"Ladies and gentlemen, you are about to see a story of murder, greed, corruption, exploitation, adultery, and treachery....all the things we hold near and dear to our hearts." This is the opening line in the Broadway musical, Chicago.

Log on to at least 3 of the top online news websites such as CNN, MSNBC, CBS News, USA Today, ABC News to take a look at what kind of national or global lead stories are prevalent. How much of the news reflects disaster, violence, crime, corruption, or otherwise negativity? In what ways do you think viewers and readers get an inaccurate or distorted impression about what is really happening in the world? How do you think the psychological well-being of viewers and readers might be affected by what they read on a daily basis? What do you think the attraction is to this kind of negativity?