Influence of Media to SocietyEssay title: Influence of Media to SocietyThe Influence of Media to SocietyMedia, the name alone to everyone seems all too familiar, however the meaning and purpose of the word is understood differently amongst people. For ages media has been a key source for knowing what is happening throughout the world. As time evolved the speed in which media information becomes available has increased dramatically, but the quality of media is one to question. In Walter Lippman’s “The World Outside and the Pictures in Our Heads,” he discusses the changes in media, as well as providing in his terms the role media play’s and the role media needs to play in order to function properly. The writer argues that what people think and what the real environment around them is tends to be two different pictures. Thus, the writer provides his conclusion to solving this problem. In this essay I will argue that even through Lippman’s conclusion, a solid solution to the problem media plays will still obtainable.
Lippman begins his article by referencing to earlier times in history when information wasn’t shared at a rapid pace. At this point he notes the importance the mind played in creating the events that happened in the world. Without information being rapidly supplied to someone, it was up to one to in turn “believe” what they want to be the true picture. From this Lippman turns to another key in media, the symbolism of public opinion, in which he notes is easily manipulated during insecure times in the world, such as war. During such times as war, the symbols become subject to “check, comparison, and argument.” With this come his three key factors analyzing public opinion, the scene of action, the human reaction to the scene, and the response to the scene imagined. Through providing an example of a misinterpreted scenario of a wartime event, we are able to understand the consequences and large effects that can come with wrong information. Drawing up a problem media brings by inventing ways to see things the naked eye is unable to see, hearing what no one can hear, and creating pictures in ones head that are unreachable. In turn creating a “trustworthy” picture in ones head of an environment that is out of their reach. He goes on to distinguish the difference between public affairs and public opinion; public affairs being the information in which involves others that we in turn find interest in, and public opinion being the images in our heads that we create from the public affairs. The images in turn can be misinterpreted by factors such as artificial censorship, the limitations of social contact, the comparatively meager time available in each day for paying attention to public affairs, the distortion arising because events have to be compressed into very short messages, the difficulty of making a small vocabulary express a complicated world, and finally the fear of facing those facts which would seem to threaten the established routine of men’s lives. From here he develops his conclusion of what must happen in order for media to function properly, which he states public opinions must be organized for the press if they are to be sound, not by the press as it is today.
I strongly agree with Lippman in the argument that the mind played and continues to play an enormous role in public opinion. However, I believe the importance of the role the mind plays is in turn the cause of all dilemmas. This is because there is no mind that is identical, and with that there are always many different views or perspectives on any given issue. Through this, many building issues occur, especially in drastic or chaotic situations. Though media plays an enormous role on providing people with this picture they imagine, it is our minds that in turn manipulate these images to depict what we want to see, hear, or believe. As Lippman states the effects media has on us, especially globally, when we are unable to witness events or occurrences for ourselves is key.
Lippman’s conclusion is that we make up a ‘tough, tough’ view to be honest, but it’s unclear what that means for us when it comes to a subject in our life — how to avoid these problems and ultimately what we want to view the world through. He also noted that ‘I believe that those who are aware of this question also think that there are two perspectives to my viewpoint, especially those in a personal way.’ To be clear, not all of that is right or valid, the point being that he writes: ‘I understand that some people might view my book as part of an ‘old school’ approach to the subject, and that I do think that this might be a bad idea as, if it were not for this book, I believe that we would not have to do much of any ‘hard work’ at all. When we start out on the road, in an ideal world a person might be able to think, to act, to think as a person.’
Lippman and some other media critics are quick to point out that, even if people hold this view of mind they don’t have to go off into the wild the way the rest of us do if they are looking for information (rather, the other way round), however, this cannot be said of any other human being. What’s critical of that approach to mental health comes in part from our own experience as writers, because such individuals usually view them as those in whom it is impossible to take action. If any journalist or activist or academic ever tried to approach our minds via their own approach what they’d have to learn was that these individuals had an extremely hard time of it. But he also told me that they never tried to talk to ‘we.’
Lippman also gave examples of people who have seen through our ‘teething ‘ and ‘pain’ — a process of self reflection that begins to give way to this ‘we’ view of mental health as one of its main purposes and ‘solutions’ rather than simply becoming a ‘mind in search of meaning.’ You can read the full interview where he discusses his approach, and what you have to see are some of the ‘art’ he outlines in that article.[/p>
Some people don’t care too much about the mind reading their comments, but he could also point out that in the real world people sometimes come into contact with each other in some extreme circumstances, and for some these encounters are much harder than for others. The difference lies in how they communicate. Those who are exposed to the same issues have more open and honest discussions, often about the world as a whole. Whether or not the conversation is with someone that will understand, the world is often a far tougher place than most. A person who has come to the realization that a message doesn’t get through like it’s supposed to is at least as prone to make self-abusive comments as others.
When I asked if he’d ever thought of bringing people together, his response was all about bringing us together