Why we love Bad News More than Good News.

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Roughsoul1991

Senior Member
Sep 17, 2016
8,784
4,451
113
#1
Is the media negative? Media studies show that bad news far outweighs good news by as much as seventeen negative news reports for every one good news report. Why? The answer may lie in the work of evolutionary psychologists and neuroscientists. Humans seek out news of dramatic, negative events. These experts say that our brains evolved in a hunter-gatherer environment where anything novel or dramatic had to be attended to immediately for survival. So while we no longer defend ourselves against saber-toothed tigers, our brains have not caught up.
From evolutionary and neuro-scientific and probability perspectives, we are hard-wired to look for the dramatic and negative, and when we find it, we share it.
However, it turns out that being a little unsettled can be motivating. So, if you are motivated to act on the bad feedback by making changes in your behavior, it is better to focus on what is wrong and to hear it last.”
What is the media trying to motivate its viewers to change in their personality? If something bad happens related to a certain topic and the topics have been recently viral. Then if they report it they make more money. No matter if the police actually do 5 good things compared to 1 bad on a day to day basis, we only hear of the one bad. Why? Because the bad makes more money and the bad influences worse personality creating the influence to create more bad events, which make them more money.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wired-success/201411/why-we-love-bad-news-more-good-news








Why We Love Bad News More Than Good News
Does the current news negativity bias reflect media our public preferences?
PSYCHOLOGYTODAY.COM




 

blue_ladybug

Senior Member
Feb 21, 2014
70,860
9,579
113
#2
ALL MEDIA LIES. They thrive on bad news, like a junkie getting a fix. The worse the news, the better they love it, and the more they hype it up. Rabid pack of wolves, every one of 'em..
 

Roughsoul1991

Senior Member
Sep 17, 2016
8,784
4,451
113
#3
So true I just wanted to help people understand the truth. I am curious to know how many suicides and depressions can be linked to the mess our media feeds us.
 
T

TemporaryCircumstances

Guest
#4
So true I just wanted to help people understand the truth. I am curious to know how many suicides and depressions can be linked to the mess our media feeds us.
I don't even want to know :/
 

blue_ladybug

Senior Member
Feb 21, 2014
70,860
9,579
113
#5
Pretty sure that the news depresses EVERYONE.. lol.. but as for people who commit suicide because of something they saw on the news, that's probably alot lower percentage..
 
T

TemporaryCircumstances

Guest
#6
Pretty sure that the news depresses EVERYONE.. lol.. but as for people who commit suicide because of something they saw on the news, that's probably alot lower percentage..
Hopefully.
I try to stay away from the news cuz it makes me hate people but of course stupid school makes us do a speech in something happening in our world -_- stupid school
 

blue_ladybug

Senior Member
Feb 21, 2014
70,860
9,579
113
#7
I don't even have television. I get my news from what you guys post on here.. lol
 
T

TemporaryCircumstances

Guest
#8
I don't even have television. I get my news from what you guys post on here.. lol
Same that or ROTC cuz we talk about what's going on a lot on there
 

jsr1221

Senior Member
Jul 7, 2013
4,265
77
48
#9
Is the media negative? Media studies show that bad news far outweighs good news by as much as seventeen negative news reports for every one good news report. Why? The answer may lie in the work of evolutionary psychologists and neuroscientists. Humans seek out news of dramatic, negative events. These experts say that our brains evolved in a hunter-gatherer environment where anything novel or dramatic had to be attended to immediately for survival. So while we no longer defend ourselves against saber-toothed tigers, our brains have not caught up.
From evolutionary and neuro-scientific and probability perspectives, we are hard-wired to look for the dramatic and negative, and when we find it, we share it.
However, it turns out that being a little unsettled can be motivating. So, if you are motivated to act on the bad feedback by making changes in your behavior, it is better to focus on what is wrong and to hear it last.”
What is the media trying to motivate its viewers to change in their personality? If something bad happens related to a certain topic and the topics have been recently viral. Then if they report it they make more money. No matter if the police actually do 5 good things compared to 1 bad on a day to day basis, we only hear of the one bad. Why? Because the bad makes more money and the bad influences worse personality creating the influence to create more bad events, which make them more money.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wired-success/201411/why-we-love-bad-news-more-good-news








Why We Love Bad News More Than Good News
Does the current news negativity bias reflect media our public preferences?
PSYCHOLOGYTODAY.COM




Because bad news sells. The media can't create race riots with headlines such as "Firefighter saves cat from tree" or "Little girl makes muffin for her favorite trash man: Girl and mother find out it's his birthday, and that was the only thing someone gave him for that day". No. We can't have nice headlines. We need to be turning against each other. Creating race wars with headlines such as "Black man murdered". Bad news sells for ratings. Good news doesn't. And that's what it sadly and pathetically all comes down to.: Ratings.
 
