Who is Right?

So how can we know who is actually telling the truth in the media?  Just because two different media outlet may be reporting on the same story, it doesn’t mean that you will be getting the same information.  To see how different the same news story can be reported differently, I looked at three different news outlets reporting about a car bombing in Iraq.  I looked at three articles reporting on a car bombing in Iraq.  One article from Fox News, CNN, and Al Jazeera.  For starters, all of the headlines had a different point they were trying to get across: “Car bombings kill at least 31 people in Iraq,” “11 killed in twin suicide bombings in Iraq; ISIS claims responsibility,” and “Iraqi PM calls for arrest of parliament protesters.”  Fox and CNN headline that the death toll is the most important thing, while Al Jazeera’s headline calls for the arrest of protesters.  Al Jazeera talks about the political side first before they even mention the bombings, while the American stations focus on the bombing and who is responsible.

So how do we know which news outlet provides the most accurate story?  All of the reports are going to be biased.  The American stations are going to be bias towards American ways of thinking, so chances are we will most likely think they hold the truth.  Al Jazeera has a different perspective on the story that we may not be used to, but that does not make it wrong.  The journalists write what people will read.  They are writing for an audience and they set an agenda for what they want to accomplish with a story.  It really all comes down to the individual to sort through and figure out what they think is true and what is not in the media.

Fox News Article: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/05/01/car-bombings-kill-at-least-18-people-in-iraq.html?intcmp=hpbt1

CNN Article: http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/01/middleeast/iraq-violence/index.html

Al Jazeera Article: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/05/iraq-parliament-protest-160501113125486.html

Media Bias

Whether we want to admit it or not, the media controls a lot.  They control what is put in the news and what is the top story we will here most about.  The media also gets to control how they present the story and ultimately tell us what to think about.  They play a big part in conflict too.  They can either make conflict worse or help resolve it.  The media can present a story in a way that can actually increase the problem, especially when it comes to violent conflicts.  This article from mediasupport.org, discusses how the media is involved with conflict and the impact it can have on conflict.  The media has so much power in how they present the material and the reaction they think the audience will have.

So is the media biased?  We really get to see media bias when it comes to presidential elections.  Because Fox is a more conservative station, they show conservative candidates in a more positive light, while casting a negative light on the liberals.  That goes the same for liberal TV networks highlighting the candidates they favor.  In this article from the Washington Post, they argue that there is media bias, but left and right leaning media outlets balance each other.  It says that people are just becoming more aware so they think that there is a sudden rise in media bias.  We can all agree that each media outlet will lean one way or the other, but we need to be aware of the information we are being feed and need to interpret it on our own.  The media may tell us what to think about, but it shouldn’t tell us how to think.

Technopoly

Neil Postman who wrote Technopoly, did not necessarily write for the purpose of reaching Christian audiences, but he does use a biblical worldview in his writings.  He write a lot about technology and how we use it to communicate.  He thinks communication between people is very important and that is also stressed in the Bible.  He also focuses on the problems of culture and how the increasing technology and the amount of information we receive can effect that.  It is important for Christians to be involved in culture, even if we disagree with it because it is all a part of God’s creation.

Postman says that we may be in trouble because we are becoming so dependent on technology.  If some of our technology breaks, we fix it with more technology.  He thinks we should be very cautious of this.  Could this be a sign that we are way too focused on technology and other earthly things, and we need to turn more of our attention back to God?  We should not rely on our technology to solve all of our problems and save us.  Postman also addresses the issue of how a culture needs a spiritual and moral foundation.  We can stray away from this sometimes when we are so obsessed with technology, but these things are very important to have a well-functioning society.  Technology is not a bad thing that we should get rid of all together, but we need to be cautious of where and how much we use it in our lives.

TV and Moral Issues

Would you say that popular shows on TV share the same moral and religious values as you and your family?   The answer is probably not.  What is on television can challenge and even shape our values.  Gerbner’s cultivation theory does not only apply to violence on TV leading to people thinking that the world is a more dangerous place.  It can also apply to moral issues we encounter on television shows.  If people see drinking, drugs, and sex constantly on TV, they will begin to think that this is how people in the world actually behave.  We do not have enough shows that portray people in our world with good Christian values.  Shows that have high moral standards usually don’t have as high of ratings as immoral shows, because people don’t want to watch the ordinary.  Viewers want to see excitement and things that don’t happen in their everyday lives.  This link is to an article that examines the effect of media on our social values.

