You report that broadcast media are looking to address the massive drift from mainstream news sources, in part due to the relentless nature of its negativity (‘I can’t cope with it any more’: newsrooms scramble to retain audiences amid the big switch-off, 1 April).
So why are our media so obsessed with bad news? Who says that we must face a daily diet of stories about Gaza or Ukraine or Myanmar or Donald Trump’s shenanigans, followed by a case about a sex pest in the 70s or a dodgy priest, followed by gory, often prurient details of a domestic abuse case or police corruption (or both) and a deadly house fire?
It is relentless, depressing, and quite possibly a major contributor to our country’s declining mental health.
There are thousands of good, uplifting, inspiring stories out there that should be in the news. I know because I have worked on my algorithms to make sure I get them, plus I support Positive News, a fantastic journal full of … well let’s just say, it does what it says on the tin. It gives me hope.
I suggest Deborah Turness, the head of BBC News, and her opposite numbers at ITV and Sky start sharing some of the many joyful things that are happening in our world. Perhaps this will boost their viewing figures and our nation’s mental health.
Sally Elias
Dorking, Surrey
• There are some people who watch the news compulsively. When I was a psychotherapist, I termed the condition suffered by so-called news junkies “newsrosis”. It is a debilitating trap, because we are fed a non-stop stream of stories that serve only to generate anxiety, partly because we have no control over the events described, while being given to understand that they are of great importance to our lives.
Exacerbating this, presenters often pose absurd questions such as “How worried should we be about x, y or z?” Absurd because worry is completely useless. It’s a sign of health that people are now trying out abstinence or reducing their intake. We should also work on doing something positive for others, no matter how small. That’s something we do have control over, and we’ll feel better for it.
Nick Barton
Henstridge, Somerset
• I can’t speak for gen Z (Outlets seek fresh strategies as UK poll shows ‘news avoidance’ on the rise, 1 April), but I can confirm that this baby boomer hasn’t watched or listened to any broadcast news programme since January so as not to hear the whiny, aggressive voice of Donald J Trump. His face is sadly unavoidable, but I look forward to the day when a gen Z whiz finds some way of using AI to remove it from online and print media.
David Robertson
West Malvern, Worcestershire
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