The news media is constantly accused of peddling negative stories and talking down politicians and life in general. Journalists are carping, cynical, reckless and irresponsible. The media makes us miserable. So how about a law to make the news more positive?
A Romanian journalist tells me that is precisely what law-makers in his country are trying to do. What could be nicer than a quota of 50% positive coverage in state broadcast news? Of course, various do-gooding media watchdogs and nit-picking human rights campaigners are opposing this enlightened legislation.
Don’t they realise that they are standing in the way of harmonious news output that is currently only enjoyed in places like North Korea? Why are they so desperate to stop a return to the happier times of Nicolae Ceausescu? Perhaps this positive approach to media management will spread through to other members of the EU. It could be the only way that Gordon Brown is going to get some decent coverage.
The real problem with news coverage is not its overall negativity, but in its increasingly limited capacity to take an objective view of events.
The rush to have ‘up to the minute’ news coverage is not overtly problematic and it is not negative either, but it does mean there is little consideration given to conflicting points of view within a story.
Now, rather than getting a considered picture of a day’s events or of events once they have happened, we often get snippets of poorly considered news throughout the day instead. This seems to confuse the public, broadcasters and journalists alike.
This story reminds me of some dialogue from Faulty Towers where a patron complains about the view from her room:
Mrs Richards: When I pay for a view, I expect something more interesting than that.
Basil: That is Torquay, madam.
Mrs Richards: Well, it’s not good enough.
Basil: Well, may I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? The Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically…
Perhaps the Senate will next pass a quota for minimum daily coverage of herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically across the plains?