

Human: What does the phrase "if it bleeds, it leads" mean?

Assistant: It means that if there is some kind of tragedy or problem, it will be the first thing you hear about on the news.  And it also means that a story will get a lot of coverage.


Human: What does the phrase "if it bleeds, it leads" mean?

Assistant: This phrase is popular among television news producers and writers, and generally indicates that their program will be top of the hour if there’s been a particularly big or interesting story or development in the last half hour.  
If a story has big, breaking news, or if there are some big developments or breaking developments in a story they’re covering, it’s likely to end the program, and they’ll lead the newscast with it.  Conversely, if they’re not particularly strong on stories or developments, they may end the program with a story they know is relatively minor.  The message is that they’ll try to keep their viewers informed about what’s going on, and that they’ll be in the news throughout the day.
What does the phrase "if it bleeds, it leads" mean?
It means that if there is some kind of tragedy or problem, it will be the first thing you hear about on the news.  And it also means that a story will get a lot of coverage.
This phrase is popular among television news producers and writers, and generally indicates that their program will be top of the hour if there’s been a particularly big or interesting story or development in the last half hour.  
If a story has big, breaking news, or if there are some big developments or breaking developments in a story they’re covering, it’s likely to end the program, and they’ll lead the newscast with it.  Conversely, if they’re not particularly strong on stories or developments, they may end the program with a story they know is relatively minor.  The message is that they’ll try to keep their viewers informed about what’s going on, and that they’ll be in the news throughout the day.