The News-to-Death Ratio Strikes Again

Summary: Have you ever noticed how the news talks non-stop about some diseases but ignores others? Back in 2009, a scientist named Hans Rosling found that for every person who died of swine flu, there were over 8,000 news stories! Meanwhile, deadly diseases like tuberculosis (TB) barely get any attention. Why? Because the news loves drama.

Right now, a rare disease called hantavirus is making headlines because it happened on a fancy cruise ship. Hantavirus is very rare and usually comes from pet rats, but because it trapped wealthy people on a ship, the media is going crazy. At the same time, TB kills over a million poorer people every year, but the news ignores it because it is slow and familiar. The media does not report real risk; they report stories that make us feel like we could be in danger on our next vacation.

For more details, see rssapp-realclearhealth-com at brownstone.org/articles/the-news-to-death-ratio-strikes-again/ (opens in new tab)