The mystery of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 continues. As of press time, the plane that disappeared March 8 has still not been found. Major news sources have spent hours airing the flight’s latest “breaking news.” It only takes five minutes of watching the coverage to realize news stations are really trying to appeal to the interests and emotions of viewers for their own monetary benefit. But news networks are still talking about MH370 rather than reporting hard-hitting news that pertains to the direct importance of informing viewers. The largest news sources in the country, such as CNN and Fox News, have spent hours discussing possible conspiracy theories and talking about what has been trending on Twitter.
CNN, and I’m sure other news networks, discussed conspiracy theories the public has been speculating online. Directly before that, it showed a heart-wrenching interview with the terrified wife of a passenger. Of course people want to watch this; it’s a real-life HBO Drama, but the fact is the location of the plane is not yet known, and there is only information developing as to how Malaysia and authorities are attempting to locate the flight. CNN ran a segment in which it looked at 30 of what it called the most “compelling” questions regarding what happened to the flight.
CNN also had numerous segments discussing and analyzing conspiracy theories that have surfaced on social media such as Twitter. They discussed one theory that a meteor may have hit the plane. CNN also mentioned conspiracies of an international kidnapping, alien involvement and a “Hollywood stunt for the remake of ‘Lost.’” All these Internet conspiracies have no business in national headlines. The amount of airtime allotted to them is ridiculous. Family members of passengers are already devastated, waiting every day to hear new information, and these outlandish conspiracies are probably not making the situation any easier for them.
Tear-jerking interviews and crazy conspiracy theories may increase viewership, but the media don’t exist for entertainment.
This is a top story and very important news, especially to the family members of passengers, but several news sources are spending too much time trying to appeal emotionally to viewers to gain the highest ratings. The news should inform its viewers and tell only the facts. Unfortunately that’s not always the case. The flight is just one current example of news sources doing this, but it happens all the time.
Recently during the coverage for the Sochi Olympics, NBC focused on humanizing coverage of skier Bode Miller’s performance to appeal to viewers’ emotions. Reporter Christin Cooper interviewed Miller just after he tied for a bronze medal. Miller’s brother died last year, and a question Cooper asked brought Miller to tears: “I know you wanted to be here with Chelly experiencing these games; how much does it mean to you to come up with a great performance for him? And was it for him?” Cooper asked this immediately after the skier had completed hs run and placed for a bronze medal, which should be a shining moment for the athlete. However, the question made the Olympian break down and cry on air. Even after that, Cooper continued to ask him about his brother. As if asking him about the tragic topic wasn’t enough, she continued to ask about how he felt instead concentrating on the actual news about his win.
News sources often use these kinds of questions to appeal to viewers emotionally and gain more attention because news reporting has turned into such a competitive business when fighting for the highest ratings. They look for ways to get ahead in the competitive business, which often leads them to put stories that appeal to peoples’ interests ahead of hard-hitting news. Of course there are other major news stories that could be reported instead of possible conspiracy theories on the Malaysian flight, and the NBC reporter shouldn’t have asked questions that brought an Olympic skier to tears just after he’d won a medal. News sources should leave drama for television series.