The Media's Role in Society

The media plays a massive role in the way people think and they way they react to specific situations.

Recently, Maria Armoudian published a book, "Kill the Messenger," examining how the media has "perpetuated both good and evil." With this novel she examines articles surrounding the most pivotal moments of the 20th Century, such as the genocides in Germany, Rwanda, and Bosnia, and then explains how the media played a direct role in the heinous actions that took place and resulted in the loss of millions of lives.

Furthermore, Armoudian explains, "it is naïve to believe that the impact of radio and television in particular can be easily brushed aside."

With this quote, the role of the media on our society must be questioned. Right now the media has been covering the candidates they believe have the best chance to win, therefore candidates such as Ron Paul receive little to no positive coverage and are essentially eliminated from the race.

Another example, is the media's coverage of the Occupy Wall Street protest going on in New York City and quickly spreading to different states across the U.S. When this protest began, mainstream media in the U.S. was hesitant to cover these protesters. If this was pre-social media times, this could have caused this protest to lose supporters and dwindle off; becoming forgotten in history.

The press should make sure to provide well-researched, unbiased coverage for any major event or person. They must be very careful about the ideas they back in their stories and remember what they print, say, or show will have some sort of impact on the audience good are bad, and need to be ready to take responsibility for any consequences that derive from their stories.

picture provided by _PaulS_ from creativecommons.com