The nation was gripped by a startling turn of events Thursday that was covered live by every national news channel. Was it a congressional hearing or an international incident? No, it was a boy supposedly stuck in a large balloon, flying high over central Colorado. Why the hell did they think this was news? Yes it is exciting but let’s be honest, it would not have really affected anyone outside the family and its community. Even if the boy was in there, it shouldn’t have been a national story. Would it have been good for the viewers all over the nation to watch a six-year old boy fall to his death? I didn’t think so.

Turns out the parents of “balloon boy” were well aware of this phenomenon of treating exciting local news as national events and planned the hoax accordingly. Their main goal was to get famous and eventually land a “reality show” deal. Guess what folks, you got your frivolous “reality show.” It’s called network news.

I do understand the potential hypocrisy of me mentioning these people and events for the purpose of criticizing others who mention them, but someone has to say it for any change to be enacted. Also, let me be clear that I am denigrating useless and dumb “human interest stories,” not serious ones, including abduction updates, which we can actually help solve.

I am talking about the non-stop coverage of Adam Lambert’s ambiguous sexuality, Michael Jackson’s strange death and Jessica Simpson’s transformation into some sort of bovine. We all have enough problems in our lives that we don’t really need to spend our time worrying about balloon boys, Gosselins or what type of drugs Anna Nichole Smith was on when she died. What larger issue does coverage of these people illuminate? The only one I can see is that it shows how frivolous and absurd the news media has become.

The phenomenon of the media’s obsession with titillating stories can have disastrous consequences on society. The way it publicizes and obsesses over mass-murders, assassins and criminals creates a strange incentive for hacks to commit crimes for the explicit purpose of becoming famous. Take the example of the man who shot John Lennon in 1980; one of the reasons this twisted person murdered one of the greatest musicians and songwriters of all time in cold blood was to become famous. Now everyone knows his name and a movie, “Chapter 27,” was made about him — it starred bottom-feeders Jared Leto and Lindsay Lohan.

Of course I know the killer’s name, but I refuse to print it. I propose the national media, in all of its forms, place a moratorium on showing pictures and releasing names of killers. This way, some of their motivation will be held in check. The name and face of the young man who terrorized Virginia Tech was plastered all over the news and was a vivid reminder of the instant fame accrued by committing heinous acts in our society. Here is a test of how low the media has become: how many of you can remember the name and face of the shooter? Now, how many of you can remember the name and face of at least one of the victims? I rest my case.