Having heard about the apparent suicide of former Korean President Roh, I thought Reuters might be the place to find out more. Sure, the story was there, very sad it was too, and reported in some detail.
But what amazed me was the list of ‘most popular stories’ on Reuters UK.
1. Australian topless bathing ban urged.
2. Indian models dare to bare.
3. Bar Rafaeli designs perfect bikini.
4. Japan’s latest bra push.
1, 3 and 4 are basically about women’s breasts, 2 about women’s bodies more generally.
On Reuters? I was shocked.
I shouldn’t be. What a few years ago would have been seen as purely tabloid stories, or maybe an ITN News at Ten ‘and finally’ slot, are now regularly most viewed/read on tabloid, broadsheet and broadcast websites.
Not sure what if anything it means, but I felt like pointing it out.
You would’nt see the PA filling it’s News Schedule with such content.
It beggars belief with the huge range of news-worthy stories in the world at present. Perhaps the bank holiday and half term are creating a slow news day.
Not very edifying is it?! Maybe people are more worried about getting laid, if they need implants, or if their husband secretly fancies Kylie Minogue (in the case of mine, not that secretly) than if Parliamentary integrity is intensive care and the economy feeling a bit peaky. Maybe everyone just needed cheering up?
Not surprised. Not surprised at all.
“Japan’s latest bra push” I think this was a typo from the original. Should have read “Japan’s latest paint brush”
No, sea lion saved by panda in Saharan desert story? I thought animal stories would rank as high as sex stories. Oh well.
Je sais que tu seras probablement incommunicado lundi alors permet moi de te souhaiter un joyeux anniversaire en avance. Bisous.
None of these are NEWS stories… The Reuters I used to work for would not of given footer space to these. Dumbing-Down is alive & well & pandering to the lowest common denominator… Sad, very sad.
There is a PhD in there, somewhere.
Des Currie
Reuters
This is a huge fall from grace from the organisation that first published reports of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
What hope is there for the development of our young minds and souls if they are only feed drivel?
Isn’t this what comes with the democratisation of the media? Its inevitable that the media will just feed us what we want to hear and see when their income relies on it. Documenting the truth just doesn’t fund papers. “Most read” lists on news websites just prove it, and possibly even more dangerously, encourage it.