Entertainment vs. News
In Tuned Out, Mindich begins by asking how the balance between entertainment and news has shifted over time.
As one who follows the news on a fairly regular basis, I would argue that entertainment values are beginning (if they haven’t already) to override basic news values.
Just look at CNN.com. There is at least one entertainment story a day that makes it into their “most popular” read category. Today, the entertainment story “Nipple covers, other star secrets” ranked number 7, while the story about Condoleezza Rice meeting with Jordan’s king ranked number 9.
It is disappointing that CNN.com readers would rather read about nipple covers than what the U.S. Secretary of State is doing in Jordan, but stars and their undergarments can be more entertaining than politics and certainly easier to understand. But what will affect us on a higher level tomorrow- nipple covers or peace plans that the U.S. is supporting in other countries?
Sometimes I opt for the more entertaining stories because I do not understand foreign policy or I have trouble seeing how it affects me. I think this is one reason that people (especially younger readers and viewers) do not follow the news on a regular basis.
Our society is extremely self-absorbed and self-serving. Why read about Jordan or Iraq when we can entertain ourselves by surfing Facebook or MySpace? (Let’s be honest- who spends more time reading the news than they do looking at online profiles?)
I think it is the fault of both the media and the public for allowing values to shift from news to entertainment. The media expects too much from the public and the public expects too little from the media. Or is it ok for entertainment to be valued more than news? I would argue no, but I am only one future journalist who thinks the media has a little more explaining to do.
As one who follows the news on a fairly regular basis, I would argue that entertainment values are beginning (if they haven’t already) to override basic news values.
Just look at CNN.com. There is at least one entertainment story a day that makes it into their “most popular” read category. Today, the entertainment story “Nipple covers, other star secrets” ranked number 7, while the story about Condoleezza Rice meeting with Jordan’s king ranked number 9.
It is disappointing that CNN.com readers would rather read about nipple covers than what the U.S. Secretary of State is doing in Jordan, but stars and their undergarments can be more entertaining than politics and certainly easier to understand. But what will affect us on a higher level tomorrow- nipple covers or peace plans that the U.S. is supporting in other countries?
Sometimes I opt for the more entertaining stories because I do not understand foreign policy or I have trouble seeing how it affects me. I think this is one reason that people (especially younger readers and viewers) do not follow the news on a regular basis.
Our society is extremely self-absorbed and self-serving. Why read about Jordan or Iraq when we can entertain ourselves by surfing Facebook or MySpace? (Let’s be honest- who spends more time reading the news than they do looking at online profiles?)
I think it is the fault of both the media and the public for allowing values to shift from news to entertainment. The media expects too much from the public and the public expects too little from the media. Or is it ok for entertainment to be valued more than news? I would argue no, but I am only one future journalist who thinks the media has a little more explaining to do.
posted by Jeanie at 7:45 PM
14 Comments:
Great comments and insights Jeanie and Jamie.
Anyone want to make an attempt to link what Mindich is saying and what the authors in Inequality Matters are arguing?
I was watching VH1 last week (admit it, we all need a little escape goat from everyday news and school work) and they had a show on how entertainment news magazines and websites have become an extremely money making industry. It was sickening to see how much money one photographer can make by bringing in a shot of Paris Hilton walking out of a club with a new boyfriend. These photographers and magazine editors know that Americans love to watch ET and Access Hollywood and also pay money for celebrity gossip magazines. I wonder how much money the New York Times pays a photographer if he or she brings in a shot of Condoleezza Rice shaking hands with a government official in Jordan?
I don’t blame CNN or ET for reporting on these stories, I blame the American public for clicking on those links or turning to the channel that supplies them with Hollywood gossip. If us, as readers showed more interest in political news stories and local events then the media would give us more of what we ask for, because they see how highly ranked entertainment stories are amongst everyday news and that is why they keep giving them that much importance. This is a cycle that, as Mindich said, “Unless it is broken, the death of aging news consumers will mark a profound change in the social and political landscape of America’s future.”
It does make me feel a little less guilty to know that we are not the first generation of young people who are distancing themselves from the news. Though we are getting further away from news, than other generations, it’s not the first time this has happened in history. Mindich explains how television has had a lot to do with young people reading less newspapers, but I wonder why now that we have news on 24-hour networks such as CNN, MSNBC and FOX, and can also type in a website and read the news at anytime from any computer, that we are not doing so. Is it that we are tired of hearing about place we’re not familiar with? Are we trying to get away from our own reality by hearing about the lives of famous entertainers?
