Emotions and personal feelings don’t make news

American culture inevitably changes, but in my lifetime, I suspect our culture has changed more dramatically than other major culture shifts in U.S. history – such as the Roaring Twenties.  

Fueling our current culture shift is contemporary yellow journalism, which does nothing more than inflame the passions of the ordinarily solemn-toned Americans. The things that don’t, shouldn’t or wouldn’t bother us are now dragged to our sympathy – or lack thereof – and inflated to bolstering proportionality leaving us to choose one side: right, or wrong – black or white – and the yellow journalists of today make it obvious which side is right. 

I’m not saying the news doesn’t present truth to viewers or readers, but they present it in a non-objective and sensationalized manner. For example, when is the last time anyone viewed a cable news channel and heard someone speak in a monotone voice?  

Certainly inferences are made by viewers watching a news anchor literally cry about Hillary Clinton’s loss – or how about the tone of outrage or disappointment expressed at the latest Donald Trump executive order? 

Two consequences result from such emotionally expressive language by news anchors: 

First, people automatically lose the ability to form a first impression on the objective and substantive part of the news because they make interpretations and pick up cues from the anchor’s emotional tone. Real news should leave emotion out of reporting facts because real facts should spark the the listeners emotions.

Second, the emotions expressed by news anchors inflame the passions of the people when calm consideration of the facts would ordinarily follow fair reporting. As a result, people become emotional about something they have no legitimate stake in.

Put another way, people inherently become attached to the pain or excitement of others. 

Unfortunately, news reporting today – especially television news reporting – is all about forcing your feelings onto your audience to garner more attention than deserved; even though the news should be quite boring.  

But furthermore, once people are enraged by the news to a point of erupting at the television, they can spew venomous feelings on social media without thinking critically or listening to the other side. Of course, they do so because listening to the whining on television has taught them that emotion is the king of debate. 

Essentially, the emotion laden news of today causes people to be inconsiderate of legitimate opposing arguments – people don’t consider the facts, only the force with which the facts are presented. This results in disbelief and shock that outside views exist. Thus, polarized sides advance radical agendas within a bubble because common ground has no room to exist.