I think it is pretty clear that we are living in a sensationalistic age. On the output and competitive side, one cannot expect to be noticed unless one breaks social conventions and expectations or unless one has something superlative to say. So, we wind up with "The Seven Words We Can't Say on Television". Or, for superlatives, we might get "Man Drinks 1000 bottles of beer in an hour" or some other unbeatable feat. On the input and customer side, we hear about so much, always filtered and sorted on by the writers and media so it is likely to be sensational and superlative, that our brains filter it out and our attention quickly fades from the item unless it is the most or the least or some other extreme.
I like to try to imagine what it was like in previous times when communication was very much slower. Today, we learn about what happens almost as it is happening. Besides, we learn about most parts of planet at the same time. A bicycle accident in South America, a volcano in Iceland, violence in Kyrgyzstan, Wall Street prices: it is all there along with background material, history, comment, explanation, debate. A couple of centuries ago, we might not hear about events in Europe for months. We might not hear about events in some places at all.
When I saw the headline The City that Can't Heal, I was intrigued. Not just by the picture but also by the evocative writing. Today, we have journalism students and graduate students studying how to write memorably, evocatively. And they really can and they really do.
These days, we have pictures, live video from all over nearly instantaneously. Again, as with the writers, the photographers and cinematographers study, research and criticize their art. They learn their art and develop advanced tools to modify, crop, enlarge their images for maximum effect.
I also wonder about the stress on modern correspondents. I imagine flying into a war zone or a disaster area and being fluent in the local language is good but exposes the reporter to the full effect of tension, fear and despair that the people there are feeling. Quickly flying home, maybe to a fine dinner and a comfortable and secure bed can elicit a bit of survivor guilt and a bit of extra pain for those still in the mess.
