OPINIONS
Legend's View:
As society goes, so does the news
It is one of the most horrific images to be strewn across the media within the last decade.
No, it is not a tragic victim of a war in the Middle East or the unfortunate mess of a car crash.
This was the image of a bald, psychotic, hopeless has-been pop star bashing in a car with an umbrella.
Luckily, we were all able to see these glorious pictures thrown into our television landscape thanks to the dubious reporting provided to us by such esteemed stations such as CNN and Fox News.
Anna Nicole Smith’s death was, indeed, a sad event. But does it require the incessant media blitz that has taken over every media outlet in America?
It is to be expected that E! network will do us the duty of finding out who is going to take care of Anna Nicole’s dog or what color Britney Spears’ new tattoo is, but it is a shame that major news networks still consider these to be their lead news stories.
The lopsided news coverage of Anna Nicole’s death was illustrated by statistics compiled by the website thinkprogress.org.
In the two subsequent days after her death, CNN’s coverage of Smith’s death was 508 percent more than its coverage of the war in Iraq.
MSNBC was even worse as their hoopla of the struggling starlet’s death was 705 percent more than their focus on the war in Iraq.
Watching the drama of washed-up celebrities’ pathetic lives unfold seems to be America’s new favorite pastime.
Why are we as a society so obsessed with the downfall of others?
The news stations only cater to what the market demands, and our biggest demand to date is to see trash on TV.
Even though these mega news corporations claim to want to bring important truth to its viewers, the bottom line is it is still about money.
For now, a bald Britney Spears equals money.
And for now,
Anna Nicole’s death equals money.
Maybe someday society will once again care about something important.