With the weather freezing and general February gloom upon us, I started thinking why human nature finds bad news infinitely more interesting than good.
Of course good news triumphs too – the results of tonights’s Oscars will be all over tomorrow’s papers for example, although if some poor actor follows Jennifer Lawrence’s example and trips over their priceless gown – I can assure you that will take up just as many column inches and web space with the resulting photo’s , images and video GIFs.
Everybody loves a success story – but they love a crisis more..
And extreme weather is infinitely more interesting and newsworthy. Ask the Daily Express, they have a new ‘weathergeddon’ every day. It sells..
But I strongly believe local newspapers have more than a role than just telling the bad news.
Read my latest column on the subject HERE