[eyelidlessness]

How the heck was Y2K a “media fed panic”? Media barely knew how to report tech at all, and barely knew how to explain what was at risk with Y2K. They mostly reported it as “might be a problem the clock is counting and we shall wait and see”.

[neonate]

That's not how I remember it, plus what you're saying is inconsistent with how media works generally. Of course they hyped it up, it would have been bad for business not to.