It’s not the Martians that will get us, it’s the fake journalists!

“This dramatic approach — a performance interrupted by periodic news bulletins — is how writer Howard Koch adapted H. G. Wells classic novel The War of the Worlds for radio broadcast. On October 30, 1938, the actors of The Mercury Theatre on the Air, led by twenty-three-year-old Orson Welles, presented the adaptation on the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS). Within the first forty minutes of the program, the actors had vividly described Martians landing in New Jersey and decimating the state.” (From the National Archives)

I was twenty when I started working in a high-pressure television newsroom at WPIX in New York. I was a serious, dedicated and ambitious new employee committed to the ideals of solid journalism: Truth, honesty, and the American way.

Boy, I was shocked to learn: “If it bleeds, it leads!”

One morning I was particularly upset about a serious story I had proposed that was rejected when my somewhat skeptical and cynical news desk producer Coffey a grizzled, grumpy, but hardworking newsman said:

 “This business is about the freaks and the clowns. They get the attention first.”

I didn’t want to believe him then, but now I see it.

It’s a pattern that is easily manipulated.

Advertisers, crazies, and hungry politicians have figured out that the more outrageous, the more likely to receive attention.

I began to understand why stories about children not having enough to eat at school, or abysmal housing stories were placed last or often ignored.

News reporting is a business that lives or dies on ratings. Ratings are measurements of how many are watching. High numbers mean more advertising. Low numbers mean less money to pay reporters, camera crews, and newsroom operating expenses.

The real game is getting attention.

And now it’s a more challenging game because many entities are competing for attention.

Newspapers used to be the go-to place for serious information but print publications lag behind the real-time attention-getting online stories, so even newspapers are playing the sensational story game by hooking folks with their most sensational pieces online.

So, what do we do as consumers?

Some people have given up consuming news.

That’s dangerous. There is too much change and chaos afoot to stop paying attention.

I remember when I was about ten years old, I was listening to a radio replay of the 1938 broadcast by Orson Welles. I had turned it on in the middle hearing none of the station disclaimers and became panicked. My first action was to run to my parents and ask: “Is this real?”

Fortunately, they were informed about the original hoax and reassured me that it was not real.

When the hoax was broadcast many people realized it was not real, but the following days were filled with newspaper reports of people reacting wildly to the broadcast. These reports exaggerated the public response.

The most important thing now is having a personal strategy for what news outlets to follow and how to look for additional sources to verify incoming information.

Listen to opposing viewpoints so that you can decide for yourself.

Find fact-checking resources .

Find local news sources. These are important for information about storms and other natural disasters and dangers in your immediate surroundings.

Be aware of politicians who emphasize catastrophe and tell you the sky is falling. They are simply manipulating the newsrooms that are so desperate for attention. They all flock to cover the shocking and horrible words offered by loud and manipulative political figures.

Some Steps and Questions to ask to protect yourself from sensationalism:

Notice what is not being told to you.

Why don’t we hear air quality reports regularly anymore?

Is COVID truly over?

Notice when you are drawn to a story. Did the perpetrators do it to win or to get your attention?

Notice that calm and thoughtful leaders often get no attention.

Read and listen to various news outlets.

Your ability to listen, learn, and absorb information is a precious human quality. This all boils down to learning to edit out the garbage that is being thrown.