I had never thought about comparing “American Idol” to the presidential elections until I read it in Tuned Out. Why is it that thousands of young people show up to cheer for one of the finalists of the show, but only hundreds show up to protest against or for political issues? Is our generation putting world news and local issues at the bottom of their priority list? Is it that young people might think none of what goes on in the world affects them? I can’t wait to red more of this book and hopefully get more understanding on why our generation responds to news the way it does.
I think it is true that many people dont understand foreign issues or dont think that it affects them. So they ignore those news stories and go for the ones that seem more interesting and fun.
I admit, I am this way sometimes even though I am a journalism major. I do feel that this is bad and am trying to learn more about politics and what not.
I can see that it is very important for young people like ourselves to know what is going on in the world and be able to voice our opinion and make decisions that can change the way we live.
I have never really been into politics, and I find that when I try to learn more, I realize that a person should know a lot about the history of our country and the world to be able to argue some present issues and make good decisions.
I agree with KristenL above when she says that it is hard to be involved in politics when you do not have a basic understanding of it. But instead of trying to learn about politics and our nations history so we can become active and productive members of society we choose to log on to Myspace instead. Not that logging onto Myspace is completely wrong to do but we, as a generation have to learn to balance what is important. Talking to friends is great but we should also be logging onto our daily newspaper and reading about what is happening in the world.
I do not completely agree with Fernanda Echavarri when she says, “I don’t blame CNN or ET for reporting on these stories,” because CNN is a news organization and should be reporting on hard news first. I believe that CNN and other news organizations should be a news organization first and a business second. When people want to hear about entertainment news they should watch entertainment shows like ET, but CNN should not be focusing on stories like Brangilina. In Tuned Out, Mindich quotes James W. Carey as saying the role of the press is to make sure in the short run we don’t get screwed and encourages public discourse. If news organizations, like CNN start to focus on entertainment news I don’t see how this is fulfilling the role of the press and encouraging public involvement in the government.
I believe that a lot of the reason for the broadcast of soft news on networks that should be broadcasting hard news is because the majority of the American public is interested in fun stories.
A majority of the American public could care less what happened in politics, as long as they do not see a direct link to themselves. People like to see and read the fun stories about the one legged soccer player, rather then news that has much more meaning.
Stations must look to address the wants of the public because without the support of the public less companies will be willing to financially support the stations.
I agree with Jamie in that politicians do seem distant from the average person, while Angelina Jolie and Britney Spears do seem slightly more accessible.
But I think that the "stars" seem more accessible than the politicians because of the way in which they are covered by the media.
As Mindich explains on p. 15, "One of the ways journalism promotes democracy is by engendering an awareness of shared interests. If a citizen understands his or her thread in society's fabric, that citizen will be more likely to see common goals and understand the need for reciprocity."
Just as Facebook and MySpace helps us to see shared interests with friends, the media is supposed to show us why and how politics and other such matters will affect our lives on a day to day basis.
If we don't see or read that connection, we are lost.
In response to Jeanie’s question, I feel as though entertainment should not be valued more than news although others my age would disagree. I admit, I do like the entertainment side of the media, I mean come on who doesn’t? Yet I feel as though as a future journalist it is my obligation to keep updated on what is going on in the world we live in, even if it does involve the entertainment aspect.
For others who are not as into journalism, I am sure it is a lot harder to keep up. Some feel as though why watch what is going on in Iraq everyday when they have no family or friends over there. Or, why watch about political issues when they have no interest or understanding of what is going on? For some it is plain old “boring”. Why watch the news when entertainment tonight is on the next channel? Because it is more exciting and that is why millions more people showed up to vote for the next “American Idol” rather than voting for our future president.
Everyday I check my email, a slide show of news from the last couple of hours takes over half my screen. From what is going on with the war to what lip-glosses makes your lips plumper. It literally will keep going until you read them, and that is how they(America Online) get people to read the news. While I sit here and watch my favorite TV show, headlines for the upcoming news show comes across the bottom of the screen, which I am sure everyone else watching noticed also. So, in the end, I also think the decline in news watching/ reading has a lot to do with advertisement. Sad but true….
There are many factors why a majority of people choose entertain vs. news, but I think there are two major categories. People that are lazy and people that have no time. The lazy part is pretty self explanatory, so I’ll focus on the people with no time.
We live in a 24 hour world and people are like the white rabbit in Alice and Wonderland. I’m pretty sure half the people (but I‘m thinking all, but I don’t want to go out in a limb) in class didn’t have a breakfast. They wake up with enough time to get dressed and pick up a coffee to just beat the bell at school. Once upon a time, people would actually eat breakfast and this was the time when people would read the newspaper. But, that’s out the window now.
