News or Entertainment?
I write fiction. Yes, a lot of it is loosely based on real life medical cases, as well as real life heroes, tragedies, crimes and their effects on real people.
But when I write, I stay very aware that my main purpose is to entertain my reader. I hope that I also enlighten and educate, but the main reason for anyone to spend money for my books will be for enjoyment.
Matt over on CrimeRant has a great blog today about how the news media has crossed the line between news and entertainment. Here’s a snippet:
Just two weeks ago, Cho Seung-Hui’s mass killing rampage was 24/7 coverage. And now it’s Paris Hilton’s turn. The word fleeting comes to mind. And that is the sad part of this: all these people affected by crime and their stories the media uses to fill airspace one day, just disappear the next. I guess it’s the nature of a rapidly turning world of crime. The networks decide what is a major crime story and we either watch or shut the TV off.
I think he has a good point. When I want news, I want the facts, not glorified “reality” TV. I could care less about the celebrity talking heads, the trumped up pitch-fever hype, or gossip. I certainly don’t want cameras shoved into the faces of grieving victims and relatives for the sake of “the public’s right to know.”
I want facts revealing in a cool and level-headed way all aspects of a story, including those that I might not have thought of myself. Because of this, I supported NBC’s decision to edit Cho Seung-Hui’s video down to two minutes but to show it so that the rest of us could have some insight into his psyche.
What do you think? Do you want Hollywood Hype to take the place of reporting? Has the news media crossed the line into entertainment?
