The other day I heard there were an extreme number of casualties
during the most recent campaign in Iraq, the most since Fallujah.
When I got home from work, I turned on the television to hear more
about the story.
I am a broke student, so I have to rely on the basic channels, 2
through 13. I flipped through them and found a news program. They
were covering a car chase. This dull and insignificant pursuit went
on forever. I ate my dinner, packed my lunch for the next day, and
sat back down.
It was still going on. It ended anti-climactically, and to this
day I have no idea why it was important for me to see, other than
instilling in me the belief that “you can’t get away
from Johnnie Law.”
When it ended, I thought that I would finally get to hear about
the war. Nope. I watched some “human interest” stories
that didn’t interest me, followed by some commercials,
followed by the weather, which was then followed by more
commercials.
By this time I was wondering what the priorities of the station
were, if not to inform the public about a war that is draining our
budget and killing our countrymen.
The fact is that we are at war. Overseas, there are people
dying.
Yet you wouldn’t be able to tell if it weren’t for
the widespread usage of the “Support Our Troops” bumper
stickers.
I, for one, want to know about Iraq. I feel that it’s my
right as a member of a democracy to be informed about such
things.
Should I be able to find out factual information by turning on
the television? I don’t want to rely on it ““ I mean, I
have other resources. Relying on television for information is like
relying on fast food to sate the basic needs of proper nutrition.
It doesn’t work.
But it should be fixed so that it can work. Ignorance, laziness
and unhealthiness plague our society, and something must be
done.
When I watch the news it feels like I’m being distracted
and mesmerized by dramatic deliveries of the latest gossip about
famous people, pointless car chases and insignificant
human-interest stories. I am being entertained by watching some hot
blonde tell me what the weather is going to be like.
To tell you the truth, I didn’t register a word she said.
I finish a news program only to realize that I haven’t
learned anything ““ I’ve just been taken on an emotional
roller-coaster ride involving the trials and tribulations of the
people involved in this mock-world.
Just as reality TV shows aren’t an adequate representation
of reality, neither is the news.
Because I can’t find any appropriate or important stories
on the television news, I read magazines and newspapers. But it
really doesn’t matter what I do, so long as such a large
percentage of the people involved in this democracy do not seek out
additional sources for their news.
And these people vote! This worries me because I have seen these
types of people regurgitate emotionally based opinions and
generalize things based on one or two examples.
The news leads to generalizations and prejudices every day. The
black man characterized as a criminal or a sportscaster, the woman
as a sidekick or a beauty queen, the homosexual as the butt of the
joke or the entertainer, and so on.
The fact is that the norms and values created by the owners of
mass media organizations do not accurately represent the public but
are disguised to appear as if they do.
Media organizations are more concerned with making a profit than
pursuing free speech. This leads to a hollow and lop-sided version
of democracy. The public is being misled, and their attention is
being diverted.
Conversations with fellow Americans about controversial topics,
such as the war in Iraq, fill me with resentment for the sources
from which these people get their information.
I notice that the vast majority are uninformed on issues that I
feel should be stressed in the media ““ the death toll, the
history of the nation, the proposed structure of the new
government, and so on.
The news becomes an emotional roller coaster ride that leaves a
person wanting more ““ it is a social drug.
There are too many human interest stories on the news, and not
enough political discourse or community-related affairs. Media
conglomerates have gained too much power. They decide the issues,
not the people.
The public is misled to believe in falsehoods, their
insecurities exploited with psychological and social manipulation.
We are no longer active members of a democracy. We need to relieve
the national and local news of its private interest.
Thorne is a fourth-year sociology student.