T

TemporaryCircumstances

Guest
#10
Because bad news sells. The media can't create race riots with headlines such as "Firefighter saves cat from tree" or "Little girl makes muffin for her favorite trash man: Girl and mother find out it's his birthday, and that was the only thing someone gave him for that day". No. We can't have nice headlines. We need to be turning against each other. Creating race wars with headlines such as "Black man murdered". Bad news sells for ratings. Good news doesn't. And that's what it sadly and pathetically all comes down to.: Ratings.
True story...
 

jsr1221

Senior Member
Jul 7, 2013
4,265
77
48
#11
Since I was maybe 5 years old I had wanted to be a sports writer. That's all I cared about. That changed once I got to university. Even at a Christian college after my first year, I realized I didn't want to do this. I was going to be miserable. Sure, sports reporting is different than reporting on politics, crime, breaking news, etc. But the concept is still the same: do anything you can to beat out your "opponents" and be first. Forget trying to verify if the story is actually correct. Bend the truth and create a headline to where you manipulate your source and readers. We get more cash if you do so... That's part of why I switched to psychology. I'd like to help people, not manipulate them.
 
Jan 24, 2009
1,601
31
48
#12
Interesting responses!

Even news programs with uplifting titles aren't so positive, either, I guess...Good Morning America.

I did think of one news-like program that was positive...


[video=youtube;GsQWKnbiSU0]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsQWKnbiSU0[/video]
 

Roughsoul1991

Senior Member
Sep 17, 2016
8,784
4,451
113
#13
You would be surprised at how many people just take everything for face value. I suppose it is easier to hate than to love. So instead of finding the truth people stay lazy and love to voice their opinion, no matter if they are accurate. But people can be like a heard of cows and be easily steered in the same direction as a group with same opinions and ignorant belief of the lies. Probably a false sense of truth/protection with the idea of, "it must be true since so many people believe the same way as me." This is why I described in my earlier post A few words can start a war or end a war. A slight twist of the truth we see every day create chaos. I had a lady today on facebook post an old video from 2015 of a cop who was in the wrong and fired from his job. And a very graphic video showing him tazing a sick man. Almost as if she was trying to fuel the fire with an old video. This is why I had to vent in my A few words can start a war or end a war post. That post was directed to anyone who owns a social media account has a responsibility. And this post was directed to the audience who reads the media posts to always search for the truth and never take anything for face value. I was also in an NJROTC program where we covered the news every day. Back then I did not care but now I remember the reason why my instructor made us do this. We were being taught to not remain naive and clueless on the events of the world. As depressing they may be they still shed light on issues that can lead to our own backyards. We as Christians have the responsibility to spread the truth but if we have no idea what we are fighting against then we can not hold a strong defense without knowing the offense of the enemy( lies). This is why the news to me lets me see the corruption and lies the evil one is trying to spread, only giving me the ammunition to seek the truth and strike back by speaking the truth. While knowing the enemy tactics gives me the upper hand.
 

Roughsoul1991

Senior Member
Sep 17, 2016
8,784
4,451
113
#14
Interesting responses!

Even news programs with uplifting titles aren't so positive, either, I guess...Good Morning America.

I did think of one news-like program that was positive...


[video=youtube;GsQWKnbiSU0]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsQWKnbiSU0[/video]

In the article, I hyperlinked in Psychology Today they speak about
Another explanation comes from probability theory. In essence, negative and unusual things happen all the time in the world. In his book, Innumeracy, John Allen Paulos explains that if the news is about a small neighborhood of 500 or 5,000, then the possibility that something unusual has happened is low. Unusual things don't happen to individual people very often. That's why very local news like a neighborhood newsletters tends to have less bad news. But in a large city of 1 million, dramatic and negative incidents happen all the time. But most people watch national or worldwide media where news reports come in from large cities at a large scale, so the prevalence of negative stories increase. Add the size of social networking communication, and we expand geometrically bad news. So from evolutionary and neuro-scientific and probability perspectives, we are hard-wired to look for the dramatic and negative, and when we find it, we share it.
 
T

TemporaryCircumstances

Guest
#15
You would be surprised at how many people just take everything for face value. I suppose it is easier to hate than to love. So instead of finding the truth people stay lazy and love to voice their opinion, no matter if they are accurate. But people can be like a heard of cows and be easily steered in the same direction as a group with same opinions and ignorant belief of the lies. Probably a false sense of truth/protection with the idea of, "it must be true since so many people believe the same way as me." This is why I described in my earlier post A few words can start a war or end a war. A slight twist of the truth we see every day create chaos. I had a lady today on facebook post an old video from 2015 of a cop who was in the wrong and fired from his job. And a very graphic video showing him tazing a sick man. Almost as if she was trying to fuel the fire with an old video. This is why I had to vent in my A few words can start a war or end a war post. That post was directed to anyone who owns a social media account has a responsibility. And this post was directed to the audience who reads the media posts to always search for the truth and never take anything for face value. I was also in an NJROTC program where we covered the news every day. Back then I did not care but now I remember the reason why my instructor made us do this. We were being taught to not remain naive and clueless on the events of the world. As depressing they may be they still shed light on issues that can lead to our own backyards. We as Christians have the responsibility to spread the truth but if we have no idea what we are fighting against then we can not hold a strong defense without knowing the offense of the enemy( lies). This is why the news to me lets me see the corruption and lies the evil one is trying to spread, only giving me the ammunition to seek the truth and strike back by speaking the truth. While knowing the enemy tactics gives me the upper hand.



True, wonderful post, thank you