The Corporate Media Distract Us From The Most Important Issues Of The Day. Here Are Eighteen That Should Be At The Forefront

We are what we eat. This ancient adage, long confined to the realm of nutrition, has metastasized into the most profound metaphor for our modern condition. Just as our physical bodies are constructed from the nutrients—or toxins—we consume, our collective consciousness, our understanding of the world, and our capacity for action are built from the information we ingest daily. Yet, for the vast majority, this information diet is not self-selected; it is engineered, processed, and served by powerful interests whose primary goal is not enlightenment, but engagement; not clarity, but control. We are force-fed a relentless stream of triviality, partisan theatrics, and managed dissent, leaving us bloated on outrage yet starving for truth, paralysed by a pervasive sense of powerlessness.

This curated reality is not a bug in the system; it is its central feature. By systematically ignoring, minimising, or distorting the fundamental forces shaping our existence, the corporate media creates a citizenry that is disoriented, atomised, and passive. But what if we changed the diet? What if, for a single month, our news channels, front pages, and social media feeds were ruthlessly dedicated not to the scandal of the hour, but to the existential crises that define our age? The transformation would not merely be one of topic, but of perception itself. We would begin to see the world not as a series of disconnected, overwhelming problems, but as an interconnected system of causes and effects. And from that clarity, a new mode of behaviour—rooted in empathy, justice, and genuine community—would inevitably emerge.

Imagine a news agenda dominated by the following items, not as isolated headlines, but as the persistent, in-depth, and interconnected narrative of our time.

1. The genocides and destruction taking place across the globe not merely selected places.
2. The apparent strategic interest of both NATO and Russia in prolonging the conflict in Ukraine.
3. Attempts by far-right groups to increase their presence and influence in public spaces by replicating many of the models adopted in 1930’s Germany.
4. Environmental collapse and severe ecological degradation occurring across various global regions.
5. The failure to establish robust, functioning democracies in many nations, including the UK and the USA.
6. Education systems that fail to equip students with the skills for intelligent and critical thinking.
7. Corporate media outlets that neglect to cover substantive issues that matter to the public in a meaningful way ie this list.
8. The sale of arms to unstable regimes, which in turn contributes to a global refugee crisis.
9. The significant rise in fast-food consumption that is creating an international public health crisis.
10. Excessive screen time that is replacing active participation in real-world experiences and communities.
11. The high consumption of drugs and alcohol that points to an underlying crisis in human confidence and well-being.
12. Human overpopulation that is placing an unsustainable strain on the natural world.
13. Sedentary lifestyles, involving too much time spent sitting and a lack of exercise that are commonplace.
14. A discernible decline in empathy, which is eroding the fabric of local communities.
15. Pharmaceutical companies that price essential medicines beyond the reach of many people.
16. A culture that often celebrates extreme inequality over principles of fairness and equity.
17. The treatment of human rights as a hindrance rather than the central tenet of a civilised society.
18. The pervasive forces of greed and unfettered competition that are causing significant global harm.

The Foundational Crisis: Environmental Collapse as the Beating Heart of the News

Instead of being a sidebar issue trotted out during natural disasters or annual climate conferences, the unfolding ecological catastrophe would be the permanent, screaming headline. The news would not just report on a flood in Pakistan or a wildfire in Greece; it would dedicate weeks to tracing the lines of responsibility: the fossil fuel corporations that knowingly funded disinformation for decades, the governments that approved new drilling licenses in the face of certain calamity, the economic systems that prioritise infinite growth on a finite planet.

This relentless focus would perform a crucial cognitive function: it would re-establish cause and effect. We would see the direct link between a lobbyist in Washington, a policy favouring oil giants, a melting glacier in Greenland, and a submerged village in Bangladesh. This narrative would inherently connect to the refugee crisis, not as an isolated “invasion” of faceless others, but as a predictable consequence of environmental devastation—often wrought by the very nations now slamming their doors. The story of a family fleeing a drought-stricken farm in Somalia would be reported alongside the carbon emissions of the world’s wealthiest 1%, creating a powerful, undeniable narrative of justice and injustice.

The Theatre of War: Exposing the Machinery of Death

In this new news diet, the wars in Gaza and Ukraine would be covered not as simplistic, tribal conflicts of “us vs. them,” but as complex tragedies fuelled by external powers and internal corruptions.

The reporting on Gaza would move beyond the daily death toll—though honouring those lives would remain paramount—to a forensic examination of the mechanisms of genocide. The spotlight would turn to the arms manufacturers in the US and Europe whose bombs, sold to Israel with unwavering political support, are reducing neighbourhoods to dust. It would investigate the intricate lobbying networks that ensure this flow of weapons continues unimpeded, framing it not as “foreign policy” but as complicity in mass death. This coverage would inherently tie into the crisis of human rights, exposing how they are systematically suspended for the “other,” and how the very international laws designed to prevent such horrors are rendered toothless by geopolitical cynicism.

Similarly, the war in Ukraine would be analysed not as a noble struggle of democracy against autocracy, a narrative that conveniently serves the interests of NATO expansionists and Kremlin revanchists alike, but as a catastrophic failure of diplomacy and a proxy war that sacrifices Ukrainian lives for larger strategic games. The news would scrutinise the immense profitability for the global arms industry, the consolidation of political power through nationalist fervour on all sides, and the tragic plight of civilians caught between the ambitions of empires old and new. This would reveal a uncomfortable truth: that for many in power, a forever war is more desirable than a negotiated peace, for peace is bad for the business of dominance and the arms trade.

