News media should inform, not add panic

To the editor:

Technological advancements have given the news media the ability to cover current events in greater depth and detail than we could have ever imagined. In times of crisis, this type of news coverage can be an asset to the public, but it can be a hindrance as well.

I understand that the news media is used to inform the public and keep us alert to the ever-present threat of terrorism, but the media should not make us live in fear of what atrocities may await us tomorrow. Unfortunately, the nonstop coverage often seems to serve the terrorist better than the public. The over-exaggeration of events does not inform the people. It scares them. You cannot turn on the television or read the paper without being told about anthrax or the next target of terrorists.

The media can find ways to give the news but not frighten people at the same time. An excellent example can be found by listening to Paul Harvey. He does not dwell on the impending threat or tell his listeners how much danger may be present in our country. I wish other facets of the media would practice the same judgment.

I implore our local media to go against the grain and to be a tool of the American people, not the terrorists who would try to interrupt our way of life by any means possible. I want to turn on the news or pick up my paper and be told how no matter what the threat, no matter who the enemy, no matter how bad the tragedy, we will go on.

SHANNON HUFFMAN

Advance, Mo.