Self-fulfilling prophecy

In the shallowest form of news possible, celebrity gossip rags have terrorized Britney Spears and, I believe, driven her to behavior beyond even her realm of normalcy. Everyday there is some new crazy episode that happened to her to read about. “You can’t make this stuff up” they say. That’s true you can’t. But how big of a role does the media play in making things happen? Ten years ago Britney had a pretty pristine image. Just like Lindsay Lohan and so many others. I honestly think the media should leave her alone and let her get her life together. They have to know how much effects they’re having on Britney.
The next generation’s good girl, Miley Cyrus, got a taste of the criticism. No, she wasn’t caught in a cat fight or driving drunk, she was riding in a car with her dad sans seatbelt. Really? Am I really reading a story about Miley Cyrus’ image being corrupted because she didn’t buckle up? Don’t get me wrong, wearing a seatbelt is important but these new sources are obviously scrounging for any dirt they can find. Could Miley Cyrus really be shaving her head and strapped to a gurney in ten years? Right now it seems unheard of but I’m sure living a big brotheresque life with constant cameras could change anyone.
But what about the real media? All around the country, the focus is on a sinking housing market but Lafayette was doing pretty well. Hard to tell though when national stories constantly drive a point of a terrible market. The Lafayette area is now seeing a slump of its own. Why? Because people believe the national news about the market. And though local stories attempt to cover the truth about local markets maybe it’s just not enough to combat the constant national market slump coverage.
I call it all self-fulfilling prophecy. Who knew the media had so much sway in the history of our country? The next step I believe is to address recession scares. It may not just be a scare anymore but burying our country in this news only puts more fear in their heads. How about instead of talking about how bad it is talk about the steps to alleviate it? I have always believed that the media’s job is to tell the story, but our other job is to know what story to tell, why, how and when.