# Why doesn't the media just block all stories about Bin Ladin? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 26, 2010, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528 "2010-01-26T17:12:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Snow\_Pea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Snow\_Pea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snow_Pea)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/1 "2010-01-26T17:12:12Z")
Why is this terrorist being given US airtime? It’s not like the average American reader/TV viewer can do a damn thing about the threats - so why publish them? Bin Laden must get a kick out of periodically releasing some threatening nonsense, then sitting back and watching the US media go apeshit. So why is this info given to the press in the first place? There is other news that is deliberately NOT published (like suicides from high-profile landmarks), out of concern for copycats, so it’s not like information can’t be withheld from the public/media when it’s deemed necessary. So why does the terrorist get to be on TV and spew terror whenever he feels like it? ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/2 "2010-01-26T17:18:18Z")
Why do the news media publish stories? Because the public read/watch/listen to them. And the more the public does that, the more advertising they sell. Obviously, the media collectively have decided that the public want stories about Bin Ladin. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/3 "2010-01-26T17:19:18Z")
Because we don’t live in China. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/4 "2010-01-26T17:37:04Z")
> [@Snow\_Pea](#): > > It’s not like the average American reader/TV viewer can do a damn thing about the threats - so why publish them? Because they’re news. Who are you to decide what events we should be interested in hearing about? ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/5 "2010-01-26T17:38:39Z")
Because ignorance isn’t a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/6 "2010-01-26T17:40:26Z")
Because sometimes we like to mix up the Two Minutes Hate a little. ---
**Author:** ![Snow\_Pea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Snow\_Pea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snow_Pea)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/7 "2010-01-26T19:28:39Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Because they’re news. But it’s NOT news - it’s a act of terror. Terrorism is defined as an act that is specifically designed to terrorize people. It’s a fair question to ask why the media itself is aiding and abetting terrorism. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/8 "2010-01-26T19:32:11Z")
> [@Snow\_Pea](#): > > But it’s NOT news - it’s a act of terror. Terrorism is defined as an act that is specifically designed to terrorize people. > > It’s a fair question to ask why the media itself is aiding and abetting terrorism. Because it sells beer, cars, and tampons. Seriously. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/9 "2010-01-26T19:37:56Z")
> [@Snow\_Pea](#): > > But it’s NOT news - it’s a act of terror. Terrorism is defined as an act that is specifically designed to terrorize people. > > It’s a fair question to ask why the media itself is aiding and abetting terrorism. Not to defend Osama Bin Laden, but how is his audio message “an act of terror?” ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/10 "2010-01-26T19:48:37Z")
> [@Snow\_Pea](#): > > It’s a fair question to ask why the media itself is aiding and abetting terrorism. Because the news media is a business, not a public service. They want to get more people to buy their newspapers or watch their news shows. Showing Bin Laden’s latest activities gets people to do that. So do stories about missing attractive white women, which is why you see so many of those. > [@](#): > > it’s not like information can’t be withheld from the public/media when it’s deemed necessary. Who gets to decide what information should be withheld from the public? It’s hard for the government to do this, because of Constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech and the press. The media companies are only going to withhold a story if they think that doing so will serve their interests. If the media companies did withhold something like this that a lot of people wanted to know, pretty soon you’d have a new media company that did report on these stories, in competition with the established media companies. Supply and demand works the same here as it does for more tangible goods. There is demand for this kind of news story (in the form of people who watch when a story like this is on TV), and where there is demand, there will usually soon be a supply. Trying to cut off supply without addressing demand is generally futile- just look at how well it’s worked for the War on Drugs. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/11 "2010-01-26T19:53:51Z")
> [@Snow\_Pea](#): > > Why is this terrorist being given US airtime? Noun, verb, 9/11. I understand your philosophical objection but it’s not hard to understand why his comments are considered news. > [@](#): > > It’s not like the average American reader/TV viewer can do a damn thing about the threats - so why publish them? You could say the same thing about global warming or disease. > [@](#): > > Bin Laden must get a kick out of periodically releasing some threatening nonsense, then sitting back and watching the US media go apeshit. “Apeshit?” Really? In 2002, maybe. These days his tapes are a one-and-done story. People notice but I don’t see anybody make a big deal out of it. A lot of people seem to regard it as a joke: they know a man on the run (possibly in a cave, possibly with kidney disease) is not really in a position to threaten anyone, and they know what his message is. > [@](#): > > So why is this info given to the press in the first place? I’m guessing you don’t know how this works. Bin Laden’s statements are _distributed to the media_. There’s nobody to stop them from going to the press, nevermind the fact that nobody has that authority. He makes a tape, and messengers either put it on pro-Al Qaeda sites or they give it to Al Jazeera. So it goes directly to the press. By the time it is seen by U.S. eyeballs, it’s already out there, so even if “the media” ignored it, the press in every other Western country would have the story. So you tell me what would be accomplished. > [@](#): > > There is other news that is deliberately NOT published (like suicides from high-profile landmarks), out of concern for copycats And yet those suicides still happen. A single suicide might not be news, but comparable events like schools shootings do get press. Sometimes a lot of press (and more than I am