Does the media influence what we think and feel?

I could not agree with the statement more!! It is obvious that the media in general has a TON of influence over the way people think, feel, and act. Two things that come to mind immediately are nudity on television and politics.

First the nudity. Being older, I actually remember watching Mash when it was on. There was no nudity, and no overt sexuality on that show, and that was the norm for the time. Sometime in the 80's television started to become much more provocative and sexual. I watch several shows now in prime time that would not even have made the midnight showing on HBO in the 70's. This has caused a massive desensitization, in both children and adults. In my humble opinion this is part of the reason that teen pregnancy has become to prevalent today. As parents and children see more and more sex on TV, less and less becomes taboo in the real world. I will admit that we were not angels when we were kids, but I was terrified of what my parents would do if I were to get a girl pregnant. Today, the parents of pregnant teens seem to be thrilled about their child ruining their lives.

As far as politics, a lot of the time, the media covers only the things that are tailored to their views. This is obvious when you watch ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. I am not trying to say which is correct viewpoint, that is an argument for another discussion, but there can be no argument that they see things differently, and that their coverage reflects those differences. Again, when I was young, all of the media outlets covered all of the news. I know it is hard for youngsters to believe, but opinions were not put into news casts. The news outlets put the story out there with the facts, and let the public decide. Today, while not outright saying that something is right or wrong, they put a spin onto the story to make their opinions known. This is wrong in my opinion.

I will admit that the media is not all to blame. With the success of sensationalist shows like Jerry Springer, we, the public, have told the media outlets what we like. These shows used to only be on in the middle of the day, or late at night when children normally would not watch them, but with their success shows of the same lax morals have become the norm throughout the programming day. We the people have done this to ourselves.

So I guess I was wrong, the media does not control us so much as we control what we want them to do with the ratings they get. I guess that means that I am in the minority, as most of the shows and opinions that we get from television are not in agreement with my beliefs and morals.

Until Next time, remember to hug somebody you love!