Don Henley wrote a song about that kind of news:
"We got the bubble headed bleached blonde
Comes on at five
She can tell you 'bout the plane crash with a gleam in her eye
It's interesting when people die
Give us dirty laundry"
And long before that, Yellow Journalism:
Journalism historian Frank Luther Mott used five characteristics to identify yellow journalism:
1. scare headlines in huge print, often sensationalizing minor news
2. lavish use of pictures, or imaginary drawings
3. use of faked interviews, misleading headlines, pseudoscience, and a parade of false learning from so-called experts
4. emphasis on full-color Sunday supplements, usually with superficial articles and comics
5. dramatic sympathy with the "underdog" against the system.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_journalism>.
The same or highly similar tactics apply equally in the 2020s as they did in the 1880s (and before).
What many people don't realise: the "prestigious" journalistic prize, the Pulizter, is named for one of the most infamous low-quality yellow journalism publishers, Joseph Pulitzer. This is an early example of successful greenwashing of a reputation.
Today's news is not plane crashes, it's how immigrants are burning down Seattle. Obviously total nonsense but a certain kind of person eats it right up.