A fishing boat crowded with migrants traveling from Libya to Italy sank last week. While hundreds are still missing and feared dead, it has garnered far less attention and resources than the Titan rescue efforts for five people.
It’s easy to see this as a parallel to the value our society places on human lives of different societal classes and nationalities. But I also think the sub story has so much traction because it’s an ongoing story with a fight against the clock, where there’s a, however small, glimmer of hope.
The boys stuck in the cave in Thailand a while ago weren’t overlooked either.
Humans like stories, and the story of an impossible rescue in an extreme part of the world is just more interesting than “200 migrants died trying to cross the Mediterranean”. The story is already over once you heard that sentence. Humans love good stories with suspense where they don’t necessarily know what happens next.
It’s easy to see this as a parallel to the value our society places on human lives of different societal classes and nationalities. But I also think the sub story has so much traction because it’s an ongoing story with a fight against the clock, where there’s a, however small, glimmer of hope.
The boys stuck in the cave in Thailand a while ago weren’t overlooked either.
Maybe it’s human nature that more unusual peril gets more attention.
Humans like stories, and the story of an impossible rescue in an extreme part of the world is just more interesting than “200 migrants died trying to cross the Mediterranean”. The story is already over once you heard that sentence. Humans love good stories with suspense where they don’t necessarily know what happens next.