This is also evident in media consumption
Posted: Sat Feb 01, 2025 9:12 am
This negativity bias was vital for survival hundreds of years ago, because it was important for these people to know which fruits were difficult to digest or even poisonous, where bears lived or where predators went hunting. That is why all experiences and sensory impressions were analyzed and stored in great detail. It is probably also due to this evolutionary inheritance that people today still cling to negative memories, even if they sometimes hinder people. (Stangl, 2022).
Negative things are easier to remember. Our canada rcs data psychological tendency ensures that bad news is more likely to catch the eye than good news. Negative headlines are more likely to be clicked on. The media, as the fourth estate, also has the task of looking into problems and conflicts. If they only reported positive things, they would be neglecting this duty.
Excessive interest in bad news can degenerate into sensationalism (gawkers at an accident). But I understand people who are interested in what happened after a traffic accident, a disaster or a crime. Anyone who finds out the cause can learn something from a distanced perspective. It is quite possible to see after looking at a photo of a rear-end collision that in future more attention should be paid to distance.
Negative things are easier to remember. Our canada rcs data psychological tendency ensures that bad news is more likely to catch the eye than good news. Negative headlines are more likely to be clicked on. The media, as the fourth estate, also has the task of looking into problems and conflicts. If they only reported positive things, they would be neglecting this duty.
Excessive interest in bad news can degenerate into sensationalism (gawkers at an accident). But I understand people who are interested in what happened after a traffic accident, a disaster or a crime. Anyone who finds out the cause can learn something from a distanced perspective. It is quite possible to see after looking at a photo of a rear-end collision that in future more attention should be paid to distance.