Media fear tactics

The intentional misinforming of the general public to create mass fear and paranoia.

Truthfulness in news media

It would be interesting if the standards of  Truth in Advertising were applied to the news media as they sometimes are to television commercials.  In that unlikely situation news writers would be required to use words that convey accurate information – as opposed to the words they use today in news media that are at the least misleading the general public and disinforming them.

Breaking the code of news media

Fear tactics used on general public

I want to help you to break the code of media fear tactics so you can more easily find the valuable information that may (or may not) be part of the story.

I want to change your experience of  news media, to help you actually experience it differently.

I want to provide you with some tools you can use to ensure that when you experience news media only actual information gets through.

The following are example of key words and phrases used by the news media to misinform the general public creating undue fear in the process.

Possible

The word “Possible” does not have the specificity one hopes for journalism, given that it is completely accurate when applied to anything anyone can possibly imagine.

Example:  “A possible outbreak of…” means there has been no outbreak “ A possible connection..” means there is no confirmed connection. “Possible attacks..” mean there have been no attacks. Anytime the news media uses the word possible it’s probably not happening now and may not be a valid point but an opinion.

Links

Next up, possible links between Bin Laden and traffic jams.”

Are theses two things linked?  No.  But it got your attention.

Link are a great news media trick, because you can tie a remote, unconfirmed, or even unimportant story to something that is really pushing buttons.  When you hear the word link in the news media, there is no confirmed link or any connection between the two items.  Especially if they say possible links.

“Our Nations”

Phrases like these are used to imply some large scale to a small story. Like a car dripping motor oil onto the road becomes “A new threat to Our Nation’s water supplies.”  Our nation is enormous. Nothing, not even nuclear bombs, pose a threat to all of any system in our society at the same time. When the news media says “Our Nation’s “ anything, they are usually trying to give grand significance to something that is insignificant and mediocre  at best.  Just as a car leaking a few drops of oil does not constitute an national effect on anything and at best may be a local problem of little or no national significance.

 

“Shocking New Details”

“Shocking new details when we come back.”

Well first of all, the details are not likely to be new, and if they are so critical, why are we waiting until after the commercial or break, and anyway, what does shocking mean at this point?

Nothing just another ploy to get you to watch or suffer through the commercial.

Another form of media hype and unless the reporter jumped out of the television did the hula and jumped back in I don’t think anything said is going to shock me.

Auditors, Observers, Analysts,inspectors, loopholes

“Auditors cite loopholes in security at our nation’s Libraries.”

That is right anytime you have an audit or inspection you are going to find something. Auditors are people hired to make reports identifying deficiencies.

The implication projected in a story about security loophole is that somebody will come crashing through the loophole – but that is not necessarily so.  They tell you (and the terrorist) about the loophole because it is freighting not because of  it being enlighting.

In an Carefully Worded Statement ____ said

Well I would think any statement or speech would be carefully and thoughtfully put together in cognitive form.

The words “Carefully Worded”  are meant by the press to imply that something is being hidden when nothing is being hidden.

In top secret government memos leaked to this reporter.

This is an ought right lie to mislead people into thinking the individual has exclusive information unattainable from other sources than the media source.  If it was a real top secret file or information the FBI, NSA, And homeland security would have long ago arrested the individual and shut down the media source leaking sensitive top secret information. This just means the media source is holding the bogus top secret papers that they created or received. Disclosure project uses this ploy.

serious

“officials consider the threat to be serious”

Is that to distinguish this threat from the threats they laugh about over lunch?

Taking something seriously does not mean the threat is great or imminent.  It just means officials are doing what anyone would do to address and answer the threat.  More likely they are taking no chances that reporters will broadcast a report saying they are taking chances. In theses case there is no need for alarm as officials have the threat handled.

Officials are closely monitoring

Used to  imply that something is imminent, and worthy of being closely monitored.  “Officials are on the look out for..” is the same

The implication here is as if  Officials are standing outside looking around with binoculars. Waiting for it to happen when in fact they have the situation under control.

Could, Perhaps, potential, Might

NASA reports that a large piece of space junk –perhaps as big as a freighter- could enter Earth’s atmosphere over North America tonight. Experts warn it could potentially slam into the Earth.

