The Media’s Responsibilities
SOC 120
The media’s job is to keep the public informed but sometimes it seems they are reporting on items that should not be public knowledge, as it may affect our military; swaying public opinions to the station’s newspaper’s point of view; an event is still going on and all that it affects have not been notified yet, all this done in the name of freedom of speech.
Today’s media includes the normal television, newspapers, internet searches, and billboards, but also include the social aspect as well – Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. The use of the social media has amplified the speed of dissemination across the globe. No more multiple issues of the paper just to update someone of the changes of a particular headline story throughout the day. The media will have it to you within minutes of when it happens. For the majority, this speed of information is well accepted and expected. There are some groups (terrorist, revolutionaries, etc.) “that uses the speed to communicate and collaborate with each other and the rest of the world.” (Schipul, 2011, p 10) You find the information you are looking for at a rapid rate because of the internet. You are also kept abreast of what’s going on in your family and with friends faster thanks to the social media. Facebook is used so much and widely, that information is available in a matter of seconds upon posting. My cousin uses Facebook to keep us abreast of what is going on with my aunt’s health as it declines. Just think on this. If I have 20 family members, then each of those family members have an additional 10 family members that are different than each other, you have reach just about the whole family in minutes. “So is CNN still the “Worldwide Leader in News,” that it claims to be?” (Schipul, 2011, p 10)
One news station may report an offender as a teenaged male, while another would report the same offender as a young adult male. This offender is 19 and can go under...