There is no question that watching, listening, or reading the news on TV, on the radio in the newspapers, is not just disappointing, it can become depressing. Just think about the recent news: A vicious war has erupted between Israel and Palestine involving torture; most Americans believe that their political opponents will ruin our country if they are elected; the climate is steadily getting worse; the war in Ukraine grinds on and on; and our national debt increases every year!
How can we NOT be unhappy? There is a way. That is to reverse every piece of bad news. But first we should all remember the old newspaper slogan that good news doesn’t sell newspapers. It’s true. If the average American’s pay goes up, it’s buried in the financial section. If wages go down, it may make the front page. Bad news sells. When gasoline prices were going up, that was often the biggest news on TV, but now that they have come down by a dramatic 34.6% from their high, where are the cheers? If there’s a major fire in your town and a building is destroyed, it will make the news, but if a builder completes 100 low-income housing units, you’ll never hear about it because it’s not considered significant enough. The point is that all media have a bias to emphasize bad news.
No wonder we feel down when we watch the news! However, you can turn bad news into good news if you will just turn it around by thinking to yourself how lucky you are that you are not directly involved in any of the dire events. Perhaps you are thinking that you should feel sad for the people who are suffering, but remember that you didn’t cause the bad news, so you have nothing to feel guilty about. If you want to help those in need, there are many worthy charities that would welcome your contributions. So, if you want to go on with your happy lifestyle, there is no reason in the world that you should let bad news interfere with the joy in your life!
