Another Fine Mess

Years ago, Neil Postman wrote a book entitled, Amusing Ourselves to Death. This little book stated that the telegraph enabled millions of people to learn when Queen Victoria of Great Britain had a cold. He said that news of that nature, and most everything that has since followed, is written for our entertainment. That is, that whether or not we know about it, we can’t do anything about it, and ultimately is has no bearing on our personal lives.

Have you ever thought of CNN, Fox News, or the BBC like that? The next time you watch the news, ask yourself which, if any, of the “news” affects you enough that you have to act differently as a result. The answer you get might be all it takes for you to switch it off!

You won’t be surprised, I don’t think, when I tell you that I rarely read any newspaper. This has it’s roots from what might be referred to as my “paper round period.” In my mid-teens, I had a paper round, or route if you prefer. Each day a couple of hundred newspapers would be delivered on my driveway. I would have to fold them, pack them into my bicycle baskets, and the deliver them to subscribers. Tuesdays, I think, the paper was thin enough that I could get carry them all in one trip. Wednesdays and Sundays had a lot of advertising, and consequently several trips had to be made.

Anyway, one couldn’t help reading some of each issue while folding and putting a rubber band around them. After awhile, I realized just how little information of any use was found in the newspaper.

I tell you all this because I’m on holiday in England right now, and the friends with whom I stay are regular readers of The Independent, a national newspaper that isn’t afraid to criticize anyone. Of the papers available to the public, I prefer this one; but as I already said, I rarely read it.

So, I have here in front of me a column by Simon Read, from the Your Money section. The headline reads “I want to buy a property but I’m confused about mortgage rates and leases.’ Well, you’re not the only one sweetie. The person who’s asked Mr Read the question is Amy Cuthbert, and her picture at the top of the page adds to the human element of the story. Of course, the article that follows does nothing to answer her question. Mr Read has simply restated the questions about types of mortgages and leases, and has stated what the options are in general. But, there no mention of what I would call “useful” information.

For example, he says that the interest rates for fixed rate mortgages are high than for tracker mortgages. Then he says that fixed-rate deals provide mortagees certainty in what their monthly payments would be (duh!!). He also mentions that when the fixed rate stops (that happens in Britain) and it returns to the flexible rate, that she could see a substantial rise in her payments. None of this is new information. At the very list, he should have provided an example with real numbers.

Sure, everyone’s circumstances are different, but why not say that the average house price is just over £224,000 (about $350,000), and that the average mortgage is £140,000. From that, Mr Read could calculate the average monthly mortgage payments for both a fixed rate and a tracker mortgage (I don’t know what these figures are, or I’d do it myself), and then state by how much those payments would increase if the interest rates were put up by 1/2 or a full percent.

There’s a radio program here called Money Box purports to answer listeners’ questions, but all I’ve ever heard them do is explain the tame options. With all the information that is now available on the Web, I’m surprised that anyone bothers to listen to the program at all.

So, for all you aspiring journalists and bloggers out there: let’s have some news reports that matter. Otherwise, spare the few trees that your paper will chop down so that they can’t print the useless drivel that we call amusement.

Bruce Hoag, PhD, CPsychol
Work Psychologist