Does Posting Bad News Do Any Good?

This is not about all the rumour-mongering and speculative posts that have flooded the social media over the sad and mysterious disappearance of MH370. Rather, this is about the many posts on animal welfare that we see on the social media, including this blog, on a daily basis.

You might have noticed that we seldom post news about the horrific and abusive things that people do to animals per se. Especially when the news is to lament, complain and criticise. For example, “Oh my gosh, look at how terrible this is! How could anyone do such a thing!” and it stops there. What is the point of highlighting such things when the message is only “People are horrible and people do horrible things to animals.”? It is different if the news is followed by something constructive, ie. “This is what you could do to help make it better.” Then perhaps there is a good purpose in sharing the news.

Previously, there was one reader who kept sending me the most horribly graphic news about animal abuse and she would insist that I post them to “tell the world”. I had to tell her to stop.

Personally, I don’t like to highlight the bad. Of course some good may come from creating the awareness that animal abuse exists on earth, but wouldn’t it be better use of cyberspace to highlight all the good things that people do for the animals? Don’t you feel good, motivated and inspired when you read good news and real-life stories about beneficial things that people do?

Even if we think there is a purpose in highlighting all the bad, then please critique and not blatantly criticise. To critique is to offer a better way of doing things IF we think something is not being done right. To criticise is simply to say all that is wrong and bad.

The social media LOVES bad news. Bad news sells. But bad news per se does not bring much good to anyone, does it?

Please do think about this the next time you decide to share or forward bad news (per se) in your social media portal.

These questions might help you decide:
Will this news do any good to anyone?
Did this news do any good to me?

Source: http://myanimalcare.org/2014/03/16/does-posting-bad-news-do-..

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AnimalCare is a registered society that promotes caregiving to street animals and helps in their neutering and medical needs. AnimalCare has a Medical Fund, Food Fund and Education Fund.

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