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WASHINGTON — For nearly a week, the story of a lost submersible that went to the depths of the ocean to view the wreck of the Titanic spread through the national and global discussion — culminating in the news that the ship and its five occupants were dead.
But a far greater catastrophe just days earlier, the sinking of a ship filled with migrants off Greece, killing at least 80 people and missing a staggering 500, did not move into global focus in nearly the same way in the blink of an eye.
One drew relentless attention from moment to moment. One of these was observed and discussed as another sad but routine news story.
What differentiates these two events at sea in the way they were recorded? Viewed side by side, what do they say about human reactions to tragic news? And why did the submersible saga get so much attention?
When the world learned of the Greek shipwreck, the event had already taken place and some of the outcome was already known. All that was left was the aftermath.
Conversely, the Titan was (so the world thought) an event in the process of happening – something that happened in real time with a deadline attached to it. As with any narrative, a ticking clock increases tension and attention.
The fact that no one could communicate with the submersible – or learn anything about what the people inside were experiencing – only increased the possibility of being closely watched.
Before anything even went wrong, the Titan was already venturing into an area of great interest – the wreck of the Titanic, itself the archetype of modern disasters long before James Cameron’s popular 1997 film. So there was already an interest unrelated to the submersible had to do himself.
Cameron’s response to the Titan catastrophe only strengthened this connection.
He told the BBC in an interview broadcast on Friday that he “felt in my bones” that the Titan submersible had been lost shortly after hearing that it had made contact with the ocean liner while descending to the wreckage of the ocean liner at the bottom The Atlantic Ocean had lost its surface. He said that the allegation in the media over the next few days that the submersible had 96 hours of oxygen and that there were popping noises was a “protracted and nightmarish farce”.
Much of the reaction and meme this week revolved around the notion, fair or not, that one event was about rich people using the sea as a playground, while the other was an unfortunately frequent repetition of misfortunes that happened to people who lack status, resources or even a voice The modern marketplace of ideas.
Apryl Alexander, a professor of public health at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte who studies trauma and survivors, said the migrants on the ship in Greece did not seem to attract the same interest from the public as the wealthy individuals who 250,000 Paid dollars a piece to explore the Titanic.
This reminded Alexander of the differences in crime reporting across the United States. Crimes get more attention when the victim is white and wealthy compared to a person of color living in poverty, Alexander says.
Tim Recuber, an assistant professor of sociology at Smith College, who studies mass media, digital culture and emotion, says that people tend to be drawn to stories that allow them to empathize with the suffering of others – and that it’s easier to Empathize when there are fewer stories Number of people involved.
“I think some people are bringing attention this time around to the kind of inequalities that are ingrained in the classroom,” Recuber said. “We can find out who the people on the sub are because they are who. They are wealthy and have access to the press. Differences in race and national identity play a role in who one can identify with.”
Risk-takers who choose their own risks have always made headlines. So the public was probably excited about others cheating death by doing something dangerous, says Daryl Van Tongeren, a psychology professor at Hope College in Michigan who has studied the meaning of big events and how they affect people.
In other words, he said, readers and viewers can feel alive by living vicariously through others who are taking risks. “There’s a certain fascination with people who engage in these high-risk experiences,” said Van Tongeren. “Even though we know that death is the only certainty in life, we invest in these activities where we come close to death but overcome it. We want to demonstrate our mastery over death,” he said.
The Pandemic. mass shootings. Economic problems. War. climate change. Getting through another piece of bad news can be difficult. “People are starting to switch off,” Alexander said.
In the end, she said, what she wishes for is an equal societal interest in human tragedy, regardless of race, religion, demographics, or other factors: “For all of us, we hope that when one of our loved ones goes.” What was missing was that the media and the public would pay equal attention to all stories.”
contribute: Cara Rubinsky
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