Mass Media: Helpful or Harmful to society?
posted by Lorena Rico | November 15, 2021 | In OpinionIn recent times, it seems as if society relies on mass media to form feelings and opinions. Is helpful or harmful to society?
When I think of “mass media,” the first thing that comes to mind is the amount of power it holds. Whether it is websites, social media, print articles, television programs, or any media portrayal, mass media shape the way we view ourselves and others.
One factor we can all agree on is the way mass media shape our image of ourselves. One concern is how we see people on social media sharing their luxurious lives and nearly perfect physical physique, and envy what they have. While we are busy putting ourselves down over the things we may not have, we lose sight of what there is to be grateful for. The recently released Facebook papers revealed that Instagram found in its own research that a third of teens on the platform felt worse about themselves after time on the app, according to The Wall Street Journal.
If we cannot kick the hunger for validation from others, what happens to the validation from ourselves? Mass media may influence us to work harder for the desired vision, but that vision becomes almost invisible when we do not realize our worth without media.
Mass media can also have the power to divide and unify. It feels as if those in control of mass media enjoy having a divide in society, rather than seeing society come together. Mass media is quick to cover when society is in an uproar or disagreement, but rarely when society is in agreement. There is a specific feeling of comfort that comes with seeing society come together in a positive way, and I wish we got to see more of that.
A great outcome of mass media is the ability to provide the opportunity for different communities to communicate. For instance, the creation of group chats and social media groups. A personal favorite is the community groups for different reality television shows (my guilty pleasure). It is amazing that mass media provide the opportunity to have conversations with people from all over the world about different topics.
Society spends more time focusing on mass media with the amount of technology available. American teens spend an average of nine hours a day using screens, not counting school work, according to Common Sense Media. Being consumed with mass media reduces simple daily tasks and opportunities for in-person communication. Those are moments that we cannot get back, and it is easy to be distracted from that thought when our minds are consumed by mass media.
The capacity mass media holds are considered helpful for some, and harmful for others. As quickly as mass media can be used to separate society, it can be used to bring society together. We can decide our actions without influence and do what is right despite others wanting us to do wrong. We can control how we spend our time, and what we give our mind and energy to. We have the power to control the trajectory of how we let society impact society.
Photo courtesy of mistervoice
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