Alarmism
Alarmism is excessive or exaggerated alarm about a real or imagined threat, such as the increases in deaths from an infectious disease.[1] In the news media, alarmism can be a form of yellow journalism where reports sensationalise a story to exaggerate small risks.[2]
Alarmist personality
The alarmist person is subject to the cognitive distortion of catastrophizing – of always expecting the worst of possible futures.[3]
They may also be seeking to preserve feelings of omnipotence by generating anxiety and concern in others.[4]
False accusation
The charge of alarmism can of course be used to discredit a legitimate warning, as when Churchill was widely dismissed as an alarmist in the 1930s.[5]
See also
3
References
- ^ David Murray, Joel Schwartz (May 25, 2008), "Alarmism is an infectious disease", Society, 34 (4): 35, doi:10.1007/BF02912206
- ^ "The Risk of Poor Coverage of Risk". Columbia Journalism Review.
- ^ P. Gilbert, Overcoming Depression (1999) p. 88-90
- ^ T. Pitt-Aikens, Loss of the Good Authority (1989) p. 99
- ^ M. Makovsky, Churchill's Promised Land (2007) p. 140-1
External links
- Panic Watch - Lists and blogs concerning media panic, health scares, paranoia, and conspiracy theories