Does the media have too much negativity and does ...

If you are referring to the financial meltdown, then NO, the media hasn't been too negative.  As a society, we are all "de-leveraging"---paying down debt and reluctant to borrow more. Because we gorged for years on easy credit---using our homes as ATMs, borrowing too much money and saving less than zeron---the bill has now come due.  The huge stimulus packages (whether you are in favor of them or not) will cause huge inflation down the road, as well as a weaker dollar.  If you have a VERY long time frame, common stocks still are the best bet for wealth creation; over 50 years they have returned about 8% per year.  However, if the thought of owning stock in this environment is too scary, I highly recommend U.S. Treasury "TIPS" bonds (Teasury Inflation-Protected Securities)---they pay a current yield of about 2.5%, but they will also increase as inflation rises, protecting the value of your initial investment over time and being virtually risk-free.  You won't make a mint with TIPS, but you won't lose money, either. Also, a mutual fund specializing in high-quality corporate bonds also could make sense today, as current yield on a basket of very solid companies is paying over 6%. Your best bet for getting rich fast is common stocks, but it's also the riskiest place to put your money.

Yes. The sky is falling, the sky is falling, the sky is falling. The more you say something the better chance it will become reality.

The interesting thing is that 'the media' has finally quit telling everybody to go back to sleep, in the morning everything will be fine, it's just a bad dream, yatta-yatta.  It would be a relief if I actually bothered with American media anymore; why would anyone who wants to know what's going on tune in to CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC or Faux News (warped and twisted)?  Try presstv.com; try russiatoday.com; try worldnet daily.com, and stop wasting time on the boob tube - - - the flicker rate will castrate your mind, leave you functionally brainless for hours after you turn it off.  None of them have even had the guts to look sideways at the subject of repudiation; our government has repudiated its domestic debt I don't know how many times, the first being right after the revolution when the Continental dollar were replaced by United State dollars at the rate of 100 Continentals to one USD; after WW I folks who were holding Liberty bonds got royally screwed, then the Silver Certificate was demonitized, Postal Savings were vacated - - - any way that the governement could use the trust of its people as a tool to screw 'em out of their money, that's what went down.  Now people are saying we should invest in Treasury Bonds of one sort or another; if you're a Canadian, living in Canada, then yes, our Treasury Bonds may be for you.  If you're an American, living here or anywhere else, Treasury Bonds will be repudiated and you'll be screwed just like generation after generation of Americans who trusted governement with their money.

The media has a profound impact on peoples views and opinions.

Wetherits from legitimate sources or from info mercials... it shapes our opinions and views...

Its amazing when you look at other news sources that aren't controlled by the US companies... puts the world in a whole other perspective.

During the housing boom there were SO SO many commercials on TV "Take out the money you deserve....Take that vacatin you always dreamed of.." and people did (not all).. Info mercials... "Learn the cures the government doesn't want you to know about."... and people spout it as fact... (when in reality theres no scientific basis for half of it).

Look at the political campaigns - enough said!