By
Andrew DeMarco
Recently, a friend of mine posted the following on Facebook and it really got my attention:
I say we close down the national media for 30 days and watch 80% of the world’s problems go away
Even before this pandemic hit us this statement is much more fact than fiction. If you ever watch any of the network nightly news broadcasts you would know this immediately. You would notice that all the newscasters drone on about all the ills in this world and everything is gloom and doom. This would be true except maybe for the last five minutes. For example, on ABC David Muir dedicates about 5 minutes every night for a segment called America Strong where he takes that night’s feel good story and runs with it. On the CBS network every Friday you can expect to see Steve Hartman doing his “On the Road” segment which usually causes a misty moment and sometimes with my wife, a tissue or two story but she makes sure to never miss it.
We all have heard the expression,” do you want the good news or the bad news,” but in this age of Coronavirus it seems that there is nothing but bad news. This is probably why people want to close the media for 30 days in order to get a reprieve from all the bad news. I have another idea which I think at this time would give us all a better feeling or a different glow about things.
It is really quite simple. Instead of giving the good news / bad news how about giving us a newscast dedicated to nothing but good news. I am sure in every, city state and town in this country there is a story about people getting together to help someone in need. It could be something as simple as helping all the elderly with their shopping maybe a town coming together to keep a local merchant afloat or a group coming together to supply meals to all the first responders and hospital workers during this pandemic.
I am also sure you will find is that this happens all the time in this country, not only when there is a crisis. Afterall if David Muir can find something to report nightly imagine just how many feel-good stories go unreported.
Perhaps the networks should consider a news program after the nightly news dedicated only to good news, the one stipulation these stories must be about the average American’s deeds. I don’t need to know how some self-absorbed Hollywood type feels or what he or she thinks or how they can resolve a problem which they usually can’t do. I don’t need some meaningless hashtag movement and most of all I don’t need some big-name musician streaming a concert from his or her lavish basement and asking me for money to help the cause, donate your own money.
If this Good News Network (GNN) cannot be done maybe, we should start our own. Let’s share those good deeds among ourselves and spread the word. Maybe we will not need to close down the media for 30 days and help ease the world’s problems by saying, “do you want the good news, because we don’t have bad news.” This I am sure would give us all that feeling that Cousin Bob would call that…..Rosy Glow.
N.B. I would like to thank Steve Rooney for that posting that on Facebook.
Bob's Rosy Glow 