Have you ever wondered why we often hear more about celebrity gossip and sensational news stories than about the important issues that affect our lives? Well, there is an analogy that explains this phenomenon. It is called The Buffalo Bell .
The Buffalo Bell story: When thieves steal a buffalo at night, they remove its bell and one thief runs in one direction ringing it while the other runs in the opposite direction with the buffalo. Villagers follow the sound of the bell, but the thief eventually throws it in the jungle and escapes. Meanwhile, the other thief gets away with the buffalo.
The analogy compares the buffalo to the important issues like food, shelter, education, jobs, healthcare, infrastructure, women’s safety and empowerment, Covid, inflation, economy, and development. These are the issues that we should care about and demand solutions for. The bell represents distractions like celebrity gossip and sensational news stories. These are the stories that make noise and grab our attention, but do not really matter in the long run. And the bell thief represents news channels that divert our attention from what truly matters. These are the channels that profit from sensationalism and ratings, but do not inform us or empower us.
The analogy suggests that we should not fall for the bell thief’s trick and follow the sound of the bell. Instead, we should look for the buffalo and focus on the important issues that affect our lives. We should question the news channels that distract us from what truly matters and demand better journalism and accountability. We should not let our buffalo be stolen by thieves while we chase a bell in the jungle.
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