"The fear of missing out means today’s media, more than ever before, hunts in a pack."

"In these modes it is like a feral beast, just tearing people and reputations to bits. But no one dares miss out," said Tony Blair.

"I’ve made this speech after much hesitation,” he said. “I know it will be rubbished in certain quarters. But I also know this has needed to be said.”

.. Mr. Blair’s criticism today seemed unusually blunt, as he assailed sensationalism, “the confusion of news and commentary,” an alleged lack of balance in British reporting and over-simplification. “Things, people, issues, stories, are all black and white,” he said. “Life’s usual gray is almost entirely absent....

He continued: “I do believe this relationship between public life and media is now damaged in a manner that requires repair. The damage saps the country’s confidence and self-belief; it undermines its assessment of itself, its institutions; and, above all, it reduces our capacity to take the right decisions, in the right spirit for our future.”

My first instinct -- feral, I suppose -- is to rubbish this. Public figures will always complain about the press, and competition among media is the marketplace of ideas. What's new is that the media itself is subjected to instant and vigorous scrutiny.