public discourse too pathetic?

On a whole, public discourse, along with most aspects of mainstream media, have become a little too pathetic. While use of pathos or appeals to emotion can be positive for getting more and more people interested in a certain topic, it fails to logically inform these people in order for logical discussion to take place. For example, ask the question of whether or not the U.S. needs health-care reform (uh oh touchy subject). Dramatic stories and situations that appeal to the emotions of Americans could point to positive reinforcement as to why health-care reform is necessary. On the contrary, scare tactics and hypothetical projections could point out negative aspects and repercussions of health-care reform. However, these dramatic appeals do not inform us of the specifications of the reform and what we can expect from it. If facts and information were presented instead of sob stories that have a tendency to dramatically slant our opinions on certain topics, then logical discussion could be had and necessities could be determined. After all, people can believe in health-care reform, but may see it necessary to meet somewhere in the middle of the opinions of the far left and far right. This thought process could be applicable in most topics of public discourse, and would provide a more fair and accurate argument for discussion. Unfortunately, I do not see much light at the end of a very dark tunnel of pathetic appeal, especially because the mainstream media is one of the largest contributors to emotional appeal. No matter what major news channel you look at, all use pathos to sway their viewer to one specific political party whether it be Democrat or Republican. No matter how fair and balanced you think your news channel of choice is, your opinion is most likely slanted because your political affiliation probably matches that of the certain channel you watch. These news channels know their audiences, and use whatever type of pathetic appeal necessary to fit their demographics. Is there a realistic solution to this never ending problem of pathetic appeal? I really hope there is a solution, but I wouldn't cross my fingers.