Hype: Defined as “extravagant or excessive promotion” and “exaggerated publicity; hoopla”
It’s official. Hurricane Tropical Storm the gentle shower & breeze that was Fay has spared Orlando, leaving nothing more than a few scattered leaves on the grass & some light rain. We survived. Not that there was ever much doubt, except if you happened to follow and believe what you heard from the local media in the days leading up to Fay.
Yes, hurricanes and slow moving tropical systems that dump a lot of rain are things to be taken seriously. I was living in Orlando when we were pummeled in August of 2004 by Hurricane Charlie, then soaked by Frances and Jeanne while our jaws were still hanging down and the debris was being cleaned up. Local roofers and tree cutters made small fortunes that year. I was without power for 3 days while some of my friends went up to two weeks without electricity.
Yet the fact remains that Fay was over hyped, as has every tropical system to come within about 300 miles of the Florida coastline since Charlie punched us in the gut and tore part of the roof off my house. Heck, somebody sneezes on a boat near the Cape Verde Islands between July and November and we’re bound to get a breaking newscast about just how powerful it was and what type of system may develop off the coast as a result. 
Sitting with my son in a pizza shop the night Faye made landfall, we saw news forecasts of “4-8 inches of rain” and sustained winds from “50-60 miles per hour” for downtown Orlando. Schools were closed. The home page of the local newspaper’s website showed a series of 14 photos of the few people they could find in a Home Depot carrying out plywood or picking flashlights and gas cans off the shelves. Each local TV station featured breaking news reports regurgitating the info they obtained from the National Hurricane Center’s website, combining it with the usual local interest angles and fear mongering that newscasts seem to thrive upon. If you had just moved to town and didn’t know any better you would have thought the end of the world was coming.
Hype is a fact of life. You can choose to buy into it, become annoyed by it, or evaluate the evidence objectively for yourself and not give it any more thought than it is worth. Now that Fay’s gone and I’m looking out the window at a gentle mist falling through the air I figure it’s as good a time as any to take a closer look at hype and how it functions in our society.
The Threat of Danger Gets People’s Attention
Survival is our greatest concern both individually and as a species. It’s a great meme that gives us something to talk about. When something potentially dangerous appears on the horizon word will spread like wildfire and details often becomes exaggerated. We sometimes exaggerate to garner what we feel is sufficient attention. Danger makes people pay attention and is therefore something media outlets love because they necessarily thrive upon receiving attention as a condition of their continued existence.
CYA is a Necessity for Governments and Large Institutions
We live in a society eager where a small percentage of people see themselves as victims. Governments and large institutions have learned that victims like to point fingers and that victims with lawyers can be expensive. So the safe bet for school boards, large companies, and government offices is to err on the side of caution. If the newscast says 4-8 inches of rain and heavy winds, then of course they have to close the schools. It sure beats having the worst case forecast come true and not having taken any preventive measures against it.
The Danger of Hype:
Remember Chicken little? Whatever is consistently overblown (no pun intended) will eventually fail to gain an audience. This too is human nature. The answer? When you feel something is being hyped, take an objective look for yourself and come to your own conclusion.
Don’t pass on the hype, and yet don’t let it bother you either. Just smile, remember how lucky you are to be alive and hearing about whatever impending doom is about to take place, and go about your day either taking the appropriate cautions or throwing caution to the wind (quite literately & pun intended).
I leave you with a little musical diddy from rapper Public Enemy, which you will probably enjoy if you like old school rap or think that it sounds like little kids slowly letting the air out of balloons at a birthday party if you don’t. Don’t Believe the Hype! Enjoy.
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