Media Sensationalism Reeks in All Walks of Life

I never thought I'd say this being a media member but I rarely listen to talk radio (including my main passion - sports) and have watched maybe one TV newscast in the last four years.

Well, let's start with newscasts. Quite simply, their approach seems to be "if it bleeds, it leads." Viewers, listeners and readers are not blameless in this whole thing either because some of them have the idea of bad news drawing viewers, readers or listeners.

Suffice it to say, I'm not against the media (of all genres) talking about bad news whether it's Hurricane Katrina or Michael Vick's dog-fighting business saga or which Major League Baseball slugger has how many steroid-aided home runs but do we honestly need every last ounce of drama to be reported for several days in a row?

OK, I'll grant you there are people that will pay attention if that's what is available but why can't we highlight the good people more often? We might not think it sells newspapers but when we get overloaded with bad news, the good news becomes that much more welcome.

I remember when I was covering the Oakland Raiders as a freelance writer; I remember two beat guys who shall remain nameless. One said to the other words to the effect of, "Come on, you're a beat guy, you're supposed to be cynical." I immediately thought to myself, "Why? Is your life so bankrupt that you must get off on sticking it to them?" Don't get me wrong, I'm not one who thinks highly of sunshine pumpers either because you can't sugarcoat it if the team you cover is bad (i.e. the Raiders who went 2-14 in 2006).

Then again, it's one reason why I have watched maybe one newscast in the last four years. Because it seems like the media has an "if it bleeds it leads mentality." Sadly, that mentality has spilled into sports too. In one breathe, you have the hypocritical self-righteous sports media SOBs bitching and moaning about the bad apples in sports but in a way they contribute to the problem because they'll carry out every last ounce of drama for guys like Terrell Owens or Allen Iverson but yet they seem to have no use for good guys like say Steve McNair or Tim Duncan. Let's face it, there's far more guys like McNair or Duncan than there are Iverson and Owens. I'm not against reporting about the bad apples but to carry out every ounce of drama is sad and unnecessary.

Where did this sensationalistic mentality all begin? Or better yet, it's the theory of what came first the chicken or the egg? I sometimes feel like Rip Van Winkle waking up 18 years later and I don't know where I am. I sometimes feel like saying: "What kind of crazy, mixed up, upside down world is this anyway?" But look at me saying these things. That's part of being cynical too.

That is the nice thing about covering high school sports because since you are dealing with kids, the emphasis is to not sensationalize because that "burn the crops" mentality won't last long.