The Covid News Channel

[Fishindude]

I don't watch TV news much anymore but my wife does so I frequently hear it in the background.
Just this morning for the last two hours it's been non stop covid, covid, covid bad news.

I still don't know anyone that has gotten sick or died from it, and it's pretty much a non-issue around here.   With exceptions of the restaurants, etc. the Gestapo has forced closing, and half or less of people wearing masks in stores, life is pretty much going on as normal.   Guess it's the only thing the media has to talk about, and bad news attracts more listeners / viewers than good news.

[mathlete]

It’s a real thing. Over 130,000 people have died and its picking back up.

Sorry you’re tired of hearing about it.

[OtherJen]

Good for you. Enjoy the bubble.

[tarheeldan]

It’s a real thing. Over 130,000 people have died and its picking back up.

Sorry you’re tired of hearing about it.

Yep. Almost 25% of global deaths with less than 5% of the global population. USA!

[Rosy]

It’s a real thing. Over 130,000 people have died and its picking back up.

Sorry you’re tired of hearing about it.

Yep. Almost 25% of global deaths with less than 5% of the global population. USA!

Quick, change the channel fishing dude ... the truth is being screamed from the rooftops by every News Channel in the country.

[OtherJen]

It’s a real thing. Over 130,000 people have died and its picking back up.

Sorry you’re tired of hearing about it.

Yep. Almost 25% of global deaths with less than 5% of the global population. USA!

Quick, change the channel fishing dude ... the truth is being screamed from the rooftops by every News Channel in the country.

Yep, it’s definitely a thing out here in the real world.

[Steeze]

Don’t forget to hate minimum 50% of the people in the country while you have the news on - it’s not ALL about Covid, At least half of the news is Us vs. Them.

And yes, Covid has been good for advertisers - my wife is an analyst at a major network, numbers are up - more views, more impressions, more readers, more revenue. Ride this wave as long as possible. What is the saying? “Don’t let a tragedy go to waste?”

Never mind the political motivation of keeping large percentages of the public uncertain and scared.

[Fishindude]

Don’t forget to hate minimum 50% of the people in the country while you have the news on - it’s not ALL about Covid, At least half of the news is Us vs. Them.

And yes, Covid has been good for advertisers - my wife is an analyst at a major network, numbers are up - more views, more impressions, more readers, more revenue. Ride this wave as long as possible. What is the saying? “Don’t let a tragedy go to waste?”

Never mind the political motivation of keeping large percentages of the public uncertain and scared.

Seems like this is exactly what they are shooting for.

[projekt]

Unfortunately, in many parts of the country Covid is the primary concern on people's minds. I never watch TV news and rarely tune in on the radio, but I am nevertheless quite concerned about Covid and I read a ton about it. I don't think the TV news collectively switching to shark attacks instead will make Covid go away, not from people's minds, nor from reality.

[CopperTex]

This guy/girl has got to be trolling, right?

[the_fixer]

I don't watch TV news much anymore but my wife does so I frequently hear it in the background.
Just this morning for the last two hours it's been non stop covid, covid, covid bad news.

I still don't know anyone that has gotten sick or died from it, and it's pretty much a non-issue around here.   With exceptions of the restaurants, etc. the Gestapo has forced closing, and half or less of people wearing masks in stores, life is pretty much going on as normal.   Guess it's the only thing the media has to talk about, and bad news attracts more listeners / viewers than good news.

Awesome for you that is great!

Meanwhile my stepdad passed away with covid, my aunt was in the hospital with it and was released to hospice, my wife’s friend had it and was in the hospital for a week, 2 of my coworkers that I work with all the time had it, one ended up in the hospital for a week the other was just really sick.

I have been under quarantine 2 times due to exposure by the two co-workers mentioned above.

So for some of us it is real, glad you are not one of them and you should be thankful.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Sibley]

fishindude, may I recommend that you work on developing empathy and showing compassion? The lack is not attractive.

Edit: typo

[facepalm]

This guy/girl has got to be trolling, right?

Given their username, a big yes.

[Steeze]

This guy/girl has got to be trolling, right?

Given their username, a big yes.

He was baiting us

[Rosy]

This guy/girl has got to be trolling, right?

Given their username, a big yes.

He was baiting us

Hook, line and sinker.

[arebelspy]

Don’t forget to hate minimum 50% of the people in the country while you have the news on - it’s not ALL about Covid, At least half of the news is Us vs. Them.

And yes, Covid has been good for advertisers - my wife is an analyst at a major network, numbers are up - more views, more impressions, more readers, more revenue. Ride this wave as long as possible. What is the saying? “Don’t let a tragedy go to waste?”

Never mind the political motivation of keeping large percentages of the public uncertain and scared.

Seems like this is exactly what they are shooting for.

