By Craig Regan
In a variation on the “build it and they will come” theme, a radio station in Puerto Rico wants to turn around the island’s rampant murder rate by not reporting bad news.
Starting next Tuesday, the program "Noticias OK," will only report good news as a way to minimise violence on the streets.
The program’s host says "the distribution of news with a positive focus will be a balm that will improve the quality of life on the island".
The one-hour show will include segments called "Aplausos,” which will recognise people helping their communities, and "Musica OK," which will only play songs with positive messages. That rules out playing Led Zeppelin records backwards to reveal all those subliminal Satanic blatherings.
“Noticas OK” is basing its plan on market research with just 100 people in low-income communities.
Plenty of people have tried to launch good news media outlets in the past and have failed miserably. News, by definition, is something that changes the status quo.
The old saying in journalism: “If it bleeds, it leads” means the most dramatic news is what’s most prominently reported.
Puerto Rico recorded a record 1,136 homicides in 2011. Between 1980 and 2005 the average annual homicide rate was 19 per 100,000 people.
Recent Comments