The question of whether we get
the media we need and whether it should inform us about the world seems fairly
straightforward. But the more you look at it, the complicated this question
becomes.
Like most people, I do not seek
out informative media; for me, this is because I am simply not happy with what
I find. For example, whenever I turn on the news someone is dying or going to
jail and following politics is just disappointing; last time I checked Mayor
Ford was smoking crack. All of the “news” I receive is so sensationalized that,
because I am interested in the real facts, it stops me from looking for other
news because I am so disappointed with what I get, I no longer want to bother.
Brooke believes that, “people can help do things to get the media we want such
as exclude details, not releasing certain information to the public, etc.”
(Harnum, 2013) and I agree with that; it is my opinion that this is exactly how
news agencies make certain headlines more shocking and controversial, which
deters me from being interested in the news.
“Think of going through life
blindfolded, everywhere you go, you are guided and told what your surroundings
look like, what the actions of others are, and what is constantly going on
around you. This depiction portrays your life” (mm13sa, 2013). This would be
the world of a person who is totally unaware of what is going on around them
and it is hard to stay informed. There are those few examples of social media
benefitting someone’s social consciousness, however. On Facebook, I am
subscribed to The Sociological Cinema, which disseminates sociological
information, and Upworthy, a page that raises awareness of a variety of issues,
several of which are related to the media. Most of the stories on these sites
are interesting and would draw viewer attention but these are also both pages
that I found incidentally after years on Facebook and I never really access
them unless I am already online.
The reason not many people are compelled
to seek awareness through media is because we have associated media with being
meant for pleasure. As Amy Lowe (2013) wrote in a blog post, “we often choose
the media that we want whether it is informative or not,” and she is right. No
one would argue that more people watch TMZ than CPAC. And TMZ is an example of
another reason people do not seek informative media; they are conditioned to
have shorter attention spans. Between advertisements and TV shows that do not
focus on one thing for very long, people are conditioned to have shorter
attention spans and then cannot focus long enough to analyze or store important
information.
Whether or not we get the media
we need is up for debate and is all dependent on what people feel the media is
responsible for. However, if you are looking for something more stimulating
than mainstream media, you will have to find it on your own.
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