That may be true, but it doesn't mean it isn't real.

I am sorry for your loss, the_fixer. I hope everyone else you know recovers without further harm.

[Bloop Bloop]

Covid's killed 50 times more people in the US than 9/11 did, but the networks certainly had a field day with 9/11

So I don't think the coverage is disproportionate.

[Kyle Schuant]

9/11 coverage was hysterical, too.

Covid's still dwarfed by obesity as a cause of death in the US. Now, imagine if the news went on about that, and shamed over-eaters the way they're shaming people not being physically distant, etc? That'd be cool, I'd watch that.

[Moonwaves]

9/11 coverage was hysterical, too.

Covid's still dwarfed by obesity as a cause of death in the US. Now, imagine if the news went on about that, and shamed over-eaters the way they're shaming people not being physically distant, etc? That'd be cool, I'd watch that.

It's feels like you're really pushing the boat recently, Kyle. Don't worry, us obese/over-eaters get plenty of shaming from all sides already. The difference with the Coronavirus is that my being fat is not going to make you or anyone else sick.

[TheFrenchCat]

9/11 coverage was hysterical, too.

Covid's still dwarfed by obesity as a cause of death in the US. Now, imagine if the news went on about that, and shamed over-eaters the way they're shaming people not being physically distant, etc? That'd be cool, I'd watch that.

It's feels like you're really pushing the boat recently, Kyle. Don't worry, us obese/over-eaters get plenty of shaming from all sides already. The difference with the Coronavirus is that my being fat is not going to make you or anyone else sick.

Also, I wouldn't say COVID deaths are dwarfed by obesity deaths. NIH estimates obesity deaths at about 300,000 per, which is terrible.  But we're at 137,000 COVID deaths in about 4 months. If things keep going the way they are, there'll be about 100,000 more COVID deaths.   I know the situation is a little more complicated than that, since obesity is a risk factor for complications from COVID and I hope COVID deaths will slow down.  But there's definitely more than enough COVID deaths for it to be a huge concern. And as Moonwaves said, obesity isn't contagious. 

[sherr]

Covid's still dwarfed by obesity as a cause of death in the US. Now, imagine if the news went on about that, and shamed over-eaters the way they're shaming people not being physically distant, etc? That'd be cool, I'd watch that.

One person's obesity doesn't kill anyone else.

[BikeFanatic]

These comparisons just do not make sense.
Car crashes do not endanger Nurses and Doctors that work at the hospital, They do not endanger the debilitated  that live  mostly indoors, Obese people are not maxing out hospital capacity such that people could die rather easily from accidents and heart attacks  because no ICU beds available or one is available to treat them.

I just do not get the comparisons, my weight obese or not doesnt harm anyone else. My mother is not going to die because I am obese!

[trollwithamustache]

These comparisons just do not make sense.
Car crashes do not endanger Nurses and Doctors that work at the hospital, They do not endanger the debilitated  that live  mostly indoors, Obese people are not maxing out hospital capacity such that people could die rather easily from accidents and heart attacks  because no ICU beds available or one is available to treat them.

I just do not get the comparisons, my weight obese or not doesnt harm anyone else. My mother is not going to die because I am obese!

really? 'cause if you show up all bloody at the ER, they wear a ton of PPE to protect themselves against blood borne pathogens.  not just the HIV, things like Hep B are very really and out there in the general population.

[mathlete]

It's worth noting that we can and do a whole hell of a lot to reduce auto fatalities.

We started taking drunk driving seriously in the 1970s. Most seat belt legislation was passed in the 1980s. In 2014, we mandated that new cars sold after a certain date had to have backup cameras.

Drunk driving deaths have been more than cut in half since the early 1980s, despite the fact that as a country, we're driving twice as many miles.

Vehicle related deaths per mile driven are about 20%-25% of what they were in the 1970s.

As a society, we absolutely do shame drunk drivers and texting drivers. Commercials and billboards do this all the time. Sesame Street tells you to wear a seat belt and the science and the discussion around the car seat has greatly evolved since I was a kid.

We spend tons of time, money, concern and social capital on auto fatalities.

[dignam]

Covid's still dwarfed by obesity as a cause of death in the US. Now, imagine if the news went on about that, and shamed over-eaters the way they're shaming people not being physically distant, etc? That'd be cool, I'd watch that.

One person's obesity doesn't kill anyone else.

Although obesity doesn't directly kill anyone else, it does indirectly drive up healthcare costs, possibly prohibiting otherwise healthy individuals from getting the care they need (at least in the US).  Just to play devil's advocate.  Obesity is a very major problem without a clear solution.

That said...wear your f#$@ing masks people.  My county just enacted an emergency order requiring masks to be worn in public buildings.  The amount of people up in arms about it is ridiculous.

