What the Titanic submersible saga and the Greek migrant shipwreck say about our reactions to tragedy
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By Associated PressA small OceanGate submersible (OceanGate)
What makes these two events at sea different in how they were received? Viewed next to each other, what do they say about human reactions to tragic news? And why did the saga of the submersible grab so much attention?
There was an unknown outcome and (we thought) a ticking clock
By the time the world learned about the Greek shipwreck, the event had already taken place and, to some extent, the outcome was already known. All that was left was the aftermath.
Conversely, the Titan (the world thought) was an event in the process of happening — something that unfolded in real time with a deadline attached. As with any narrative, a ticking clock increases tension and attention.
The fact that no one could communicate with the submersible — or learn anything about what the people inside were experiencing — only added to the potential for close attention.
And the possibility of a happy ending — at least for a while — also helped sustain attention, said Jennifer Talarico, a psychology professor at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania who studies how people form personal memories of public events.
This undated handout image provided by Greece's coast guard on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, shows scores of people on a battered fishing boat that later capsized and sank off southern Greece. (Hellenic Coastguard via AP)
A renowned historical tragedy was back in the news
Before anything even went awry, the Titan was already venturing into a realm of existing high interest — the wreck of the Titanic, itself the archetype of modern disasters long before James Cameron's popular 1997 film. So there was an interest already baked in that had nothing to do with the submersible itself.
He told the BBC in an interview broadcast on Friday that he "felt in my bones" that the Titan submersible had been lost soon after he heard it had lost contact with the surface during its descent to the wreckage of the ocean liner at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
He said focus in the media over the next few days about the submersible having 96 hours of oxygen supply — and that banging noises had been heard — was a "prolonged and nightmarish charade".
Director James Cameron spoke about the loss of the five people aboard the Titan sub. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)
Class and race played a role
Many reactions and memes this week centred around the notion — fair or not — that one event involved rich people using the ocean as a playground, while the other was a sadly frequent recurrence of misfortune befalling people who lack status, resources or even a voice in the modern marketplace of ideas.
Apryl Alexander, a public health professor at University of North Carolina-Charlotte who has studied trauma and survivors, said the migrants on the ship in Greece didn't seem to engender the same interest from the public as did the wealthy individuals who paid $US250,000 ($374,000) apiece to explore the Titanic.
That reminded Alexander of the differences in news coverage of crime in the United States. Crimes get more attention when the victim is white and wealthy compared to a person of colour in poverty, Alexander said.
Apryl Alexander, a public health professor at University of North Carolina-Charlotte who has studied trauma and survivors, said the migrants on the ship in Greece didn't seem to engender the same interest. (AP)
A small group of people had the media's ear
Tim Recuber, an assistant professor of sociology at Smith College who studies mass media, digital culture and emotions, said people tend to be drawn to stories that allow them to empathise with the suffering of others — and that it's easier to empathise when there are smaller numbers of people involved.
"I think some people are calling out this time around the sort of inequalities that are baked into it around class," Recuber said.
"We are able to learn who the people on the sub are because of who they are. They're wealthy and they have access to the press.
"Divisions of race and national identity matter in terms of who gets empathised with."
Survivors of a shipwreck are seen inside a warehouse where they're taking shelter at the port in Kalamata, Greece. (AP)
The public lives vicariously through the risks others take
Individuals who choose their risks have grabbed headlines almost since there have been headlines. So the public was likely enthralled about others cheating death by doing something dangerous, said Daryl Van Tongeren, a psychology professor at Hope College in Michigan who has studied the meaning around big events and their effect on people.
In other words, he said, readers and viewers can feel alive by living vicariously through others who are taking risks.
"There's this fascination with people who engage in these high-risk experiences," Van Tongeren said.
"Even though we know that death is the only certainty in life, we invest in these activities where we get close to death but overcome it. We want to demonstrate our mastery over death," he said.
The five aboard were pilot Stockton Rush, the CEO of OceanGate; French explorer and Titanic expert Paul-Henry Nargeolet; British adventurer and billionaire Hamish Harding; and Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman. (9News)
Disaster fatigue is a factor, too
The pandemic. Mass shootings. Economic problems. War. Climate change. It can be hard for another piece of bad news to punch through.
"People are starting to tune out," Alexander said.
In the end, she said, she'd like to see the same level of societal interest in human tragedies regardless of race, religion, demographics, or other factors.
"For all of us, we hope that if any of our loved ones go missing that the media and the public would pay the same attention to all stories," she said.
