Comments on: Good news is not news http://blog.hackbash.com/2007/09/29/good-news-is-not-news/ once were journalists Wed, 07 Jan 2009 01:25:19 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: handolio http://blog.hackbash.com/2007/09/29/good-news-is-not-news/comment-page-1/#comment-31 handolio Sat, 29 Sep 2007 16:27:53 +0000 http://host.qsoftdns.net/~hackbash/blog/?p=35#comment-31 It's funny you should say that - <a href="http://living.morethan.com/athome/2007/09/05/rubbish-statistics-sadly-not/" rel="nofollow">I recently wrote</a> about a similar problem with environmental stats for how many mobile phones and plastic bags get used. The numbers just seem to bounce off people, but when an American photographer created images that represented the figures, people (including me) ended up assuming that the figures must be wrong. As far as I could establish they're the right numbers, which makes the pictures even more scary. It’s funny you should say that - I recently wrote about a similar problem with environmental stats for how many mobile phones and plastic bags get used.

The numbers just seem to bounce off people, but when an American photographer created images that represented the figures, people (including me) ended up assuming that the figures must be wrong.

As far as I could establish they’re the right numbers, which makes the pictures even more scary.

]]> By: letters http://blog.hackbash.com/2007/09/29/good-news-is-not-news/comment-page-1/#comment-30 letters Sat, 29 Sep 2007 13:51:15 +0000 http://host.qsoftdns.net/~hackbash/blog/?p=35#comment-30 I live in Germany, where the number of traffic deaths is just under 5,000 per year. That was run as a good news story because the number is dropping every year, down from a peak of about 20,000 (!) in 1970. But if just one percent of 5,000 people were killed in a terrorist bomb or plane crash, it would be headlining for a week. We are just so numb to the numbers, aren't we? I live in Germany, where the number of traffic deaths is just under 5,000 per year. That was run as a good news story because the number is dropping every year, down from a peak of about 20,000 (!) in 1970.

But if just one percent of 5,000 people were killed in a terrorist bomb or plane crash, it would be headlining for a week. We are just so numb to the numbers, aren’t we?

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