CPCF 1F25: Media Impact on Others

           While reading my classmate’s blogs, I was able to notice similar themes and insights from multiple people. First, many of my fellow peers discussed that although the media has an effect on their worldview, they have a filter; they know not to believe everything they hear. Mike Reid said, “It just goes to show that you can’t just take information from mass media at face value” (Reid: http://mikereidyes.blogspot.ca/). Some stories are misleading, leave out important facts, possess bias opinions, and furthermore, are false. Second, media can impact someone in a negative, or a positive way. Anthony Olufeko wrote in his blog, “For example the negative aspect of the media is revealed when the media shows Africa as a poor and weak nation, unable to support and govern its countries” (Olufeko: http://to12ls.wordpress.com/2013/09/19/1f25/). He further explains that the media only shows us harsh, saddening images- usually of people who are starving, in order to make us feel compassionate so that we want help them. When we think of Africa, we picture a struggling nation, rather than a continent as a whole. We rarely hear of positive occurrences or situations that are happening, as I believe it isn’t as beneficial to do so. Third, social media has a big impact on my generation, as a majority of teenagers heavily rely on these resources as a means of communication. In Grace Burgoyne’s post, she explains, “My generation has a different definition for what it means to communicate compared to other generations” (Burgoyne: http://souspression.weebly.com/blog.html). Our generation has had the opportunity to grow up as these new technological discoveries were created. The way we communicate with others is significantly different than the generation before us. Where these changes have been for better or worse, they impact the crucially impact the way we live today.

            For the most part- with a few exceptions, the mass media has had some sort of an impact on my peers, whether it be a small impact, or a significant one. I do not believe that someone could possibly not be impacted by this worldwide phenomenon, as it is always surrounding us. I can conclude that my impression of the media’s impact has not changed significantly, as I still feel as though I depend heavily on mass media, however I know when to believe something and when not to. If anything, this exercise-evaluating our peers views towards the mass media, has strengthened my own ideas, as well as opened my eyes to different thoughts and opinions.

Sincerely,

Shannon McGinnis