News is great, and chances are if you’re reading this at least some small part of you agrees with me. Unless you’re my mother, in which case you are genuinely reading this for my opinion.
Justin Ackerman | Argonaut
So I’ll just assume you’re part of the 83 percent of Americans who, according to a 2012 Pew Research Center poll, consume news media in some form.
That 83 percent represents a lot of people, around 260 million if you use 2012’s census numbers. It represents thousands of media companies — both large and small. Perhaps most importantly though, it represents billions of dollars for the most successful companies.
The largest companies grew by selling the most profitable product, and sadly Americans seem to enjoy spending their money on entertainment instead of education. The problem is so bad, pointless tales of celebrities often get more coverage than real, potentially world-changing events.
Take for instance, the recent outrage over A&E’s short-lived termination of “Duck Dynasty” personality Phil Robertson. Recently, GQ Magazine released an interview highlighting some of Robertson’s personal views on marriage equality.
A&E disagreed with the nature of Robertson’s comments and fired him for breach of contract, which set off national controversy. From Facebook to Fox, everyone weighed in and “Duck Dynasty” became an almost unavoidable topic.
With important issues like the well being of multi-million dollar businessman Phil Robertson hanging in the balance, it’s no wonder the beginnings of a brutal genocide in South Sudan, which began the very same day, slipped by without comment or outrage
When you read news and you’re left wondering why Miley Cyrus is getting just as much coverage as the impending government shutdown, whose fault is that?
It is easy to blame CNN, MSNBC, FOX or any other outlet for having misguided priorities. However, many forget that it is the viewers that drive their content.Whenever you consume news media, you become part of the profit margins — another page view and more ad revenue.
This gives you more power than you might think.
It’s time Americans used that power to fix some of the obvious flaws with America’s news providers, instead of adding to their degradation.
This stuff only sells because there is someone out there willing to buy it. More often than anyone would like to admit, our persistent link clicking and article reading turns the streets of Kiev into a text overview of last weeks “Keeping Up with the Kardashians.”
Celebrity news and entertainment news isn’t all bad, but when it becomes important enough to push revolutions and genocide to the back page, it might be time for a reality check.
Justin Ackerman can be reached at [email protected]