A Reflection Of the Past 72 Hours

Classes today were held with a more serious, somber note. With two  merging into one, and a division transforming into a whole, an awaiting presentation completely changed all of our day. The last seventy two hours in the United States proves a slap in the face, with the media fueling an ongoing fire in the country. First with the Louisville shooting, next the various pipe bombs, and now the Pittsburgh Synagogue massacre. This is a sudden influx of the bad, evil, scary stories . We grew up with crime. That's something that has always existed, just how shootings and attempted assassinations have always been present in our world. However with recent global issues- Khashoggi's death, the migrant caravan, Kavanaugh being elected as a Justice- the world feels more divided than ever. And just how Mr.Miller said, it's okay to be scared; but we have to stick together and fight through hatred as a unit. 

These were only three attacks in a country filled with millions of people. So why does it feel worse than it probably is? Not only is the media reporting constant crime, but sometimes they overindulge in descriptions and blow proportions out of the water. By doing this, they fuel gossip and drama, which keep the public coming back for for. Some news organizations are built on views, and not quality journalism. What's concerning is that the media is a widespread tool that can be used for either good or bad. Right or wrong. And it appears that as certain conglomerations start to buy out other news organizations, so do biased individuals with an agenda to run. 

America in general has always had an issue with pitting one group of people against another. Society has become consumed with which side you're on in whatever conflict exists. It's always white vs black, poor vs rich, left wing vs right wing, straight vs gay, transgender vs cis, and so on and so forth. The majority of one group appears to hate the other, and vice versa. It's absolutely ridiculous that we view each other with these labels pinned above our heads, flaunting around as if these labels are our entire lives, and nothing else. Sure, some of these labels may be part of your identity, but they don't need to become  your identity. The media is laced with race baiting, biased views, and false information to sway your opinion. You just have to research yourself sometimes, or find a solid source that hasn't been bought out by a potential biased group/individual (Such as Jeff Bezos and The Washington Post)

Social media has also brought us a prominent source of news, fast and mostly efficient. In my observations, it is to be said that Generation Z is one of the most informed generations. But are we correctly informed, or just spitting rhetoric that we assume is true? This has proved to be the case many times. Yes, social medias such as Instagram have allowed us to expand our reach and delve  into many facts or stories. Many children turn to Tumblr posts or generic Instagram accounts for most their information about the world. This is not a good thing. Growing up, you need to be challenged in your opinions and views on the world. Having no debate and just freely accepting whatever the Internet tells you is not human; it's robotic. Children chanting the same posts over and over again does not make it true- especially since some of these posts have turned out to be completely false or have no source what so ever. Such an example would be the  Pope Francis insulting transgenders incident, which turned out to be a made up lie. But people believed it. 

Journalism can be used to either bring people together, or push them apart. This is nothing new, but something needed in this day and age, where war seems to be lurking at the drop of a hat. Tensions rise and tensions fall, it's just how we  handle it that makes the difference.