--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Frightening media messages...pervade the…" description: "\"Frightening media messages...pervade the news business, which really ought to be called \"the bad news business\" for its preoccupation with disaster and..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eee/michael-medved-18817_attention_frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-n_1528030.png" --- # Frightening media messages...pervade the news business… ![“Frightening media messages...pervade the news business, which really ought to be called "the bad news business" for its preoccupation with disaster and destruction. In broadcast journalism, killing is almost always covered, while kindness is almost always ignored. The more alarming a news item is…” quote by Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eee/michael-medved-18817_attention_frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-n_1528030.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eee/michael-medved-18817_attention_frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-n_1528030.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eee/michael-medved-18817_attention_frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-n_1528030.png) > “Frightening media messages...pervade the news business, which really ought to be called "the bad news business" for its preoccupation with disaster and destruction. In broadcast journalism, killing is almost always covered, while kindness is almost always ignored. The more alarming a news item is, the more attention it receives.” [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Media focuses on disaster, neglecting kindness, shaping public perception toward negativity. **In simple terms:** News highlights bad over good. Key Takeaway Seek balanced information. Themes media bias public perception ethics Mood critical concerned Type observational critical When to use this quote - news consumption - media literacy - public discourse - policy making Key Concepts agenda setting negativity bias Questions to Reflect On - How can we promote more positive reporting? - What impact does negative news have on mental health? A Different Perspective Positive stories often get less coverage, limiting societal optimism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alarming News](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alarming-news-5663818/) [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Bad news](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-news/) [Broadcast journalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broadcast-journalism/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Covered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/covered/) [Destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destruction/) [Disaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disaster/) [Frightening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frightening/) [Frightening Media](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frightening-media-4399731/) [Ignored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignored/) [Items](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/items/) [Journalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) [Killing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/killing/) [Kindness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kindness/) [Media](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/media/) [Messages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/messages/) [News](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/news/) [News Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/news-business-485535/) [Ought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ought/) [Preoccupation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preoccupation/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) ## Related quotes > [Columbine was so frightening. And the media took off with it, like everything else, so it instilled more fear in people. You're looking around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-robinson/columbine-was-so-frightening-and-the-media-took-off-with-it-like/) [John Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-robinson/) > [Many people who know me call me 'the hardest working man in the news business' because you're never, ever going to outwork me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-lemon/many-people-who-know-me-call-me-the-hardest-working-man-in-the-news/) [Don Lemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-lemon/) > [I'm not in the news business and won't tell people how to do their job. I'd like to restore trust in the news business,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-newmark/i-m-not-in-the-news-business-and-won-t-tell-people-how-to-do-their/) [Craig Newmark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-newmark/) > [Things that happen every day are, frankly, what we in the news business aren't good at covering because there is no one day in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/things-that-happen-every-day-are-frankly-what-we-in-the-news-business/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [Traditionally, what we in the news business do is cover what happened yesterday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/traditionally-what-we-in-the-news-business-do-is-cover-what-happened/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [I want everybody in the news business to think of ABC before they go any place else. If it costs us an extra few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roone-arledge/i-want-everybody-in-the-news-business-to-think-of-abc-before-they-go/) [Roone Arledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roone-arledge/) > [The news business is simple, but it's not easy to do well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ailes/the-news-business-is-simple-but-it-s-not-easy-to-do-well/) [Roger Ailes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ailes/) > [If you're not competitive, if you're not out to make a mark, you shouldn't be in the news business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-tur/if-you-re-not-competitive-if-you-re-not-out-to-make-a-mark-you/) [Katy Tur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katy-tur/) > [When you're in the news business, you always expect the unexpected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-thomas/when-you-re-in-the-news-business-you-always-expect-the-unexpected/) [Helen Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-thomas/) > [Okay, I'm not in the news business, and I'm not going to tell anyone how to do their job. However, it'd be good to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-newmark/okay-i-m-not-in-the-news-business-and-i-m-not-going-to-tell-anyone/) [Craig Newmark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-newmark/) > [Businesses that distribute information and news are in the business of training and teaching people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/businesses-that-distribute-information-and-news-are-in-the-business/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The greatest felony in the news business today is to be behind, or to miss a big story. So speed and quantity substitute for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-greatest-felony-in-the-news-business-today-is-to-be-behind-or-to/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [We are in the business of gathering the news. We're not in the business of talking about the news.