There has been a lot of talk in the past few months about whether or not the media is enough. Should we trust the media? Are they the enemy? Are reporters trying to purposely be bias?
A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure to go to the Newseum in Washington D.C.. Upon going there, I knew how important media is for the American people (hello, journalist in the making). When I left, my feelings towards my future carrer only got stronger as I saw the importance of news.
The rhetoric behind the media in this political atmosphere needs to be re-evaluated.
I want to first introduce to everyone who says that the media is not for the American people a complex, yet simple piece of legislation called the 1st amendment.
We have the right to ask, the right to write whatever we want, and the right to tell the American people everything. To think that the media will always be at one's side is like asking for an 'A' on an exam you clearly failed.
It really upsets me that the media is labeled as the "enemy of the American people." No matter what party or what side you want to stand by, this statement is completely false. If the media didn't exist, no one would know ANYTHING. Yes, there are journalists not reporting on certain issues or countries, but it's not because they don't WANT to. Hard to believe but there have been so many journalists who have died just doing their job. There are so many free lancers out there trying to live in the most dangerous places.
Yes, journalists will ask the tough questions, and as far as I know, I don't live in a society where media blackout exists. It is their job to push as hard as you can (ethically) to get the answers for the American people. There will NEVER be a program that censors the "bad." Gatekeepers exist because ethics need to be implemented.
I didn't grow up thinking I want to be the enemy of the American people. I grew up wanted to be the one who gives the American people all the information they deserve. Once you are in the spotlight, it is only up to the individual to lay out how they want to be seen. Once you are the focus of the media, it is like a magnifying glass is on you 24/7 and as bad as that sounds, we have the freedom to report and with technology, sometimes a pictures reports it all too.
If you have doubts or continue to want to be hostile towards the media, question someone who works in the field or who is studying to work for the media. The media is a broad term. From print to broadcast to radio, when you say that the media is horrible, you are targeting everyone. CNN or FOX News are not their own. They are media in this society and in every other society that exists. If you blame the media as a whole, you are blaming everyone, and yeah your favorite news network too.
If you want to see the effects of such media censorship, please look at North Korea or any other communist nation. We are not that. We are better than that and we have the rights to protect us.
Signing off, a very irritated journalist.
Sheetal Tadiparty
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