Obama Faults Media Hype For Terror Fears

President Obama

The news media “absolutely” overstates the risks of terrorism because stories about things like climate change aren’t “sexy” and don’t drive ratings, President Obama said in an interview published Monday.

“What's the famous saying about local newscasts, right? If it bleeds, it leads, right?” Obama told Vox.

“You show crime stories and you show fires, because that's what folks watch, and it's all about ratings. And, you know, the problems of terrorism and dysfunction and chaos, along with plane crashes and a few other things, that's the equivalent when it comes to covering international affairs.”

The Hill reports Obama said there was not going to be “a lot of interest” in stories showing positive progress on issues like infant mortality or improving productivity for farmers.

“It's not a sexy story,” Obama said. “And climate change is one that is happening at such a broad scale and at such a complex system, it's a hard story for the media to tell on a day-to-day basis.”

The interview with the Web startup, known for its explainer-style journalism, is the latest attempt by the White House to circumvent traditional media. In recent weeks, the president sat for interviews with prominent YouTube video bloggers and on Tuesday will be interviewed by BuzzFeed Editor-in-Chief Ben Smith.

Aides have described the effort as an attempt to reach new audiences — and particularly millennials — who might not otherwise be paying attention to the president’s message. That effort has taken on an increasing degree of difficulty in the president’s seventh year in office.

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