[sherr]

Covid's still dwarfed by obesity as a cause of death in the US. Now, imagine if the news went on about that, and shamed over-eaters the way they're shaming people not being physically distant, etc? That'd be cool, I'd watch that.

One person's obesity doesn't kill anyone else.

Although obesity doesn't directly kill anyone else, it does indirectly drive up healthcare costs, possibly prohibiting otherwise healthy individuals from getting the care they need (at least in the US).  Just to play devil's advocate.  Obesity is a very major problem without a clear solution.

That said...wear your f#$@ing masks people.  My county just enacted an emergency order requiring masks to be worn in public buildings.  The amount of people up in arms about it is ridiculous.

Yes, I'm not claiming that the US's obesity situation is great. It's just obviously not as "newsworthy" as a pandemic that is disproportionately killing Americans is, and it's a ridiculous comparison to make.

Now that Trump is finally starting to wear a mask I wonder if the mask-outrage will drop off sharply.

[mathlete]

Despite our efforts, it's the number one non natural killer in most places. It would be better if these resources were spent on alternative transportation in my opinion.

Maybe. I think there's been tremendous success in reducing auto deaths. I don't think it's a stretch to say that we're saving around 100K lives a year through those efforts. The rest of it comes down to cost/benefit analysis I suppose.

Cars are great for transportation, the economy and personal liberty. I'm a huge fan of public transportation as well, but it's not an option in rural areas, and it works best in dense cities like New York or San Francisco. "Car cities" like Los Angeles or Houston have worse public transportation, but the presumption that you need a car to get around leads to benefits like lower density and more affordable housing.

[OtherJen]

That said...wear your f#$@ing masks people.  My county just enacted an emergency order requiring masks to be worn in public buildings.  The amount of people up in arms about it is ridiculous.

RIGHT?! We now have a statewide mask order. I don’t understand why so many people refuse to understand that wearing masks means that more things are likely to stay open for them! Even the slightest inconvenience is eliciting tantrums that rival some of my niece’s most epic toddler episodes. One would think an adult would be ashamed to behave like that in public.

[Jack0Life]

That said...wear your f#$@ing masks people.  My county just enacted an emergency order requiring masks to be worn in public buildings.  The amount of people up in arms about it is ridiculous.

RIGHT?! We now have a statewide mask order. I don’t understand why so many people refuse to understand that wearing masks means that more things are likely to stay open for them! Even the slightest inconvenience is eliciting tantrums that rival some of my niece’s most epic toddler episodes. One would think an adult would be ashamed to behave like that in public.

This has been my biggest advocate for wearing masks.
Don't these anti-maskers want life to return to normal ??
The more they oppose the longer this country is stuck in this hell hole.
The level of idiocy in this country is indescribable.

[Kyle Schuant]

It's feels like you're really pushing the boat recently, Kyle. Don't worry, us obese/over-eaters get plenty of shaming from all sides already. The difference with the Coronavirus is that my being fat is not going to make you or anyone else sick.

1. it's actually contagious. Obese parents are likely to have obese children, and having obese people in your social circle makes you more likely to be obese.

2. If a person is crippled for any reason, their family ends up having to take care of them. My family could have a few months of having to roll me over in bed and change my nappies, or a couple decades. Shit happens to everyone, but I think we have a duty to our families to try to reduce rather than increase the odds of our being a burden for decades.

3. Because Australia is a civilised country, we have a free public healthcare system. Which means that other people's healthcare is paid for indirectly by our taxes. That's why for example cigarettes have a huge tax (they're about $35 a pack now) - it's the lay-buy plan for your lung transplant in twenty years. Alcohol's not taxed much, though, and junk food just have the ordinary 10% sales tax. Again, I think we have a duty not to be too great a burden on others.

Sure, there's fat-shaming, but with (for example) 76.5% of Aussie men in my age group (45-54yo) being overweight or obese, it's obviously not working well.

Now, I'm not in favour of shaming people for their personal behaviour. But if we can shame people for not wearing masks or having dinner parties with their friends, we can shame them for being obese. Either we can shame people for their personal behaviour, or we can't.

Which is it going to be? Consider carefully your answer and the consequences of it.

[mathlete]

It is not the same thing. You cannot catch obesity by sitting on the bus near an obese person in the same way that you catch an actual communicable disease.

[Davnasty]

Now, I'm not in favour of shaming people for their personal behaviour. But if we can shame people for not wearing masks or having dinner parties with their friends, we can shame them for being obese. Either we can shame people for their personal behaviour, or we can't.

Which is it going to be? Consider carefully your answer and the consequences of it.

These two things are so very different.

Comparing the behavior of changing one's lifestyle with regard to the way they eat, exercise, sleep, and otherwise take care of their body for what is (mostly) personal benefit shouldn't be in the same conversation as putting a mask on to go into a grocery store for 30 minutes for the benefit of society as a whole.

