Today, the hunger for scandal is fueled by the media and the masses who consume the inane babble that passes for news.  To be fair, the news networks have a lot of time and space to fill up.  And ratings count…a lot.  The ‘man bites dog’ type of report always will get a lot of attention.
Our media loves “polarization”.   Republicans versus Democrats.  Pro-Life versus Pro-Choice.  Young versus old.  You get it.  Tell a story that pits one side against another for the ratings and subsequent ad revenue.  The positive accounts get one small shot in the ‘human interest’ section.  They’re forgotten about as soon as next news cycle starts.  Rarely will the media follow up on those stories.
Unlike simpler times, the media today instantly reaches millions of pairs of hungry eyes and ears around the globe.  The word gets out really fast.  Remember how the Iranian government tried to control the news about a recent election?   The truth got out to the world 140 characters at a time via Twitter.
The media recites the same wicked narrative time and time again until the truth is blurred beyond recognition. Frequently, no fact checking is done.   Lazily, the wire reports are regurgitated onto the evening news.
Here’s some truth for you.  If you were to watch the news media constantly, you’d still only know a small, a really small,
fraction of what has happened in the world.
But the piranhas of sensationalism continue to seek out and smell the perfume of immorality from around the world.   They’ll compile and report the sin, disgrace, and foolishness of anybody.  They chew them up, spit them and throw them out defenseless for the world to see.  Then, they leave and move on to the next juicy tidbit.
Facts don’t seem to count.  The media’s perverted memories and fertile imaginations make the actual reality of the the world seem tame compared to their sleazy inventions.
It’s even getting tricky to give a donation to charity.  When a rich man makes a donation, they’ll say: “He’s just doing that to get his name in the news in order to help his business.”  If he tries to give anonymously, they say; “It’s just some millionaire whose smart enough to know that withholding his identity will make people even more curious.  It’ll slip out later just who gave the donation.”  If he chooses not to chip anything in to charity, they’ll say: “See, he’s stingy with his money, exactly like the rest of those fat-cats.”
You just can’t win here.
To the rumourmongers who circulate gossip and slander, virtue is always a mask and noble ideas are a pretense. Generosity is considered a bribe.
When you stand for virtue and noble ideas, you must expect to be a target for inevitable envious attacks by those with elastic principles.  Those bad actors are often careful to take their time, establishing a trail of circumstances made to make you appear guilty.
Then they ambush you, backed up by contant lies of envy and malice that now ravage the reputation of their
target…you.
Haven’t you occasionally said, “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.” to confirm your own hasty judgements?   Be very careful here.  The fire might be the fire of malice, fueled by the gasoline of envy which winds up burning an innocent and superior man.
“The way of a superior man is three-fold.  Virtuous, he is free from anxieties.  Wise, he is free from perplexities.  Bold, he is free from fear.” -Confucius, Chinese philosopher.  551 – 479 B.C.