HOW MEDIA CULTURE IS WIRING US & WHAT WE ARE LOSING

 

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

An excited energetic young man celebrating media culture / Photo Courtesy / Diva Plavalaguna 

It is No Longer Three

When we look at media culture (Television, radio, internet) using the lens of cultural studies. We learn that media culture provides materials for constructing views of the world, behavior, and even identities. And I will stop here so that I don’t lose you. Because if I proceed beyond this, we might end up in a cultural studies classroom. But that was not the point. My thesis is on media culture and how that culture is shaping us. But I wanted to bring in an academic angle to just show you the influence media has over us if we allow it to shape our thoughts and even behavior. When media becomes the primary lens through which we see things. It influences our behavior and identities. The media landscape has expanded. In the past, we were juggling television, radio, and newspaper. However, our world has evolved. It is no longer three.

New age media has introduced the internet. And the internet has given birth to social media. Social Media now is very powerful than the traditional media because it is ubiquitous. And it has stolen our attention. Instagram is sweet because it has all those sweet things your eyes love seeing, Facebook on the other hand, is an ocean as it connects this corner of the world to the other, and YouTube is a darling in most of our homes because it looks like graduation from these other social media platforms. And we haven’t even touched your favorite streaming services. So media culture in modern society is rich, polished, dressed, and presented using all the beautiful terms. There is more material from media culture to not just construct our views or behavior but also the exact language to voice those views and act those behaviors. Today, anyone who wants anything to get in front of our eyes or ears feeds it in the media culture.

And soon after, kids and adults would be dancing all around the internet with a new trend. That is how new materials are presented. As new trends, which soon stops being trends and transition into influences and behavior. For me, I see the 21^st Century as a bad time to be a child. Because no one is giving a child a break. A child’s purity is no longer respected. Children are being born in a world that is so sick and corrupt that their purity is at risk. Since there are preys all over. And the funny thing is that; parents buy those risks. Consumer electronics such as, Smartphones are no longer just means of communication. A Smartphone in modern world is multipurpose device. At some point it is your typical communication tool. And the next minute, it is the entertainment hub. Introducing a whole club in the house. Many things are happening in our own houses.

Roles Changed

An excited group of people enjoying pop culture trends / Photo / Vitaly Garlev

People are getting lost in places, which used to be safe havens in the past. The loyalty families have given media has become their very downfalls. Media today is not just about disseminating valuable information. That used to be its primary role 50 years ago. In fact, in a journalism class, media was defined as performing three core duties. Educate, entertain, and disseminate information. It is still doing that but with new layers. I don’t know what happened to our editors. Because gatekeeping these days looks like broken fences. Everyone and everything are entering and being broadcast as either news or developing stories. A whole violence. A whole moral degradation from manner less politicians is being shown as news. A whole superpower on the loose is misbehaving globally and is appearing in all news cycles. Local, regional, and international. Nobody is talking about the consequences of broadcasting violence to an audience. Yet, what is said or not said is shaping our opinions each day.           

And children are watching. I am personally worried on behalf of modern parents. Parents are not losing parenthood battles for nothing. There are real threats preying on the child since birth. I just wish modern parents pump on good counsel to fervently seek for wisdom every day. Because in times like these, a parent only needs to make one mistake. And hell will break loose. I know most parents introduce their children to mobile phones in good faith. However, what begins in good faith does not end in good faith. The world is on those small screens. And it is not there to baby seat your child. Be warned if you are a parent. Take charge of your household. Because society won’t run out of materials to feed media. We have a lot of talented people out there. People who thrive in inventing things. So media culture won’t run out of options. There will always be replacements. Old things going out and new things coming in. Media works hard to feel your pulse.

And if you are among those who overwork to keep up. Then, welcome to the 21^st Century. Thine eyes haven’t seen anything yet. Because media culture has a lot of consumers. Thus, signposting the need for new materials all the time. Media culture thrives on new inventions. So you are yet to see new trends. But as all these things unfold. One question lingers. At whose expense? At whose expense does media culture jostle to have all those things playing at the same time? The new identities, new narratives, certain practices in our favorite shows, and the dominant fantasies. Who are they aimed at and why? And don’t tell me because a modern man has insatiable appetites.

Change Begins in the Mind

Hard working people interacting with media oblivious of what they are losing / Photo Courtesy/ Atlantic Ambience

Appetites have been there since the beginning. There have been certain trysts in the past. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde introduced us to the main character Dorian trying something. The character became obsessed with his beauty and youthfulness and just went rogue. Dorian sold his soul to world pleasures and engaged in all manner of things.  All because he was afraid of growing old. And in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah in the Bible. Men were introducing a new form of violence. Where they learned that sex can be used as a form of punishment is a whole different discussion altogether. But the big facts remain. Sex as a form of punishment was a learned behavior. A terrible one for that matter.  

Media culture does not just feed us the information we need. Pop culture is doing way more than disseminating valuable information. It is overfeeding us. And since, we are behaving as if we have lost our minds. The influences of media culture have become stronger. For example, there are more materials to construct not just our views but also to influence our psychology in modern society. For a trend to start making people behave a certain way. A mindset must be shifted. Change begins in the mind. And for a trend to catch on. Pop culture does not need to convince everyone. Popular culture only needs someone. It targets a certain specific person or group of persons and sells the idea to them. And soon, a trend is all over because we eventually see it in our favorite people. And fans know how to be loyal to their respective celebrities.

And when all these new things are happening. No one will tell you that you are losing something as you are gaining something. Life will look normal. No one will suspect anyone. Because after all, social media is how we connect with the world. It is through news media that we know what is happening around the world. News media helps us to remain current and relevant. And people care about being relevant. That is why you don’t need a remainder to switch on your phone or television. Nobody will remind you to own an account on Facebook or YouTube. You just sense that you need connection. And your brain will automatically think about social media. And the next thing you know. You have an account on all popular social media platforms. All in the name of connecting with relevant people and keeping up with The Kardashians what is going on in the world.

But in the quest of keeping up and interacting with the latest technologies. Have we calculated the costs and consequences of being bona fide residents of modern society? How much loss are we incurring? And how much profit are we gaining? Media culture intersects at good and bad. We have really good people who got lost in pop culture. They got lost because they failed to exercise restraint. Social media does not begin by teaching people best practices. It begins by giving you what you need. Social media owns relevance. And it knows you need it. In fact, you just don’t need it. You care about it. Every one cares about it. We have a very small percent of people in the world who don’t care about relevance. However, most of us want to be where the loudest discussions are taking place on the internet. And Social Media is the melting pot of modern trendy topics and hot discussions. Why would a normal person who considers him or herself a right thinking member of society miss such discussions? But as we hurry to subscribe to all these things. What are we losing as we gain the world?       

 

 

P.S. To be clear, I am not proposing anything new or asking you to change attitudes towards media. All I’m saying is, pop culture is powerful in modern society because it has access to more materials, which can influence us. So if you don’t do your due diligence and gate keep what you see and read. You might just lose more than your common sense. 

For more context read Douglas Kellner: Cultural Studies, Multiculturalism, and Media Studies