Discussion: Should the Media Cover the May 21 Rapture?

In case you haven't been online, watching TV, or listening to the radio for the last week, there has been non-stop talk about a preacher who has said that tomorrow will be the end of the world.

Much less discussed is the fact that the preacher,  evangelist radio host Harold Camping first predicted the world would come to an end in September of 1994.  He's also hedged his bets by saying that if the world does not end tomorrow, it will end on October 21, according to Washington Post blogger Sally Quinn.

On news shows, local radio, and on blog comments there has been a lot of mockery of Camping, and much of the media coverage has centered around jokes about what people will do on their last day on Earth.

Consequently, many have suggested that the media is wasting its time on the story and giving unnecessary and undeserved publicity to Camping.

At the same time, polls suggest that 41 percent of Americans believe that the rapture is likely coming sometime before 2050, so perhaps the media is justified in their coverage?

So what do you think reader?  Is it time for those of us in the media to get over the rapture prediction?