Fascination with death

Famously, Anubis, Osiris, Hades, and La Santa Muerte have all had large cult followings.

Many of their deities were death-related, such as: Ammut, the devourer of unworthy souls; Anubis, the guardian of the Necropolis and the keeper of poisons, medicines, and herbs; and Osiris, the king of the dead.

"If it bleeds, it leads" is a phrase related to this, meaning that in the mass media most of the material is based on death.

For example, people buy insurance and make other decisions based on what comes readily to mind—e.g., the previously recorded high-water mark for a flood, rarely considering that something worse is possible and in many cases eventually likely.

For example, Vincent Sacco[2][3] and others described how the mainstream commercial media in the United States changed their editorial policies in the 1970s to focus more on the police blotter.

The human psychology behind "If it bleeds, it leads" meant they could retain or even increase their audience while reducing the cost of producing the news: Investigative journalism is enormously expensive, especially if it offends a major advertiser.