This portrayal of immoral activities can impact everyone, but children can be influenced the most.  If children don’t know any different, they will think this is actually how people in the real world behave, so they should too.  On television they portray drinking as fun, so a child will think it is fun without knowing any of the consequences.  Children also may not be able to separate fiction from reality, so they don’t know what is appropriate for the real world.  This link is to an article that discusses the relationship between media and a child’s moral development.  So we all should be aware of what is on TV and the moral issues that come along with some shows.  This does not mean we should not just watch any TV shows, but we should use our own values to determine what is right and wrong in each situation.

Consumed by Media

How much media do you think you consume every day?  Most of us probably greatly underestimate the amount of media we think we take part in because it is so ingrained in our lives.  Between TV, smartphones, social media, having everything online as well as the traditional forms of media, we engage with the media for about half our day.  If you take a look at this link, you can see a statistical breakdown of the average media usage for a single person per day.  This amazed me that we spend about 12 hours a day with media, but when I started to think about it made sense.  We need the Internet or our smartphones to do so many things today from banking to shopping that we would be lost without them.  Many jobs now involve media too, so sometimes the only time you can get away from it is when you are asleep.

If this statistic was made for 1960 instead of 2015, I think the results would be very different.  Obviously there would be no Internet or smartphones and there would be a lot less total consumption.  Television, radio, and newspapers would be the main sources of media and radio and newspapers would take up a much greater portion than they do today.  But 55 years ago, it was not as much a part of their lives.  Not nearly as many people participated in the media for their jobs or did they come home and surf the Internet for hours.  Even over the past 5 years the amount and how we engage with media has drastically changed.  You can check out this link to see charts and more statistics of this change.  In 2005, 12% of young adults used social media.  Ten years later, 90% of young adults use some form of social media.  Between 2005 and 2015, we went from about one tenth of the country using this relatively new type of media to only one tenth not using it.  It seems that we are consuming media from the time we wake up until the time we go to sleep.  Will we just continually increase our media consumption over the next few years?  I don’t really know how much more media we can pack into our days unless we start to use it in our sleep, but with this trend in media consumption, it looks like it is in our lives to stay.  But I think it is important to take break from all the technology for a day or even just a few hours and look out into the really world and see what you are missing from behind the screen.

Christians in Culture

As Christians, the world we live does not always align with our beliefs and Biblical teachings.  But does that mean we should just withdraw from culture and try to ignore the things in the world that are not necessarily Christian?  An article from the website, Grace to You, says that we have a duty in society as Christians.  It reminds us that we are all children of God and even non believers can do good so we should not disregard them because we would miss out on many good things.  We should be respectful and show consideration to others.  Engaging with others in culture is a part of our duties as humans on earth, even if culture might not be what we want it to be.

So how should Christians react in this constant shifting of culture to mostly non-Christian ways of thinking?  A Huffington Post blog post highlights a few ways Christians can cope with this increasing move towards a secular culture.  First, it says we need to pray.  We should pray for God’s help in our country and the direction it is going.  Secondly, the article suggests we need to love.  Like Jesus did, we should love one another no matter if our views differ from theirs or we don’t believe the same things.  Thirdly, we should have hope.  We live in an uncertain world, and we are filled with hope in Christ and He brings hope to the world.  The last thing the article suggests to do is to serve.  We are to come together with each other and do good deeds and serve in the name of Christ.

I think that we should engage with culture and the world around us because it is all God’s creation.  Even if there is an issue within culture that we may not agree with, we should interact with it and share our views as well as understanding the views of others.  Even though some aspects of culture may make us want to shy away, as followers of Christ, we should engage and play our role in culture.

Jackson, John. “How Should Christians Respond to a Changing Culture?” HuffPost Religion. Huffington Post. January 23, 2014. Web. March 25, 2016.  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-john-jackson/how-should-christians-res_b_4250589.html

“Christian Duty in a Pagan Culture.” Grace to You. Web. March 25, 2016.  http://www.gty.org/resources/articles/A122/christian-duty-in-a-pagan-culture

Blog 7

So far throughout this semester learning about the media has really opened my eyes up to what the media really is and how it influences us.  I learned that the media encompasses so much more than I ever thought and it opened my eyes and now I recognize it more than I used to.  Especially with advertising, you have no idea how many advertisements are around you until you start to look for them.  The media also has so much impact on what we think, say, and spend our money on.  Public relations specialists influence us so much and we have no idea who these people are and will probably never know.  For example Edward Bernays influenced the entire nation by making them think that a hardy breakfast of bacon and eggs was good for you just to sell more bacon.  His propaganda techniques were so powerful that today the classic American breakfast is bacon and eggs.  This just goes to show how one person in the background can change everything we know.  I think it is important for us to beware of the media, PR, and advertisers and what they are doing so we make our own decisions and be our own unique people.  Not that everything that advertisers do is bad, but we should not solely put our trust into people we don’t know and companies whose goal is to make a profit.

