:: News Broadcasting Poll ::

[CONS]

Ok this one has got my goat for a long time now,

I dont think the news should be allowed to be broadcast without a warning beforehand due to its content.

More indepth, the news speaks of horrific events everyday which paints pictures in peoples minds and i think could well be a contributing factor to social anxiety/general anxiety and overall depression. Personally i dont want hear it but i find i cant escape it.

People say if you dont like it then dont watch, fair comment.

But the news sucker-punches you with headlines before you can even get to the remote control.

They talk of death that causes me to think of my past as well as other items on the agenda that frankly i dont want to hear.

So here is my argument:

If fictional programmes have a watershed why can the news get away without any pre-warning of what its content will be about? even if there are no pictures or video footage?

Personally i believe its a contributing factor towards anxiety.

If the news had a pre-warning EVERYTIME then people would have the chance to turn over.

Whats your views on this?

CONS

[Clockwork]

You might be onto something there Cons about the news contributing to your anxiety.
I heard a while back (or read it somewhere) that people who watch or are exposed to constant/too much news are more depressed/pessimistic than people who don't.

It made sense to me.....footage after footage of death, destruction, natural disasters etc has got to make people feel down.

Sad fact is that if the news contained 'warnings' before broadcasting, more people would probably watch it for its gore and body count stuff.

Check out the popularity of morbid junk like Casualty etc. This is a nation of sick and twisted voyeurs.

[CONS]

Some valid points there Clockwork,

My point is simple,

when they mention a stabbing they dont ask for witnesses 90% of the time, so wtf did i need to know for?, who does it help?, i see it as giving unecessary notoriety to an area or a group of individuals. Also with the increase of knife related incidents doesnt this make younger people want protect themselves by buying what it is thats being broadcast?

Always a possibility,

CONS

[Clockwork]

The Media confuse broadcasting with narrowcasting. News reporting should be about stuff that affects a broad range of people, a town, the nation etc.

Whilst obviously not wishing misfortune to happen to anyone, I have no interest whatsoever in watching/hearing of misfortune A affecting person B, accident X affecting person Z etc...ie tragic stuff affecting people I don't know. It should be a private matter for those involved and the media should butt out.

Regarding knife crime..again it is a personal tragedy for the victim and their family, but I really couldn't give a toss if some guy in London/Scotland/wherever gets stabbed.

It's all propaganda with the ultimate aim of totally disarming the public, guns..knives...next it will be large belts.

Everything is broadcast with an ulterior motive. It's what they don't broadcast that people should be alert to.

To reduce your anxiety it might be an idea to quit watching the news on TV and catch the headlines on the radio.

I quit watching the news years ago as I refuse to sit down and be spoon-fed junk garbage which someone else has decided to be 'my news'.

[Ddcoo]

I think that a lot of what is reported on the news gives youngsters who are inclined to be lawless, ideas of how to do various crimes. Just for an instance I had never heard of ram raiding until it was explained on a new programme one night (that was some time ago). After that, loads of local shops were having to put up crash barriers outside their premises as it was becoming so prevalent. When I am anxious, I don't watch the news if I can help it because it gives me nightmares.

[Oceanblue]

The Media confuse broadcasting with narrowcasting. News reporting should be about stuff that affects a broad range of people, a town, the nation etc.

Whilst obviously not wishing misfortune to happen to anyone, I have no interest whatsoever in watching/hearing of misfortune A affecting person B, accident X affecting person Z etc...ie tragic stuff affecting people I don't know. It should be a private matter for those involved and the media should butt out.

It's all propaganda with the ultimate aim of totally disarming the public, guns..knives...next it will be large belts.

Everything is broadcast with an ulterior motive. It's what they don't broadcast that people should be alert to.

To reduce your anxiety it might be an idea to quit watching the news on TV and catch the headlines on the radio.

I quit watching the news years ago as I refuse to sit down and be spoon-fed junk garbage which someone else has decided to be 'my news'.

Hiya Cons,

Hope you're aswell as can be .

Well, I'm not really sure what i'd vote for in your poll, as I couldn't agree more with what Clockwork has written.

Especially -
Everything is broadcast with an ulterior motive. It's what they don't broadcast that people should be alert to.

This is what worrys me.

I very rarely watch the news, I mainly read write ups on the Net for info.

Don't let all this worry you and certainly don't get wrapped up with the Tabloid rubbish, it doesn't do anybody any good.

I find that the UK seems to be a very negative Country when it comes down to their Media and stuff, it's a real shame because Britain is a great place to live. So many Brits' focus on the negativity, (I once did too), only now I realise just how lucky I am to be living here.

There are so many positive things out there and they do outweigh the bad by a long shot.

You will find your happiness mate, you just need to give yourself some time.

Take care Cons

[Jaco45er]

It's got nothing to do with being in the UK, I don't buy all that UK is going to the dogs tosh.

News should never be censored, if it happens ? we all need to know.

Only by knowing can good act. The perception is that these days we are more in danger. However, you couldn't walk through London in the 1700,s without risking your life, or walk the streets of major cities during raids in WWII.

As for tabloids? read them at your pearl, it's gossip for the easily lead.

Just an opinion

Jaco

[eeyorelover]

I truly believe that attaining knowledge can never be a bad thing.

That being said I do believe that the news media spins stories a certain way.
Take the US presidential race. CNN is far more to the right and is much more pro McCain whereas FoxNews is more to the left and is more pro Obama. I watch a little of both to get both sides and then I decide for myself.

There was a comment about not caring about whether someone was attacked in another part of town, but what if the attacker was still at large? Wouldn't it be a plus to have a description of him/her to avoid any further attacks?

My policy has always been that I stay informed by the news from lots of different sources but I don't dwell on it to the point that it causes me stress.
xxx
Sandy

[Oceanblue]

It's got nothing to do with being in the UK, I don't buy all that UK is going to the dogs tosh.

Jaco

Not sure if you were talking to me Jaco . If so,.. when you say it's got nothing to do with the UK, well of course it has, I'm talking about British Media. I find that British Media is very negative.

When it comes to the News, well News is 'News' whichever Country we're living in the world, and of course they report on tragic incidents (that goes without saying) and we should have a right to know, but I feel the way 'British Media' is put together as awhole is depressing, negativity sells here.

I certainly don't think the UK is going to the dogs, I love the UK. I can see there are so many positive things out there, which I was trying to remind CONS, these things outweigh the bad by along shot. It's just that when we're feeling ill, vulnerable and low, it's very easy to become too absorbed. It's not healthy and it's best that while somebody is feeling unwell to stay well away from all this negativity.

[Oceanblue]

My policy has always been that I stay informed by the news from lots of different sources but I don't dwell on it to the point that it causes me stress.

The Media's so corrupt it's insane. If there is something I hear of, or have read that i'm interested in, I too try and get some sort of balanced idea from different sources.
But I only do this when I'm feeling very well in myself, whereas years ago, I used to do it no matter how I felt.
Our perceptions are entirely different when we're feeling sick, just not a good idea.