2021-08-19
52 分钟Humans have a built-in “negativity bias,” which means we give bad news much more power than good. Would the Covid-19 crisis be an opportune time to reverse this tendency?
Hey there, Steven Dubner.
Do you ever find yourself in an endless cycle of negative thinking?
If so, congratulations.
You're normal.
At least that's what the psychologists tell us today on the show, an episode we first published in May 2020 during a particularly bad moment in the COVID pandemic.
It's called reasons to be cheerful.
A few things have changed since we first put out this episode, so we will provide updates at the end.
Also, we are working on a follow up to this episode about negativity in the media.
You should hear that one sometime in the next month or so.
And make sure you listen to the very end of this episode, because we have an important announcement about a new show.
Yes, another new show in the Freakonomics radio network.
But for now, here you go.
Reasons to be cheerful.
This episode is not about the Covid-19 epidemic.
Unless you think it is.
You'll understand what I mean as we proceed.
Let's start with a longtime journalist.
I'm John Tierney.
For years, Tierney wrote for the New York times.
He and I actually worked together there for a few years, but way before that, when he was just starting out.