"Drama comes from setting up an antagonist you can defend yourself against. The entire Fox News network is based on (and doing very, very well with) that premise. Every night, the message is 'We're under attack!' It works so well because it's pure drama, David vs. Goliath, protagonist vs. antagonist." - Robert Thompson, director of Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture
Drama reads like the heartbeat of pessimism. Yes, there are great antagonists, terrorists killing people they haven't even met. In the big scheme of things, though, drama seems overly manufactured. We have many more things in common than in opposition. We want our neighborhoods to be safe, clean, helpful. We want our shared work product to come out well, to be paid reasonably, and to give credit where due. We want our churches to foster peace on earth and inch us closer to heaven. We want our children to grow into adults at least as good as ourselves.
Drama's addictive, like a lot of destructive things. It's worth our attention like a bad cold. It can be overcome.
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