With a full schedule many people don’t care what happens on the other side of the world. The feel they have more important matters to attend to like working to pay the mortgage, doing homework, going to the gym cause they want to lose five pounds before their friends wedding in a month or all of them at once. So, when a person finally gets some free time they don’t want to concern themselves with things they feel is out of their control. Those people want a break from life and if that break consist of only reading or watching something on how Britney went command at a club because she devastated by her divorce then allow them that.
There have only been two major attacks on U.S soil, Sept. 11 and Pearl Harbor, so it’s possible that many people feel that nothing can or will happen to them.
There I played devil’s advocate (better than Keanu).
Every semester of my Arizona career in the journalism department, in at least one class, I have taken a style quiz and a current events quiz each week. I understand that we are studying to be journalists but each of us are interested in different fields related to journalism. Things that interest me you're going to find in the sports section but that's not really what we are tested on in class. I'm not sure if others my age feel the same way as I do but I hate reading the paper. It is almost as bad as reading a text book. Political News being the worst thing to read. I understand what Mindich is saying. This generation of students and other young people is very different from past generations.
Why I don't like reading or watching news other than sports:
1) In newspapers, the style of writing is extremely dull. If I'm sitting down I'm going to pass out.
2) Media companies slant the truth and everything is out of context.
3) I just don't really care about a lot of things that are happening, especially political events. I don't care what Bush is doing, I don't care about the war, if they are putting an In And Out Burger on Broadway that interests me but I will here about that through word of mouth.
4) It's depressing, mostly watching the news. So much death.
Sometimes I find an interesting story that I enjoy reading about but that is about one in every 100. And I do like reading local news, if the story is of interest to me. I really don't like reading about sports to much either. I like watching the highlights. So I guess I'm one of those Americans under 40 who doesn't like to follow the news.
So as much as we hate to admit it, entertainment has become news, and it has become the stuff people want to hear about....... and that's okay, however I have to say that the numbers in viewers from the presidential debates and the season finale of American Idol were a little startling.
I think that most americans have failed to find a healthy balance between Entertainment and News, and that most have bunched the two together and accepted that as a standard news information, and thats what is scary.
At the point when a car bombing in Iraq is followed up by Madonna's adoption woes, and Britney spears collapsing in Vegas, we have a problem.
this is not going to work
I think that entertainment can be incorporated into news. Depending on what an individual decides is entertaining to them. Individuals with an interest in politics can easily consider that entertainment. So can the person with an interest in sports. News doesn't necessarily have a permanent structure. I think it can change with a person's preferences.
Mindich hits it right on the head. People have become recluses and they don't try to expand their horizons. They have little trust in people outside of their circle and that makes them very narrow minded in what they choose to watch whether it be news or entertainment. I think it depends on the individual.
Entertainment vs. News
I believe that we only watch according to what infotainment to us. We live our lives so rapidly and we rush from one place to another that everything around us is molded to our interests. For example cellphones-back in the day we use to contact each other when we were home and talked with our loved ones, friends. Now, we are able to hike Grand Canyon and call people as soon as we haver reception. Our news/entertainment is meshed together and given to us as Late Breaking. I agree with an earlier comment that each news segment has a comment on what celebrity did what in public or behind closed doors. I have to admit I buy the junk news, but I pass it on so that others don't waste their money, but I do read the celebrity gossip. Only recently, for class, did I subscribe to the newspapers and read it for next weeks quiz. However, I find that I am rushing home to watch the news or making sure that I read the newspaper in the morning. I'm interested to know if the older generation is still reading the newspaper and finding that they are upset or happy with the way journalists have covered the news and entertainment from 20 years to today.
I completely agree that the media today has shifted immensely from news based to entertainment based. And in my eyes the reasoning for this is simple...people are going to show what sells and unfortunately what sells is some celebrity getting drunk in Las Vegas. In the corporate media world, there has been a transition to the main focus on numbers and amounts of viewers over the actual content of what is being shown. In my opinion, there somehow needs to be a backwards transition from this mentality back to the focus on caring what the content of the newscast is.
I do not think that it is ok for entertainment to be valued more than news, but if the majority of the public says that it is, then that is who broadcasters are going to listen to. It's kind of like a chain reaction in a sense where, if the majority says it, then the news stations listen. Well if the news stations listen, then the focus is on all entertainment stories. Whereas if the news stations did not listen to the public and instead showed all news, eventually the public would be trained to wanting to see that, or not watch at all. I'm not totally sure that this would run as smooth as this, but I think it could be a start to shifting away from entertainment news.
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