What are you to do with this report it is vague and lacks location in North America and it fails to say that it may enter over North America but actually fall in the pacific and poses no threat.

An alarming percentage

When percentages are used get the actual number and see if it really is alarming to you.  For instance if percentages are used and a reporter says the president’s approval rating has dropped to an alarming low of 34% well if they only called 1000  persons and 340 people actually responded then result of their study  was really 100% of the people the called approve of the president and the rest had better things to do than answer their questions.

As many as..

Means somewhere between zero and the number given. This should also be taken just like the percentage  data are you really at risk not likely.

In a developing Story

Translation we don’t have a verified story yet.

Former employees

Reveal and yield nothing to an investigation but their opinion. Since they were fired or retired weeks before or years before an event and have had no contact with the event or the site it occurred at for months or years they are not “officials” But just another man on the street opinion.  Just like the so called experts on terrorism the media seems to barf up a retired general who last did military time 20 years ago is not an expert in terrorism.

Language being used from another story

Use of key words that came from other tragedies such as the terrorist attacks of 9-11-01.

The hurricane is going to make a direct hit on Tampa Florida

Which indicates the storm can control it’s own path and to the listener should indicate a storm is on the way if you live in that area you might want to take precautions.

In a last minute development .

In a surprise development,

Translation : We didn’t get the news crew to the scene in time

Or we got things messed up and here is the correction.”

Disturbing questions

Yes so quit repeating them over and over since you have no real answers.

A new study reveals.
A new report warns
experts fear
experts worry
 

Yes reports from news sources seem to warn, fear and worry a lot of people without any real reason.

Deadly

Where an new disease that might be fatal if not treated and undue fear is created by taking a few isolated reports and creating a total paranoia about a pandemic of a flu strain or anthrax both of which are survivable and treatable.

Experts say it’s just a matter of time before…

They sure do but it does not mean it is accurate after you edit it.

But ___ feel

You can put any city in the blank and grab a person on the street get their opinion  and that makes factual for everyone in that city or region.

Hardly it represents nothing more than the individual’s opinion.

Warning signs

Any list of signs that implies great risks.

For instance the checklist on signs of carjacking

An armed stranger approaches car

Taps on closed window

Looks around suspiciously.

Now the news reporter  gives you a checklist of precautions from some  self proclaimed Expert.

Most of this boils down to useless common sense duh factor information.

Officials admit

Well what was the full context of the original question the reporter asked.  Was it a what if this unlikely scenario happened and …

Of course a reporter can lead an official into making a statement that can be later edited to sound like an out of context admission

Experts

It may seem like you are getting expert advice on the news but that is far from the truth.  The moment an expert’s words are edited, thy might as well be thrown in a blender.  The news media takes thirty minuets of an expert’s opinion and edits down to twenty three seconds.   The nes media brings you: Expert opinion edited, mediated, and minimized by nonexperts who ask questions designed to elicit the most alarming responses.  Which makes the data useless and misleading at best.

Names and labels game

The news media will frequently assign a nickname for a wanted criminal or to a disease.

This is indicative of a hoped-for series of reports and the continual hyping up of the threat that does not exist to you as you have no involvement in the incident other than hearing of the report.

I told you so

Find a group after a disaster that has been saying it was possible to happen and after the fact try to assign blame that is unassignable by the news media.

Disaster unreadiness stories

If disaster that fit this hypothetical scenario occurred would you be ready for it.  If answer is yes then change go to another official and change the scenarios until you get a no answer.

Now hype it up.  While being absolutely oblivious to any emergency response that may be planned incase that scenario happened. These stories are bogus and meant to scare people and make them feel  less secure.

Will never be forgotten

This is to give an accident or an incident more credence than what it is really worth.

Counteracting News media induced fear and paranoia.

Turn off sensational, uninspirational, uneducaional, privacy-meddling, death pedaling, celebrity-snooping, rumor-repeating, minicamtoting, fear-promoting TV news.

If we turn it off, then we can face the important question of how we can live life

Keep it off long enough to see you are not missing anything but fear .

Get your information in print.

Get information don’t let information get you.

If you are interested in something research it for yourself in the library and on the web.