That's a lot of questions, haha. I'll try:
> what could actually be done about the fear porn?
The short answer is, I don't know what can be done. The people doing it are doing it because it's very profitable for them, and not just because fear grabs attention. Their corporate sponsors love having control of the narrative.
I don't think I could pull even one person out of their fear bubble, either the CNN flavour or the Fox flavour. All you can do is try to help them feel safe, and loved. But it's like having a drug addict in the family; it's a lot of work and very often there isn't much you can do.
You need to go after the drug pusher, and the manufacturer, and take away their control of the fear supply and distribution.
That's a "radical" and monumental task, which can only be begun when enough people recognize the disease that's attacking them. Very smart and effective people have tried to do this for decades, and been smeared for their efforts. Witness Assange, Chomsky, Klein, etc.
> To what extent are people aware of the effects of fear-mongering / click-bait media able to make other choices if offered alternatives?
Again, I feel that the correct analogy here is that of a drug addict. Fear-porn corporate news is heroin - bad for you, but highly addictive. What you're talking about here is like going up to a junkie and offering them an organic apple, or a tasty hummus sandwich. Sure, they'd feel better if they swapped needles for nutrition, but bruh - not gonna happen.
> Would neutral-to-hopeful media stories be able to reach enough people?
They're out there. They often do grab attention, and a lot of people really love stories like that. But they don't trigger that drug-reflex like the shock-terror-drivel that corporate news gushes every minute of the day.
Gather all the volunteers you like - you're still offering apples to heroin addicts.
> what is needed to start doing this and reaching people with it, right now?
Treat fear-porn like heroin, and use similar interventions. Take control of the fear-porn, make it safe, and offer it in small doses in safe environments to addicts. Make society so safe and good that people aren't interested in heroin/fear-porn.
Now, can you do this without the fear-drug gangs doing anything and everything to stop you from accomplishing this? In America?
“We’re an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you’re studying that reality — judiciously, as you will — we’ll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that’s how things will sort out. We’re history’s actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.” - Karl Rove.