The Business of Terrorism

I believe it was Andrew Sullivan that said that for the first time in history, the biggest threat to Americans is not other countries, but corporations. However, because some of the biggest, most corrupt corporations now own the media outlets, you won't hear much about that.

I found Michael Moore's film "Bowling for Columbine" was a bit over-the top and manipulative, but it drove home one important point: The American news media uses fear to keep us watching. By turning evening news reports into nothing more than a local police blotter (Fox 5 being the worst local offender), people become afraid, and keep tuning in to see what other things they should be afraid of.

It's no different for Terrorism. Corporate corruption is accepted as a given, almost expected, and is not very newsworthy. It wouldn't be covered very well, even if some of the worst corporate offenders didn't own the TV stations. The tragedy of 9/11 killed 2,600 people and caused billions in damages. The Enron Scandal alone stole billions from twice as many people and took scores of utility companies for billions as well, but it was pretty much a back-page business section story.

Terrorism, on the other hand, is a media mogul's wet dream: (1) It's intangible, so people will live in fear of it, and keep tuning in to keep abreast of the latest developments. (2) Our Men and Women are overseas trying to root it out, so there's patriotic/national interest in our military actions. (3) Most importantly, a single terrorist event can keep news and opinions running for months, or even years.

From a cost-benefit perspective, terrorism has become quite profitable for the media: Very little work has to be done by a news organization in order to produce segments on terrorism, since most of it is speculation and opinions. Despite the low content of actual news, these are the most-watched segments by viewers. More viewers means outlets can charge more for advertising.

Terrorism has become the Reality TV of news: Viewers hate watching, but just can't turn it off, and Media companies are making money hand-over-fist.