Is it really news?

This is a good one.
Is it REALLY news?

Well done! Most Americans have been turned into mesmerized sheep by the manipulators of the boob tube.

Well said.

Is it possible that one reason that people are so ignorant (aside from the destruction of our public education system -- don't get me started) is this:

The more you know about politics, history, economics etc, the scarier life becomes? And if you feel powerless against the forces that shape your life, it's even scarier?

In other words, isn't it simply easier to bumble along worrying about the sadly abused Honey Boo Boo and her gargantuan moron of a mother, or whether or not Lindsay Lohan will have to spend some quality time in the LA County Jail, or what color Anne Hathaway has dyed her hair, than it is to think about how the government deals with poor people or terrorists or whether or not Medicare will exist when you get old?

I'm not saying -- by any means -- that ignorance is bliss (which is a mistranslation in any case: it is "innocence" that is bliss). What I'm saying is that a populace fed pap and kept stupid is much easier to manipulate than one which understands what is going on and cares. Ref: the 60s, when a well-educated populace rose up in protest at government policies it considered unacceptable.

I agree. 
I also heartily agree about education.  Oh my. 
When the gov takes in more money annually from student loans than Exxon/Mobil makes in profit over the same time period, there's a serious problem.

This media thing is stupid information overload.  We are swimming in it.
We now have massive information mills that churn out stuff faster than we can sort through it.
Like you say, a stupid population is easier to manipulate than an educated one.