:)

I know that it's important to know what goes on in the world, but it's a delicate balance between need-to-know and exposing oneself to the negativity of the media. They do have a tendency to focus mainly on the bad news and to portray it in the worst light possible. Once in a while, we need some happy news. To know that not everyone is out for murder or personal greed, to know that there are truly good people in the world who are working hard to improve things. I don't think it motivates us to help when we see what the media offers as news. It makes us feel hopeless and that the problem is insurmountable. Happy news is inspirational and makes me think that if someone else can make a difference, than so can I.
There are several sites that offer happy news and although my favourite has recently become a pay-to-use thing, I still receive their emails and can usually trace the source of the stories through Google.
Try these stories on for size.

Growing love and humanity on the highway

The Trucker and the Butterfly

Delta gets crafty for a good cause (Ignore the ad about genital herpes that comes first!)

Now I know that these stories are presented by the media, but they represent such a minority it's easy for them to get lost in the sea of horror. I'm not trying to bury my head in the sand (which I recently learned ostriches DON'T do) or ignore that there are problems, what I am trying to avoid is feeling like things are so far gone that nothing I can do will ever make a difference.