Here’s the splash page from The Atlantic this morning. Right off the bat, I’m being told that my generation’s job prospects are shaky, my way of interacting in public is forever changed and I’m no longer safe indoors.
Read the articles if you’d like. All of them are relatively interesting. But the titles are completely at odds with the messages. How Will We Ever Be Safe Inside? should be titled How We Can Be Safe Inside, because it’s essentially a how-to on adapting offices, restaurants and other public spaces to be virus-proof. We’ll Be Wearing Things on Our Faces for a Long Time should just be titled We’re Currently Wearing Masks. Much of that piece actually contemplates a switch to face shields (seriously?) instead of face masks. There’s no timeline for what a “long time” means or why Khazan feels we’ll be masked for that long. Then there’s What Will Become of the Class of 2020?, which could be written about every single graduating class in history. What will become of them? The article is supported by research, and is worth a read for younger people out there, but it serves specifically to worry.
This is a tired argument, and I’m not even sure anyone disagrees with me, but the news is a bunch of hysteria, and every once in a while I see a splash page like this one and just think: What good does it serve to read these headlines, day in and day out? Even if the information is accurately reported, taken in the right context and provided with adequate disclaimers, it’s still a bunch of negativity. What’s the point?