TV. Radio. Newspaper. Internet. Advertising. Media. A bit like a glove on a hand, it consumes the human race. Everywhere we turn, we are subjected to the media, and we don’t even have a say in it. Media is big business. Companies, through market research and psychological profiling know exactly what to put in front of our faces and into our ears to gain the best results.

I personally believe that media has the most impact on us by way of two things; Sex and fear. However, there are many other more subtle ways the media have of getting their way.

Now I realize that in being a website, generationq.net is indeed a form of media. And yes ladies and gentleman, I can admit that at least some of us is a fabrication. After all, its not humanely possible for us to cover every single issue in the world, and hence we are forced to choose what we show you and how we do it. So yes, there is a bit of guess work involved as to what we think you want to see and how you like to see it. However, I can honestly say that every intention behind the website is a good one, and the fact that we are volunteer run only further serves to illustrate our commitment to the community. But I digress.

Over the past couple of weeks it has been brought to my attention just how manipulative the media is, and how most people are too lazy to think outside the ‘box’, so to speak. When the Virginia Tech University shooting occurred, the outpour of sadness was felt worldwide. But all that was brought to my attention was the various ridiculous theories involving ‘unrequited love’, ‘illegal foreign alien’ (who just happens to have an American accent and had been in the country for quite some time?), and the violent movie he had watched previous. The media seemed so caught up trying to ‘give the public what they wanted’, which presumably was made up theories posing as answers, and someone to blame. Not once did I hear about the victims or their families and how the town was coping afterwards.

The whole of Melbourne (and I presume Australia) was privy to Alec Balwin’s private life, as a voice mail message he’d left on his child’s mobile phone was played over and over again. Of course there is no excuse and it was shocking to hear, but that was about the extent of our interest in it. Noone really cared as to the reason behind it, and the media only likes to tell one side of the story.

In an obvious effort to gain election points for Mr Kevin Rudd, we were shown footage and read all the headlines regarding Rupert Murdoch’s supposed overwhelming support for Rudd as Prime Minister. If anyone actually cared to look at the footage you’d see a public figure being ambushed on the street and asked a question pertaining to the very man standing not a foot away from him. What else was he supposed to say? Not to mention the fact that he laughed at his own answer. Come on people, grow a brain! In fact, during a five second search on the internet, I found an article where Rupert Murdoch showed support for Mr Howard!

Finally, we have been lucky enough to experience a bit of rainfall this past fortnight. Encouragingly, I have heard many people welcome the rain, but acknowledge that we have a long way to go from here. What stunned me was a news reporter who mentioned the rain and the fact that we may yet reach our April average. What she failed to mention was that we have technically been in a drought the last 5 years or so. So how can equaling the rainfall average experienced in a drought be a happy sign?

My main message to you, without any hidden agenda or information missing out: Don’t believe everything you read, hear or see! And don’t be afraid or too lazy to question the things around you.

Tags: media