comfortable with, personally). > [@](#): > > so it’s not like information can’t be withheld from the public/media when it’s deemed necessary. That information is not withheld _from_ the media. It is withheld _by_ the media. As to why that information is withheld and Bin Laden’s threats aren’t, it’s like I said: the news value is not even close. > [@](#): > > So why does the terrorist get to be on TV and spew terror whenever he feels like it? I think this has been answered now. > [@Snow\_Pea](#): > > But it’s NOT news - it’s a act of terror. This is a huge reach. > [@](#): > > Terrorism is defined as an act that is specifically designed to terrorize people. If any act that terrorizes people is terrorism, then you are a terrorist if you answer the door while wearing a scary costume on Halloween. Terrorism is better defined as violence and threats of violence with broad social or political goals. A terrorist attack is “an act of terror.” This is primarily bloviating. > [@](#): > > It’s a fair question to ask why the media itself is aiding and abetting terrorism. This question is also a useful cudgel to silence the press at convenient moments. 😉 I do think the press has to exercise caution in not rewarding these people with the airtime they want, and it looks like the Obama administration is trying to deny some publicity to terrorists. (I’m going by their response to the underwear bomber here, not any restrictions on the press.) If the press and the public panic in response to any crisis, then all you have to do is make them panic and presto, you get all the attention you want. So frivolous coverage is bad, but ignoring Bin Laden for political reasons isn’t a good idea and goes against the purpose of news. ---
**Author:** ![Stealth\_Potato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Stealth\_Potato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stealth_Potato)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/12 "2010-01-26T21:51:51Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Because it sells beer, cars, and tampons. Seriously. And we all know Osama would _love_ to know that his messages are helping sell beer, cars, and tampons. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![rbroome](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/838e76/32.png) [@rbroome](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rbroome)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/13 "2010-01-27T02:22:14Z")
> [@Snow\_Pea](#): > > But it’s NOT news - it’s a act of terror. Terrorism is defined as an act that is specifically designed to terrorize people. > > It’s a fair question to ask why the media itself is aiding and abetting terrorism. The media is in no way aiding terrorism by reporting the news. I would be appalled by any news service that censored information about current events in the interest of “protecting” us. It would do far more harm to society than anything someone like Bin Laden can do. ---
**Author:** ![GameHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ed655f/32.png) [@GameHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GameHat)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/14 "2010-01-27T02:52:09Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > Because we don’t live in China. This is the best response I’ve heard ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/15 "2010-01-27T03:38:59Z")
> [@GameHat](#): > > This is the best response I’ve heard Seconded. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/16 "2010-01-27T04:19:39Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > So frivolous coverage is bad, but ignoring Bin Laden for political reasons isn’t a good idea and goes against the purpose of news. I don’t think so! So much attention to bin Laden is bound to encourage him to commit more atrocities. Just look at recent history. Several major terrorist strikes in the U.S. since the press has been paying major attention to his announcements (with thousands of casualties), whereas before, when al Qaeda was just another radical terrorist organization to the press, and bin Laden was flying under the radar (to the point where Bush decided to put him on the back burner), bin Laden never managed to strike America at all. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/17 "2010-01-27T04:53:51Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > I don’t think so! So much attention to bin Laden is bound to encourage him to commit more atrocities. Bin Laden is not a third grader; he needs no encouragement. > [@](#): > > Just look at recent history. Several major terrorist strikes in the U.S. since the press has been paying major attention to his announcements (with thousands of casualties), whereas before, when al Qaeda was just another radical terrorist organization to the press, and bin Laden was flying under the radar (to the point where Bush decided to put him on the back burner), bin Laden never managed to strike America at all. Correlation does not equal causation. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/18 "2010-01-27T05:11:40Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > I don’t think so! So much attention to bin Laden is bound to encourage him to commit more atrocities. Nonsense. He is already trying his hardest to commit more atrocities. The idea that he’s not really trying, or that if he was ignored he would go away, defies all common sense. > [@](#): > > Several major terrorist strikes in the U.S. since the press has been paying major attention to his announcements (with thousands of casualties), whereas before, when al Qaeda was just another radical terrorist organization to the press, and bin Laden was flying under the radar (to the point where Bush decided to put him on the back burner), bin Laden never managed to strike America at all. That’s ass backward. He started getting more media attention _because_ he helped organize a successful attack on America. That caused people to pay more attention to what he was saying. He didn’t organize a successful attack because he’d started getting media attention! It’s true that attention is part of the terrorist stock in trade, but aren’t people entitled to know if someone dangerous is threatening to kill them? ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/19 "2010-01-27T06:29:54Z")
[Moderating] Moved from General Questions to Great Debates. [/Moderating] ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528/20 "2010-01-27T06:33:02Z")
Just because ObL is a troll doesn’t mean we shouldn’t feed him from time to time. Besides, I’ve heard some women find him ‘cute and cuddly’… It’s probably the beard. -XT [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-doesnt-the-media-just-block-all-stories-about-bin-ladin/526528.md?page=2)