It’s all over the news now that over 120 people were killed in Paris and over 300 people wounded. It was a tragedy that shook the world, resulting in many countries lighting up the colors of the French flag to show their solidarity.

One thing that has been discussed is the lack of media coverage on other horrific events that are going on in the world, such as the earthquakes in Japan and Mexico and the suicide bombings in Beirut and Baghdad. While there are many photos and statuses going around social media about all the events that happened on Friday, November 13^th, some are upset that the media is only highlighting the deaths of Paris as shown through the new Facebook filter and the French flag lighting up the world.

I just recently read a post about how the media is brainwashing us and telling us that some deaths are more important than others. The post talked about the 147 Kenyan students that were murdered at Garissa University and questioned why people weren’t putting up Kenyan flags on their profile pictures. Had they fact checked the event, they would have known that the attack happened back in April.

This cry that the media was highlighting one group of murders over another really was seen during the attack at Charlie Hebdo and the killing of 2,000 people in Nigeria by Boko Haram. People were posting that the media was ignoring the Nigerians and just focusing on Charlie Hebdo.

But there shouldn’t really be a comparison.

One attack happened in a place that was easily accessible by the media where it could be constantly covered. The other one happened in a remote part of Africa where there weren’t many journalists around. According to this article, after the attack in Baga, Nigeria, it was difficult for journalists to get information even once they were on location because Boko Haram controlled the area. With Charlie Hebdo, video of the site where the attack occurred was instantly available and almost every news network used it.

It should be known that Paris is a major international city where there are many journalists around to cover the story. In Beirut and Baghdad, it is more difficult for reporters to get the story because they are places that are not as easily accessible due to ongoing violent conflicts. In addition, the Paris attack seems to be more shocking of an attack, considering there were many more people killed; Beirut and Baghdad have had ongoing violence and are in the midst of a civil war that has been regularly reported on in international media.

Japan faced a magnitude-7 earthquake and Mexico with a 4.3. With no reported deaths or injuries, it was not covered in the media as much as Paris.

The world is still shaking from all of the events that occurred on Friday. Although many eyes are on Paris, we need to educate ourselves on the happenings around the world. We shouldn’t just let the major news outlets tell us what is going on. If you hear about a story that you don’t know much about, search for it online and you will find articles with more information. You can read about what happened in Beirut, Baghdad, Japan, and Mexico all with a simple Google search.

Yes, the terrorist attack in Paris is just one of many tragedies that happened on Friday, November 13^th, but it shouldn’t be the only one you know about because they are all important. The loss of life is tragic no matter where it is.

*The suicide bombing in Baghdad occurred on Thursday, November 12th.