The Domestic Rot: The Un-Democracy and the Assault on the Mind

This clear-eyed view of the international stage would naturally refocus attention inward, to the decaying foundations of our own societies. The failure of democracy would become a top story. In the UK, the news would be dominated not by palace or celebrity gossip, but by the systemic erosion of democratic norms: the voter suppression tactics, the first-past-the-post system that ensures majority rule by a minority, the corrupting influence of dark money in politics, and the media empires that act as propaganda arms for the establishment.

In the USA, the narrative would be the same. The spectacle of presidential debates would be sidelined by deep dives into the legalised bribery of campaign finance, the gerrymandering of electoral districts, and the complete capture of the Supreme Court by partisan interests. This reporting would show that the “democracy” we are told to defend abroad is, at home, a hollowed-out façade, a managed spectacle designed to create the illusion of choice while preserving the status quo.

This connects directly to the crisis in education. The news would investigate how school systems, through underfunding, standardised testing, and a curriculum devoid of critical thinking or media literacy, are designed to produce compliant workers and eager consumers, not informed, sceptical citizens. The agenda would ask: why are students taught to memorise facts but not to question power? The answer, revealed through sustained journalism, would point to an economic system that requires a passive, disengaged populace.

The Physical and Spiritual Decay: The Body Politic in Crisis

A truthful news agenda would then turn to the symptoms of this societal sickness, visible in our very bodies and streets.

The international health crisis fueled by fast food would be exposed not as a matter of personal failing, but as one of corporate predation. Investigative teams would trace the deliberate targeting of poor communities with addictive, nutrient-free food, the lobbying against public health regulations, and the devastating strain this places on public healthcare systems. This story of physical health is inseparable from the crisis of mental and spiritual health. The rise in alcohol and drug consumption would be framed not as a moral panic, but as a logical response to a world devoid of meaning, community, and hope—a world the current news cycle helps create.

The decline of empathy would be a constant topic. Reports would analyse how social media algorithms reward outrage and tear apart social cohesion, how housing policies have destroyed communal spaces, and how an economic dogma of hyper-individualism and competition has taught us to see our neighbours as rivals. This would be juxtaposed with the celebration of inequality, showcasing how the obscene wealth of a tiny minority is portrayed as aspirational, while fairness and redistribution are dismissed as naïve or even dangerous.

The pharmaceutical industry would be a regular target. The news would not just report on high drug prices; it would dismantle the entire system of patent exploitation, the political lobbying that prevents Medicare from negotiating prices, and the prioritisation of shareholder profit over human life. This would be a masterclass in showing how greed, sanctified by the logic of the market, literally kills people.

The Behavioural Revolution: How a New Diet Would Change Us

If this became our daily information diet, the change in public consciousness and behaviour would be revolutionary.

1. From Overwhelm to Clarity: The interconnectedness of these issues would become undeniable. People would see that the climate crisis, war, inequality, and mental health are not separate problems but symptoms of the same disease: a global economic and political system that prizes profit and power above all else. This systemic understanding is the first step toward meaningful action.
2. From Passivity to Agency: When problems are framed as isolated and immense, paralysis is rational. But when they are shown to be human-made systems, they become amenable to human-unmaking. Knowing that the climate crisis is driven by specific corporations and complicit governments creates a clear target for activism, litigation, and protest. Understanding that our democracy is broken reveals the need for electoral reform and grassroots organising, not just despair.
3. From Tribalism to Solidarity: The current news diet thrives on dividing us: left vs. right, black vs. white, native vs. immigrant. The proposed diet would reveal a far more accurate and powerful divide: the vast majority of ordinary people versus the tiny consortium of elites—corporate, political, and financial—that benefits from our division. This fosters a sense of shared struggle and international solidarity, from a factory worker in Ohio to a farmer in India, all being exploited by the same forces.
4. From Consumption to Creation: Recognising the emptiness of a life mediated by screens and consumer goods, people would be incentivised to reconnect with the tangible world. Community gardens would sprout not just for food, but for connection. Local democratic participation would increase as people seek to reclaim power where they can. Art and culture would flourish as expressions of a new, shared reality, not just as escapism.
5. From Celebrity to Humanity: With the spotlight shifted onto systemic issues, the cult of the celebrity and the powerful would dim. The heroes of this new narrative would be the community organisers, the whistle-blowers, the scientists, the teachers, and the caregivers—those who build and sustain life rather than those who accumulate and destroy it.

The Agenda as an Act of Rebellion

This proposed news agenda is not a fantasy. It is a map of the world as it actually is, not as it is portrayed for the benefit of the powerful. To demand it is an act of profound rebellion. It requires us to consciously curate our own information streams, to support independent journalism, to question every headline, and to engage in the difficult, patient work of building a world worthy of the name “civilisation.”

The current diet of deceit makes us sick, anxious, and alone. It tells us we are small and the world is broken beyond repair. It is a lie. A diet of truth, however bitter it may be at first, would reveal our collective power and our shared stake in a common future. It would show that the world is not broken, but has been broken by specific people and systems—and that it can therefore be fixed by us. The first step to recovery is to stop consuming the poison. The second is to start building a new world, nourished by truth, one conscious choice at a time.

If you have read the above from beginning to end you are part of solution and that in itself is something to be proud of.