We are all obsessed about the economy. Not a day goes by without discussing the credit crunch, employment prospects, banks in crisis…and now, even the price of a loaf of bread.

We are all going to starve…penniless and redundant!

I spend a lot of my time on the internet. Most of my work dictates that I am connected to the worldwide web practically all day, and so in between all the important things that I (pretend to!) do, I like to take a look at news sites to keep abreast of Spanish property news and global developments in general.
At lunchtime today, I noticed the main headline on the SKY news website:

´High Street Sales Defy The Gloom´

Fabulous news! I was intrigued. I didn´t think anyone had any money, and that we would soon be looting all these stores as they went out of business? So I thought I best double-check with the BBC, so I made sure to tune into their lunchtime news bulletin. Sure enough, their lead headline snapped me back into reality:

´Retail Sales Bring Scant Comfort´

Hang on a minute – UK retail sales had been expected to fall by 0.9%, and they actually fell by 0.1% - surely this is great news – perhaps things aren´t so bad after all?

It just got me thinking how one very simple piece of important news can be interpreted in different ways, and how we, as media consumers, absorb that piece of information.

It also made me acutely aware of how important the media is in how we actually see the world we live in and how it shapes our opinions and behaviour, from our views on the safety of our banks, whether we should be investing in Spanish property, or if we should be selling everything we own!

I´ve just checked the headlines again, a few hours on, and I´m pleased to report that normal service has resumed:

´Madonna to get Divorced Tomorrow´ and ´British Toilet Pastimes Revealed´.

I kid you not.