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Why Bad News Sells
Written by: Laura PoseyArticle Overview: I was having a meeting with the director of a division of child services for Virginia the other day and we got on the subject of reports about foster parents. She told me how disheartened she was that stories of poor care make the front page but stories like the one about a man in the Northern Neck who fostered a teen with AIDS through his last year of life go unnoticed. A quick check of the headlines on any major news website confirmed her viewpoint. That got me thinking about why bad news sells.
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Why Bad News Sells
I was having a meeting with the director of a division of child
services for Virginia the other day and we got on the subject of
reports about foster parents. She told me how disheartened she was that
stories of poor care make the front page but stories like the one about
a man in the Northern Neck who fostered a teen with AIDS through his
last year of life go unnoticed.
A quick check of the headlines on any major news website confirmed her viewpoint.
That got me thinking about why bad news sells.
As humans, we have a desire to feel good about ourselves and our
lives. We want to believe that we are good people who have made good
choices. We want to believe that our lives are meaningful and contain
some joy and happiness.
Interestingly, the only way most of us can determine whether these
things are true or not is in comparison to others. Most people, in my
opinion, don’t base their judgments about their lives on their own
standards but rather on a comparison against how their friends, family
and neighbors live.
When we read a story about a tragedy, we can compare ourselves to its victims and feel good that we aren’t in that situation.
When we read a story about someone who committed a crime, we feel
good that we are smart enough not to make the same poor choice.
On the flip side, when we read news about someone doing something
wonderful like fostering a child or donating time to a charity, many of
feel bad because we aren’t as generous as we might like to be.
Quite simply, bad news makes us feel good and good news often makes
us feel bad. Sadly, it all comes down to using someone else’s yardstick
by which to measure our own sense of self-worth and value.
My question for you this week is: are you living the life YOU really
want to live or are you chasing someone else’s (parents, neighbors,
co-workers, spouses) idea of what a life well-lived is?
When you learn to craft your own yardstick, you’ll find life really
can be a stress-free, wonderful adventure full of everything that makes
you truly happy. This is my wish for you.
You Create Your Own Reality
Create High Impact Copy
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Article Tags: marketing, motivation, sales, sales tips, small business
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Re: How can we replace plastic grocery bags?
- News from my town.
Officers will not give tickets any more, they are giving away gifts for those who recycle, and showing good citizenship.
They are giving a way flowers.
Now what will I do with flowers?
Re: Is The BBC News Going Down The Gutter?
- Hi David,
At the end of the day, the BBC News channel is a business and I guess they understand the need to "sell out" with a more popular story than run "real" news... especially during these tough economic times.
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