News coverage helps educate, inform and empower citizens. It enables communities to make decisions about important issues that affect them. In addition, it can provide information on local business, crime, sports and weather. However, news coverage is not always unbiased and may reflect the biases of the journalists who report it. As a result, the news media can sometimes cause stress for young adults and teens. Newport Academy treatment center and its Los Angeles-based private practice both see the effects of the relentless news flow on young people.
Because they are human beings, the journalists who present the news also have a variety of emotions such as envy, fear, impatience and ambition that can affect their objectivity. Moreover, they belong to large organizations with diverse goals and needs. A reporter in Washington might want all the facts behind a story, while a publisher in Denver needs to fill his or her website with fresh content to draw viewers. This forces journalists to dish the same news over and over again – or refresh it with a new photo, quote or minor tidbit to keep audiences glued.
Opinion and analysis is another form of news coverage that often appears in newspapers and magazines. These editorial pieces provide the public with opinion and commentary on complex and controversial issues that affect different populations differently. The opinions of these writers are considered a valued form of feedback from the community because they can be influential in shaping public perceptions.