The public's taste for "news" content that appeals on some level other than the strictly informative and the media's taste for profitablity are so intertwined that it's impossible to know which is the cause and which the effect. "Media creates the demand," and "The demand is part of human nature and the media is only responding to it," are equally meaningless statements. They're just two aspects of a self-perpetuating feedback loop. The only way to break the loop is to refuse to participate. Unplugging your television is a good start.