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-brown/we-are-in-the-business-of-gathering-the-news-we-re-not-in-the/) [Aaron Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-brown/) > [The news business is simple but it's not easy to do well. You know the story, you have to cover it, you need pictures,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jai-courtney/the-news-business-is-simple-but-it-s-not-easy-to-do-well-you-know-the/) [Jai Courtney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jai-courtney/) > [But my observation has been, certainly in the news business, you've got to give 110 percent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-donaldson/but-my-observation-has-been-certainly-in-the-news-business-you-ve-got/) [Sam Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-donaldson/) ## More by Michael Medved > [Conservatives, despite their increasingly powerful presence on cable TV and talk radio, feel excluded and disregarded by the longstanding preponderance of liberal voices on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/conservatives-despite-their-increasingly-powerful-presence-on-cable/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [If you believe that when the rich get richer, the poor get poorer, then you believe that creating wealth causes poverty, and you're an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/if-you-believe-that-when-the-rich-get-richer-the-poor-get-poorer-then/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [ It wasn't that expectations changed. But \[teens\] went from general expectations of success to having no idea of the right thing to do. In… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/it-wasn-t-that-expectations-changed-but-teens-went-from-general/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [If we wait for the entertainment industry to change its fundamental values, we may be waiting a long time. But we don't have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/if-we-wait-for-the-entertainment-industry-to-change-its-fundamental/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [Asking Hollywood to begin to show some restraint and balance in its antireligious fury is not the same as suggesting that the industry must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/asking-hollywood-to-begin-to-show-some-restraint-and-balance-in-its/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [Unfortunately our children today seem to spend less and less time with their overworked parents, and so they draw more information about the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/unfortunately-our-children-today-seem-to-spend-less-and-less-time/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [Simultaneously, the movie business now experiments with a colorblind approach to casting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/simultaneously-the-movie-business-now-experiments-with-a-colorblind/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [Arnold Schwarzenegger's gubernatorial campaign raises a series of fascinating questions, the most perplexing of all being why an international star of his stature would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/arnold-schwarzenegger-s-gubernatorial-campaign-raises-a-series-of/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [This same habitual blindness to spiritual, substantive dimensions of every significant challenge continues to handicap Hollywood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/this-same-habitual-blindness-to-spiritual-substantive-dimensions-of/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [For many of the most powerful people in the entertainment business, hostility to organized religion goes so deep and burns so intensely that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/for-many-of-the-most-powerful-people-in-the-entertainment-business/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [Poor people in America today (people who are officially in poverty) have a higher standard of living - in terms of medical standards, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/poor-people-in-america-today-people-who-are-officially-in-poverty/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [Savvy observers occasionally note television's resemblance to the weather: Everybody loves to complain about it, but nobody can do anything to fix it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/savvy-observers-occasionally-note-television-s-resemblance-to-the/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [People.. .love to say that 'Violence never solved anything.' But what solved Hitler? Was It a team of social workers? Was it putting daisies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/people-love-to-say-that-violence-never-solved-anything-but-what/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [Why is it offensive to portray a creep and a murderer as a homosexual, but totally acceptable to present him as a religious Christian?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/why-is-it-offensive-to-portray-a-creep-and-a-murderer-as-a-homosexual/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [The left-leaning thinking that dominates the movie business follows a common liberal instinct to deny the spiritual dimension to every problem, thereby profoundly compounding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/the-left-leaning-thinking-that-dominates-the-movie-business-follows-a/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) [Explore all 34 Michael Medved quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Frightening media messages...pervade the news business, which really ought to be called \"the bad news business\" for its preoccupation with disaster and destruction. In broadcast journalism, killing is almost always covered, while kindness is almost always ignored. The more alarming a news item is, the more attention it receives.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Medved" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-news-business-which-really/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attention" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-news-business-which-really/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eee/michael-medved-18817_attention_frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-n_1528030.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eee/michael-medved-18817_attention_frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-n_1528030.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eee/michael-medved-18817_attention_frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-n_1528030.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Frightening media messages...pervade the news business, which really ought to be called \"the bad news…” — Michael Medved", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Michael Medved", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Frightening media messages...pervade the news business,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-news-business-which-really/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/frightening-media-messages-pervade-the-news-business-which-really/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```