Politics has found a way to become a practical joke. The recent events that have taken place and made its way into our history have affected many. There is no denying that this was one of the most polarizing elections, but it definitely gave insight into the division that has existed in the United States for a long time. That being said, the portrayal of the election in the media was not a positive one either. Over the years, the influence of social media and the news has risen. While this medium of communication has its perks, we have witnessed its largely negative impact in this year’s election.
What is wrong with the media reception? Just like numerous other things in life, when used improperly, this mode can convey the ugly extensively. Especially with millennials, social media can sway people very quickly. When something is posted on Facebook or Twitter, that one 'like' or 'repost' can become thousands of 'likes' and 'reposts', whether the comment was something you agreed with or not. This becomes the web for anyone who is a slave to social media.
People always want to be on board with popular comments. By doing this, individuals do not understand that most of the headlines posted on social media contain biased phrasing. How many people actually click on the link to learn more about it? How many people are actually skeptical enough to research certain topics even further? In my opinion, very few actually take the time to learn about what is trending. Rather, in order to feel included, they choose a side and stick with it till the end.
Now for the main question: what is actually wrong with the media? Read the biased headlines lately? There is not one headline that plays an objective role in people’s discretion. When talking about our candidates this past year, most of these so-called journalists would use demeaning phrases to describe some of these candidates, often times pertaining to the same “emails”, or using the word “deplorable”. Regardless, these media attacks served as a platform for countless other candidates in this presidential race to use. These same words were repeated in a stream of parallelism to infuriate people, and in several ways skewed the results of this election.
I am not saying that social media or the journalism is completely disadvantageous. The purpose for the news and social media is to expediently bring awareness to the general public. Regardless of this intention, we have increasingly witnessed how it has played a role in tainting people’s perception. We have seen the news make a mockery of this election, an election that should have been taken seriously. Multiple people did not know that a reality star would become a president in reality and years of experience would be so wasteful.
To all, I have just one message for you. Forget the world; our nation is a vast place filled difference in perspective. I understand that this may not always be feasible, but what you read or watch, or tweet is not sufficient. Opinions form through experience, so get out of your chairs, take your eyes off of your screens, and talk to people. Witness the parts that are unknown and uncomfortable to you.
