Skip to main content

My Relationship w/ Media



As many other teenagers my age would say, I think my relationship with media is overwhelming and unhealthy. I find that in any free time I have,  between classes, at home, or in the car, I resort to my phone to connect with others and see what my friends are doing. Since I was a toddler, the media has shaped my life in ways stronger than I prefer through television shows, news, the radio, and most importantly for me, my phone.
For example, one of my favorite shows growing up, Hannah Montana, which I watched at least five out of seven days of the week had a big influence on me as a child. It made me want to have blonde hair, live in a big beach house, and have a closet full of new clothes and shoes that spins and is bigger than the size of my room now. Not to discredit Hannah Montana and the good morals she had taught me like loyalty to my friends and family and how “nobody’s perfect,” but I think I’d be ignorant to believe that her lifestyle didn’t have any influence on me. Now that I’m older, I think I hold myself more accountable for what I watch and listen to. I understand that looking at my phone screen and seeing other people’s lives every day isn’t beneficial for me in any way, so I try my best to limit it. When I was in middle school, I was definitely very materialistic. I saw other girls posts with their nice clothes and shoes and thought somehow if I had that too, I would be better. As a result of the music I listened to, shows I watched, and social media I connected with, I became reliant on others to make ideals for me to follow. For a while, I allowed media to practically control my life, but in the past year I have definitely become more aware on the media I consume.
Because of media, I have become very educated in subjects we learn about in school, in political issues, and some subjects we are never taught at school. In this sense, media is very valuable. Doing research on the internet has taught me about current events happening in the world that I otherwise would have no idea. For example, the ALS ice bucket challenge raised over $115 million dollars for research on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and treating patients with this disease. As an 11 year old, I thought the ALS ice bucket challenge was hilarious and spent hours watching videos of people simply dumping ice water on them. Then, I talked about the challenge with my family, and found out that it actually had a purpose, to raise money for ALS. This led me too to want to donate money to the organization. I think the ALS ice bucket challenge was a good reminder of how much good media can do for our American culture.
I hope throughout this process of analyzing media, my relationship will grow into a healthier one. I want to be more knowledgeable on what media’s purpose is for me and the people putting it out there. Ultimately, I desire a relationship with media that is only beneficial and less controlling.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mid90s

4/22/19 4/22/19 Last night I was watching a movie, mid90s, that was recently written and directed by Jonah Hill. The movie takes place in East Oakland, California during the mid 90s, and focuses on a group of four skaters and a little boy that looks up to them and eventually becomes a part of their close-knit group. Every member of the group goes through struggles that many go through today: abusive family, drug addiction, poverty, and loss of family members. Yet, all the boys come together to skate and use it as an escape from whatever they are going through. The main character, nicknamed “sunburn,” is the youngest character, looking for a getaway from his violent brother and immature mother. While on a bike ride through his neighborhood, he sees a group of boys skating a store and smiles while he watches them. Later that night, he spends hours teaching himself to skate, falling, and getting back up every time. He clearly is determined and it later pays off. S...
Post a Comment
Read more

Women in Media

5/25/19 By watching MissRepresentation, I learned a lot about the history of women’s roles in media. I was surprised to watch how women journalists on the news were depicted by their appearance so much by men. It was unbelievable what men said about women on national television showing no respect. This movie helped me understand why women often feel so discouraged to be involved in politics and media in general. In the film a man said the more power  women get, the more backlash they receive for it. I agree with this statement and think it’s a result of men being taught that they have to be smarter, stronger, and better than women. The film also talked about this issue. I think boys are being raised to believe they can’t show their emotions and they have to act tough and strong. They learn these ideals through media and common phrases like “Boys will be boys” and  “You throw like a girl.” Although these may not have like they have a big impact on boys, when everyone in ...
2 comments
Read more

Children’s Favorite Entertainment: Disney

5/15/19 Living in California, just about seven hours away from where many of America’s movies, shows, ads, etc. are made, I think we all can agree that we live in a time where the entertainment industry is huge. I personally rely on many types of entertainment each day. I couldn’t imagine a day without having the tv on or watching a video. One major business in the entertainment industry is Disney. I’d say it may even be the largest source of entertainment for children in America today. From the classics like Cinderella , to a dream vacation at Disneyland, Disney has had a huge impact on my childhood as well as many others. Each year they have continuously come out with new shows, movies, rides, princesses that make themselves one of the big businesses reliant on lovemarks. Having two little sisters, I tend to see Disney channel on the tv every Saturday morning still and have found that the shows being produced today are practically the same as 10 years ago. Shows that I love...
Post a Comment
Read more