If you were going to compare it to another behavior it's much more similar to (but still different from) smoking and 2nd hand smoke. Which is a behavior that has been significantly curbed through information campaigns and mandates about where you can and cannot smoke.

Are you against the media giving information* on the dangers of smoking or outlawing indoor smoking in public places?

*This conversation began with the question of what the media decides to cover, you turned "giving information" into "shaming"

[Davnasty]

Covid's still dwarfed by obesity as a cause of death in the US. Now, imagine if the news went on about that, and shamed over-eaters the way they're shaming people not being physically distant, etc? That'd be cool, I'd watch that.

Now, I'm not in favour of shaming people for their personal behaviour. But if we can shame people for not wearing masks or having dinner parties with their friends, we can shame them for being obese. Either we can shame people for their personal behaviour, or we can't.

So which one is it?

[PDXTabs]

I still don't know anyone that has gotten sick or died from it, and it's pretty much a non-issue around here.

I know someone that has it in CA right now. I do almost agree with you though, people are constantly dying from car crashes, murders, suicides, and bad diets. The news covers that some but it seems like the Covid-19 coverage is non-stop whether or not they have something new to add.

[HPstache]

I wonder if more people would wear masks if several large health organizations and countries (not just the US) didn't say "don't wear masks unless you have coronavirus" at the beginning of the pandemic.

I didn't wear a mask for awhile because I was recommended not to.

It's always fun to look back at this forum's opinion toward the beginning of the pandemic.  Users were openly mocking frugaldrummers (correct) opinions on COVID and mask usage:

https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/coronavirus-preparedness/

[Davnasty]

I still don't know anyone that has gotten sick or died from it, and it's pretty much a non-issue around here.

I know someone that has it in CA right now. I do almost agree with you though, people are constantly dying from car crashes, murders, suicides, and bad diets. The news covers that some but it seems like the Covid-19 coverage is non-stop whether or not they have something new to add.

There's really not much new, actionable information to put out with regard to car crashes, murders, suicides, and bad diets.

I don't watch much televised news, so I'm not really aware of how Covid is being covered but I'll also add that the media covers what people will watch. Obviously there's an appetite for Covid coverage, probably because the people watching are likely to be affected by it sooner or later. They have a personal interest.

And if you're referring to CNN or similar cable/24 hour news sources, well of course they're over covering it. That's kind of their thing.

[PDXTabs]

Davnasty,

I don't really disagree with you. I also don't watch the news, ever. I do check the BBC, WSJ, and NYT on a daily basis.

PS - Portland sees spikes in shootings, homicides in July

[Buffaloski Boris]

That said...wear your f#$@ing masks people.  My county just enacted an emergency order requiring masks to be worn in public buildings.  The amount of people up in arms about it is ridiculous.

RIGHT?! We now have a statewide mask order. I don’t understand why so many people refuse to understand that wearing masks means that more things are likely to stay open for them! Even the slightest inconvenience is eliciting tantrums that rival some of my niece’s most epic toddler episodes. One would think an adult would be ashamed to behave like that in public.

The stupid burns. Admittedly, I haven’t been a big fan of masks seeing it as mostly public health theater. I’ve been wearing them in public all the time though cuz the costs were low and I‘m the first to admit I don’t know everything. Low cost, low PITA and hey, it might help.

Here is what the CDC put out today. Looks like masks are a solid win.

https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6928e2.htm?s_cid=mm6928e2_w

[Gremlin]

One person's obesity doesn't kill anyone else.

In general, I agree with you.  However, I once saw a big guy trip and fall.  In the process he managed to crush a little yappy dog.  Ok, not a person.  But the owner was distraught.

(I may be a bad person, but I also regard it as one of the funniest things I've ever seen)

[Missy B]

9/11 coverage was hysterical, too.

Covid's still dwarfed by obesity as a cause of death in the US. Now, imagine if the news went on about that, and shamed over-eaters the way they're shaming people not being physically distant, etc? That'd be cool, I'd watch that.

It's feels like you're really pushing the boat recently, Kyle. Don't worry, us obese/over-eaters get plenty of shaming from all sides already. The difference with the Coronavirus is that my being fat is not going to make you or anyone else sick.

This. The comparison is completely ridiculous.

[Channel-Z]

I work in local news (low-income earner!). We've found two things to be true this year.

1. Some people have watched the news more intensely. In fact the national cable news channels are having their best ratings years in a while.

2. Others have stopped watching altogether to shut out the bad news, even though the bad news is not going to disappear magically.

Our biggest competition is not actually the other local newsrooms, it's actually games on your phone, XBox and Playstation, and user-generated videos on YouTube.