If it bleeds it leads. Nobody cares about the thousands of planes that land safely every day.

For myself and my late partner we listened to how miserable other people were. It helped give us an understanding of how well off we were plus helped direct us to actions we could take to aleviate the suffereing.

One big example is my involvement, letter writing, speaking to people and on, concerning the Death With Dignity programs/movement. We need to focus on how our society fosters suffering for various reasons as money, or not being able to let go or whatever. Sometimes negative things can bring positive actions and right now one big positive thing is a move away from promoting an insane gun policy in this country!

When a drone flies so high it cannot be seen or heard, and releases a bomb that kills. then nearby children fear a blue sky. The arms manufacturers promote fear, so they can sell more arms, including fully automatic assault weapons to children and adults. Yes, the news carries stories that scare people, including terrorist attacks, murders and mayhem.

Fear is just another form of control. If everyone is scares of something they tend to fall in line

Yes, we incarcerate the poor, place everyone in debt, cut their wages, look down on immigrants, and even the same citizens as well. Also, there exists negative views on atheism. Little unity, lots of division and that creates fear in my mind.

I think that the disasters and horrifying things we see on the news is a product of certain countries like the US that promote fear in their citizens. If you keep your citizens poor and afraid, then they are much less likely to strike, protest or vote. That is a very good thing for some politicians, especially ones who are funded by the NRA. Lots more guns are sold. Most people who do not vote are the poor. That's sad. They are the ones who need their voices heard the most.

No doubt about it.
Fear is an extremely effective control device, mastered by the plutocracy.
The media is generally complicit in how fear is wielded, promoting and elevating what best grabs and holds viewers’ attention (which translates to profit) while ignoring or downplaying balanced, rational, fact-based views (so boring!).
But I don't think the media is knowingly working in concert with the plutocrats. They're just being exploited, like everyone else.
Fear is the source of so much injustice and suffering. The most effective tools against it are knowledge and compassion.

Profits influencing what we hear and see in the media.

I don't believe in some nefarious scheme on behalf of the media. They are a business as much as a service and they're appealing to a common interest among humans - insecurities. We are a very insecure species. Perhaps because of our relative helplessness at birth. And this is expressed in the keen cognizance and fear we exhibit when it comes to things that are different. We aren't just inherently fearful of things that are different - we are downright terrified of them. Until we establish some basis of security we are a quivering, crying mess. The few sensations we have encountered to date (as newborns) form the initial security we can find thru repetitiveness. We desire to be warm, snug, and listening to a heartbeat. The things we feel in the womb that are countered by swadling and heat and soothing/holding of another. This is why that bonding with your mother is so important. You persist through your entire life building upon the foundation of security you reaceived there - whether it was a good one or a bad one. It affects you dramatically.

Of course some do confuse this by taking advantage of the insecurity to do their evil bidding. Others, however, just appeal to it. If it wasn't there to start that itself could be considered bad. But it's preexisting. So they'd hafta take it a bad direction to start drawing such criticism.

Yes, we live in a culture that promotes fear and negativity because a normal life is just not that exciting for a society that thrives on drama.

Of course, this being the reason nations tend to swing to the right when the population are afraid. Examples: Bush and Trump in the US, Putin in Russia, the current right wing government in Israel, the Conservative Party in the UK and the rise of the far right in Europe.

A very large percentage of the world's media is controlled by right wing figures, usually in cahoots with politicians who share their views (and, in many cases, like getting donations) - the classic example of that being Rupert Murdoch.

Fear does create an environment that the gop has more than taken advantage of.

When I was a kid in the 60s in Oz, a shooting in New York would be reported in our evening news. At one point a shooting in Sydney would not make front page in other states.
Most news I see now is Isis, North Korea, South China Sea, pandemics and Donald Trump.
All the pending disasters I guess.Nothing that afectes me or that I can do anything about.

I agree totally that the political and religious right thrives on fear and actively promotes fear as a vehicle to drive people into belief in a deceptive and manipulative ideology.

All Fox News does is promote fear. They also lie a lot, but that is to help promote the fear. If they were forced to only report real news, they’d be sitting around twiddling their thumbs.

It seems that everyone is blaming the media - I'm not a fan, but what would you have them do? They are doing their jobs by being manipulated by the "powers that be": Big Business, Government (pick a side),senators, congressmen, lobbyists, etc, etc, etc... Even opposing media outlets and producers seem to build up and profit from a conglomeration of fears.

We have fear of losing health care, fear of losing jobs, fear of losing social security, fear of losing our country's natural resources, fear of losing citizenship status, fear of losing our homes or our money, fear of losing our children or our parents - and many of these have already happened. And we have the fear of losing our reputation on the world stage, not to mention war coming to our shores. How many more do you think they could fit in?

I believe we live in a culture that promotes ignorance. Ignorance leads to fear.

So does religion. People are turned on by gross things like crucifixtion! It makes for a nice news program don't you think?

Fearful people are more compliant.

My earlier comment was off the cuff without actually reading the link or even giving the post much thought.

My childhood was tumultous and at times unsafe but I did have periods of safety with my grandmother. I used to be very conservative when I was a young mother. It was a violent act commited against my brother that made me more refectful which in turn started me down the liberal path.

Most of my family is still conservative to varying degrees.
I'm likely gonna spend all day pondering this at work

War hate division and it's acceptance. I have to wonder how they picked the subjects of the experiment. Was there any sense of leading going into the experiment. While I can see how people may show different characteristics under intense upbringing, I have questions when someone tells me there's a difference in human nature that can be shown by party affiliation. And the Washington Post gives me grave pause to the nature and possible agenda. Seriously, lets take a look at the articles opening. "At Yale, we conducted an experiment to turn conservatives into liberals". No agenda there, right? While I'll also admit one's nature can be also diminished by intense up bringing or life events, as a whole, we all closely share the same reaction and thoughts to events as such mentioned. I'm highly leaning towards this being a means of division and attempting to produce a perception one group of people are better than another.

"Do you believe we belong to a species that adapts around fear?"

FIFY.

Powers goes to those who know how to manipulate other’s need to belong

Misery loves company

I'm in complete agreement that its deliberate. I believe that it might not be done specifically to push a conservative agenda, but it lines up quite "nicely"

. News gets the most ratings out of fear. It's why theres always a "This household item will kill your children! Find out which at 11" kind of story. Fear sells more than sex.

The unfortunate truth is that fear does lead people to conservativism. Everything from Nazi germany to foreign invasions to anti-muslim laws to gay "conversion" camps to AR-15 protection laws are all possible not because of hate but because of fear. They make you afraid of things and people you don't know or understand. Or they make you fear that someone is coming for you (or your gun) or your freedom or whatever.

So the station gets the rating and the people get scared into supporting shit like the patriot act. Everyone wins. Especially fox news who has an interest both in ratings AND furthering that agenda.
Now, to be fair its just not conservative news that pushes its agenda. Interestingly enough though, I find liberal media to be a mix of fear and outrage/frustation/indignation. There is a lot of "What trump will do next" that keeps people locked in out of fear, but also a lot of "guess what these guys just did!" to get people riled up.It doesnt feel as bad to me, and makes a lot of sense, but I'm liberal and they're trying to appeal to me and it works. Is it as bad? I dunno, I'd have to hear that from a conservative.

Also, good read that you linked Not sure its conclusive of course, but its an interesting talking point for sure.