The Persuaders

How much do advertisers influence you?  You may not think that they do that much and only through TV commercials or online ads.  But as consumers, we have no idea how much we are unconsciously affected by advertisers.  The PBS documentary The Persuaders focuses on advertisers and how they affect their customers as well as becoming a part of our everyday lives.  Advertisers are not just focusing on providing the best product for the best price anymore.  They tap into our emotions and there has even been a spiritual trend in advertising lately.  They use focus groups to gain information about how the consumers feel about an experience.  Some companies even bring in psychiatrists to try to get into the heads of consumers to see what will trigger emotions to make them want to purchase their product.

The documentary used the example of the new airline, Song.  Song doesn’t just try to compete with other airline services by providing the lowest price.  Song tried to recreate the entire experience of flying and make Song a brand and experience of its own like no one has ever seen before.  The focus of Song was to make people comfortable and love the experience and feel like they are a part of the Song family.  We are so surrounded by advertisements that we do not even realize how much we are until we step back and try to look for it specifically.  From TV, to billboard, to magazines, to shirts, to even the sides of barns, advertisers are pushing themselves into our lives with or without our permission and influencing our buying decisions using our emotions.

Media Effects

Do you know how much the media influences you?  The documentary The Mean World Syndrome explains George Gerbner’s cultivation theory and the effect the media has on our lives.  Cultivation theory studies the impact that television has on the way we see the world.  Gerbner says that the amount of time we watch television is proportional to how fearful we are of the world around us.  This mean world syndrome says that heavy viewers of TV will have more anxiety, fear, and anger and think the world is a more dangerous and scary place than it actually is.  Television is has increasing become more full of violent content and it makes us more aware of what could happen to us.  If you just finished a Criminal Minds marathon, you will probably be looking over your shoulder a few more times than normal later.  The news especially has a great influence on how we view the world.  The top story is always a violent crime or fire and we connect more personally with it because it is close by.  A person who solely watches the local news all day will probably have some fear when they are outside.

As a little kid I remember being scared that something on TV would happen in real life, but I did not watch so much television that it was a constant fear.  When I’m not at school I definitely watch more TV because I have access to it.  At school because I don’t have cable, I rarely watch the news or anything that’s not on Netflix.  At school I depend more on other types of media for news.  I definitely think what we see on TV affects how we see the world.  I am not greatly impacted by TV, but I still see the mean world syndrome being valid.  Watching the news and seeing violent shows on television makes me aware that there are bad things out there and that I should be cautious, but it doesn’t paralyze me with fear to the point where I don’t want to leave as it does with some heavy users.

Symbolic Ambiguity

In Quentin Schultze’s book Communicating for Life, he discusses the topic of symbolic ambiguity.  He talks about the ambiguity of symbols; the meanings of symbols and how these meanings are not fixed.  Different people have different meanings for different ideas or objects.  We all interpret situations, words, and ideas according to our own views.  I can have a positive association with something, and you may have a negative association with the same exact thing.  We even interpret the same words differently.  It can also work in the opposite direction.  People can have the same idea, but if they are not communicating it with words that everyone agrees on the meanings of, then not everyone will be on the same page.  But, symbolic ambiguity does allow for us to have things like jokes and puns that play on the same word having multiple meanings.

So can we get rid of symbolic ambiguity so everyone can communicate without misunderstanding?  It is pretty much impossible to completely get rid of it, but groups of people can agree on the meanings of symbols to help increase common understanding.  This just shows that communication is by no means a fixed set of rules.  There is always different interpretations of meanings for the same thing.  This differences can be because of cultural differences, age differences, or just our individual view of the world.  When we communicate, we have to make sure we make ourselves clear to others.  Even though it is impossible to have everybody understand you 100% of the time, it is helpful to be aware that someone may interpret what you say in a different way than you intended.