““with media the medium and the public as the sitter or client. A public unused to doing its own thinking looks to diverse authorities for guidance, not to mention amusement. The general public is, quite literally Easy Marks, Unlimited. Hence, it is easy to understand why their concerns and fears are prepackaged — and to someone else, profitable to prey upon. Each day you are bombarded with dire warnings and ill tidings. “No news is good news” is a truism. Good news doesn’t sell. More people are working at media-related jobs than ever. It takes “bad news” and emergencies for them to keep their jobs. The more bad news you hear and read, the more depressed you become. Other people’s bad news rubs off on you. Problems beget problems. Everywhere you turn, you are reminded of one of the myriad hazards to health, economic stability or domestic tranquility. You are not supposed to be simply aware or prepared for unpleasant contingencies. You are supposed to be scared shitless. It’s easy to scoff and say, “I don’t let that sort of thing get to me,” but like it or not, it does.””
