Positive news

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 01 Jul 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

wavebreaker	01 Jul 2002
I found this website called the Positive Press. It contains only positive news and a new positive quote every day. Today's quote: He is a man of sense who does not grieve for what he has not, but rejoices in what he has. --Epictetus In case you need something to cheer you up... :)

Maan	01 Jul 2002
Great side i bookmarked it just in case i ;)

Starfish	01 Jul 2002
Great site - I've also bookmarked it. Thank you for sharing the link. :TSTAR Starfish

Diana	02 Jul 2002
Oh, now this is a nice website. I'll definitely check it out on occasion. Thanks!!

Geenius at Wrok	02 Jul 2002
You know, if you take it as given that no one starts any sort of business or activity without perceiving a need for it, then the logical inference from the existence of Positive Press is that someone out there thinks that the news is too negative. As an erstwhile journalist, I'd just like to take a moment to address this point. The news media have been accused many, many times of being too overwhelmingly negative. But think about this: Any time something good happens, there exists an entire industry (one whose members, I might add, are paid a heck of a lot better than reporters) to ensure that it gets shouted from every hilltop, and that industry is called advertising and public relations. But when something bad happens, the people responsible—or, if no one is willing to take responsibility, the people tangentially involved—at best silently and intensely hope that no one will notice and at worst actively strive to bury it. Unfortunately, these are often things that people need to know about in order to hold those who have power over them* accountable. Who blows the whistle? Reporters. So many of these things happen over the course of every week, and there are not enough reporters (let alone enough good ones) to deal with all of them (let alone have time left over to report happy news as well). The upshot is that when news organs are actually doing their jobs, the news is more overwhelmingly negative; the more "good news" a news organ puts out, the more likely it is that its reporters are incompetent or that their time is being misspent! It's no mystery why publications with a higher proportion of "good news" are considered less "serious" as news sources: You can't be a watchdog and a lapdog at the same time. If you want your local newspaper to report more good news yet still maintain high journalistic standards, then buy subscriptions, patronize advertisers, place classifieds, get your family and friends to do all these things too, then write letters to the publisher and the editor in chief telling them that you are doing all that because you want them to be able to hire more and better reporters to do more and better reporting. An entry-level reporter in the United States typically makes about $15,000 (roughly €15,000 or A$27,000) a year. A reporter with 10 years' experience rarely makes more than twice that. For that, they're expected to devote their full energies to battering down the locked doors of secrecy, sounding the alarm against corruption and wisely advising readers on their political choices while enduring endless waves of criticism, scorn and outright hatred when they do their jobs right. A little more appreciation would not go amiss. Personally, I don't think there needs to be as much accident coverage as there is (and a huge chunk of the journalism industry agrees with me). But you know what? Accidents sell papers. Brilliant investigative reporting doesn't. Such is the nature of the market. * The things or the people—take your pick.

Diana	02 Jul 2002
Geenius, I understand what you mean. But I need to have the bad news and the good news. Fortunately, there are intelligent newspapers in the world (TV channels, not so many that I know of), who do a brilliant job of in-depth reporting of the good and the bad. I've just finished reading a double-page article on the independence of East Timor. Good news indeed (until the bad news starts, but that's another story! ;) ) And then there's this great reporting on the new (relatively) and young President of the Republic of Congo. Heartwarming news indeed, when one knows of the seemingly never-ending civil war there. But I would dislike it if a newspaper only told me good news. I am glad that this same newspaper tells me about the new laws stripping people of their data privacy, and the military deadlock in Kashmir. But a newspaper that gives principally bad news, is to me a lousy newspaper, and I will not read it.

Jimilyn	04 Jul 2002
Thanks for sharing this site, tarotlady. There are times when I have heard all the negativity I can take, so it's nice to have a site like this to come to to remind me that good stuff is still going on out there. My dad was in the news business the entire time I was growing up. I know how hard they all worked and that the pay is extremely poor. A job well done and a desire to get news to the public were the reasons they were there day in and day out...certainly not for the salary. I appreciate Geenius' point and the work that a good investigative reporter does to keep balance in our society. But I do get terribly depressed by it. My youngest sister is the same way. Neither one of us keeps close tabs on the news...just a general idea of what's going on. I sometimes feel quite badly about that. I used to try to keep up with stuff, but it would really get me down. So I've had to find a balance that works for me. It may not make me the ideal citizen, but I'm a happier neighbor, sister, daughter, teacher, and friend. Makes me much easier to get along with as well, a fact for which I'm sure my students are eternally grateful. :P LOL!!! Jimilyn

The Positive news thread was originally posted on 01 Jul 2002 in the Chat board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Chat, or read more archived threads.