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Laws can’t combat sensationalism, but critical thinking can

I am heartened by our Government’s efforts to tackle fake news (“Strong, reliable media still as crucial as ever”; July 27).

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Dyllis Liang Qiu Ting

I am heartened by our Government’s efforts to tackle fake news (“Strong, reliable media still as crucial as ever”; July 27).

While this is an issue, another issue that we should think about is media sensationalism, aiming to evoke emotions, which could leave readers not understanding the full picture before they take a stand or make decisions.

The thing about sensationalism is that laws cannot protect us from it. We cannot sue for defamation or misinformation when the facts reported are technically not false — unlike fake news — albeit taken out of context and misused to generate interest.

To combat sensationalism, we should think critically about the news we read. We can refer to information from various news establishments to gain a fuller insight. We can educate the public using exhibitions at community centres and talks at schools.

I quote from an article posted on ThoughtCo.com: “Sensational stories are the junk food of our news diet, the ice cream sundae that you eagerly gobble up. You know it’s bad for you, but it’s delicious. And you can always have a salad tomorrow.”

Sensationalised news may be entertaining to read, but we should control our intake of such news.

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