[if_by_whisky]

What you call fearmongering is, for the news channels, just proper monetization of their businesses. I'm often disappointed in other consumers (who should know better, or have better taste in entertainment). They're the root problem here. News businesses exist to follow the nutrient gradient of what makes money. Asking them to do something else just feels naive.

[hbosch]

Weather events and natural disasters are a news corporations favorite thing to exploit. No single person to blame, plenty of hysteria, changing conditions... all combines for the broadest possible audience that feels compelled to stay tuned in for the next update. I personally love the exaggerated visuals of a "15 ft storm surge" filling up the entirety of downtown Tampa in 3D, you just KNOW everyone loves to dust off that special stage to show a totally ridiculous CG storm render.

[adamrezich]

Why do you place the blame on the consumers?

The idea that the media is full of shit by default is a very new one that most people have not internalized and almost certainly never will.

[terminalbraid]

I disagree that it's "proper" especially when it starts to stray into "irresponsible"

[elmomle]

We consume what is around this. To fault or ask for change in the consumer is to fault or ask for change human nature, which is a futile endeavor. It seems that a well-functioning society would be structured with the awareness of this fact, and with safeguards to ensure that media isn't a race to the bottom of emotional manipulation (not because of any moralistic hand-wringing, but because it's detrimental to society when that's what media has become). The real (and really big) question is, what productive steps can we take in that direction?

[metabagel]

The root problem is our capitalist system and lack of countervailing values and systems.