You are taking a lot for granted as to the degree of intelligence in the everyday modern media. They are busy hunting drama and trying to "be the story" rather than "report the story."
Bigest problem is that Joe and Mary citizen don't care enough to educate themselves on the roots of the issues and therfore don't fully realize the seriousness of a major problem like illegal immigration.
If you were to take a chunk of their weekly paycheck away and hand it over directly to the illegal, rather than filter it through the system, maybe they would wake up to the cost of the problem.