The rise of the Pacific Rim. .. A large proportion of earthquakes happen on the so-called Pacific "ring of fire", one of the most tectonically active regions in the world. In recent years, this region has been generally experiencing a rapid growth in population, infrastructure, and economic power. This means that (a) earthquakes here are more likely to hit heavily populated, built up areas than before; (b) the infrastructure is now good enough to get journalists quickly to the affected areas; and (c) news from this region is more important to Western countries than ever before. The net result of these factors is that coverage of the earthquakes in this region has increased dramatically, and has penetrated deeper into the conscious memory of Western viewers. Also, building practices in the Pacific Rim are of uneven quality, and this can often exacerbate the destruction.
