happened in ancient world too. The only difference is that people in ancient world had no means to report the bad news, but modern technology can.
And those victims in ancient world had no justice, and no policemen to help them, no freedom of press and freedom of speech too.
And the human population is growing, so an earthquake that happened a thousand years before could kill probably just ten thousands before, but now, the same earthquake can kill hundred thousands people.

At that time the danger was due to illiteracy, which is of course getting solved nowadays. But nowadays, I think the danger is of over literacy lol...Creation of number of nuclear weapons, isn't it the over literacy hehe...
May be singapore is peace, here in the city, the criminal rate is highly increasing on and on. Before about 10-15 years in Nepal, it was not this bad. Now, the crime has increased a lot. Everywhere there are insecurities. you will surely get headache if you were a citizen of this country to read its newspaper...
Your opinion is also very true scheng. Its just the matter of viewing things in different perspective...
A side issue: I thought my short article would not get published. But surprisingly it got published. Now I am more encouraged. And yesterday, I posted another article too which is under review...
Happy mylotting...

Hi Nzal, that's great, congrat on the publication of your song.
Now that you have two articles, you should spend more time adding comments to other AC writers, add them as your favorites.
Then they will help you too. Another way is to announce that you are a newbie in the "Associated Content" interest group here, and that you have two articles. The writing community in AC supports each other, and helps to provide insightful comments.
I appreciate your comments in my articles, and hope that you make yourself known to other writers as well.

Hi Cannibal, actually most people who read newspaper are very selective in the readings. Not everyone wants to read all the bad news, most adults want to read about discounts and offers, plus shopping tips.
Those businessmen and investors are interested in news that could have impact on the portfolio.
Actually I don't watch TV, and do not know how to use the remote control. And I'm not the only one. I think our Prime Minister, Mr Lee Hsien Long, did mention that he had no TV at home.
Plus those self-help gurus say that less TV and more upgrading is good for you, so if you give up TV and read news online, I dont think anyone is going to laugh at you.

Hi Clickicy, I do agree that the world is not as dangerous as the newspapers and TV programs show.
The ancient world was a worst place than modern times. In those days, if any place suffered natural diasters, nobody would know and launched rescue missions to help them. And the Black Death killed more, and the victims died slowly, without access to modern medical facilities.
That's why I feel that the newspapers and TV over-emphasized on bad news, and not much on positive "how to" guidance.

yes, you have a wise point. tv should show us what we have to do if we face a natural disaster, etc.

most news about natural disaster shown the aftermath-not a guidance... i agree that broadcaster should try to change their point of view in that case.

This post contains content of a mature nature. You must be Signed in or Registered to have the option to view this content.

Actually .... that too is negitive ... the subject is negitive ... and it leads to fear for the person reading it .... fear that they may be raped even if they give you preventions for it happening ...it instills a fear thought .. and that thought leads to more of the same thoughts and what you think is what you get .... law of attraction ... so the subjects that are mentioned in the news paper are negitive .. because it sells papers ... but it also .... makes you think that there is nothing positive going on in this world ... or very little positive in this world .... and your view of life and the world become very negitive ... which leads you on a very depressed life style ... and you attract more depression and more negitivity and on it goes ....

Hi Dragon54u, I agree that the newspaper and TV programs do distort the beauty of the world.
The media here protray the western countries as full of murderers, rapists and drug abusers. And the fiction writers don't help too. All the stories about FBI, CIA, guns, explosion and all the scary things.
Somehow readers cannot reason that news are news because those are rare cases, not the norm. The norm is that neighbors still help each other. People still enjoy life, enjoy their gardens and houses.

They do the same thing here. China is portrayed as an evil country that deliberately poisons their goods and ships them to us, Japan is made out to be a country that abuses its children by long school hours and little leisure time, others are painted as consistent violators of human rights.

I have always wanted to start a "good news" column in a paper or a news show. I think this would really help people around the world feel closer to each other and also raise morale. That's a hopeless dream, though. Nobody would sponsor it!

Hi Dragon, that's a very good idea. I hope you follow up on that.
You can convince the editor of the newspaper that people need good news. You can point to the million of dollars that people are willing to spend on motivational books, and Chicken Soup for the Soul.
These books sell because people want to read about common people with positive thinking.