There’s no doubt that mainstream media is powerful.
VERY POWERFUL.
Mainstream media basically controls what happens in America. It’s because we’ve grown up trusting the news. The news has always been a credible source. So whenever something happens that makes the news, we trust what’s being reported.
In light of recent tragedies, I’d just like to do a quick intro on how the media works. At the end of the day, the media is a great way to get headlines for events that just happened. But know that these events are not reported for the sake of covering the events. No, they’re reported to make the mainstream media as much money as possible.
Mmm… Money
People turn to the news for almost everything. Sports, global events, weather, what’s happening online, the state of the economy… the list goes on and on and on.
Therefore, there are more eyeballs looking at news items then virtually everything else on the internet. Every major event is reported by the news, and the media is where people turn to first.
As we all know, the more visitors you have on your site, the more money you can make. But there’s a bit of a problem – with the mainstream media, people don’t want to buy ANYTHING. They simply want to get their information fix and move on to the next story.
So how should the mainstream media stay afloat? Selling subscriptions is a model that’s failed miserably. Therefore, there’s one place left to turn: advertisements.
And how convenient! Advertisements pay based on views, or “impressions.”
Here’s what you need to takeaway from all of this: the more pageviews, the more money.
What Gets Pageviews?
Hot, breaking news – that’s what! It’s like a funnel. An event happens, and people immediately turn to the news. Whoever has the story out first will get that huge surge of eyeballs, and make a lot more money.
So in newsrooms everywhere, the rush is to get the story out as quickly as possible… at all costs.
Yes, “journalists” very often publish news stories they KNOW ARE NOT TRUE, and then “fix” them later with added facts.
Take the very recent school shooting incident. At first, the news was reported. But they didn’t know who did it. So what did they do? They released a name that had a GOOD CHANCE at being the guy who did it.
Guess what? It wasn’t him!
Mainstream media doesn’t care. See, in those minutes that they HAD the guy who did it, they were getting FLOODED with page-views. Because no other website had identified the guy!
Now think of this guy. Suddenly, he’s framed with the appalling school-shooting crime, and he didn’t even commit it! Millions of people now believe that he did. And this is the internet… it’s very easy to get someone’s personal information.
This man’s life is likely in danger, and—at the very least—he’ll be pestered for weeks, months, or YEARS to come.
All for the increased surge of page-views.
Why are you writing this?
Well, I feel people need to be informed about this. And really, it’s VERY related to the internet business world. The entire “blogosphere” goes by this model. The more eyeballs, the more money.
Heck – we even use it on this site. Except we don’t get paid for eyeballs, which is why we focus on writing top quality content you guys can use right away.
It’s good news for us online marketers, because it simply means we have to find a good angle to spin a story on our business on, and we can make headline news. You alone can decide where you stand on that morally.
The fact is, when you hear something on the news, realize there’s a BIG agenda behind it – MONEY.
News is not about integrity. It’s not about getting the best story out possible. It’s about making money.
This isn’t to say you shouldn’t watch the news. That’s a choice I’ve made and my life has benefited substantially. But, if you do choose to watch the news, view it with this in mind. Realize that what you’re getting is—in almost every case—not the full story.
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