Study Skill free essay sample

To thank my teacher Ms Roszana Ngalimen for guiding us and nurture us for this project. Introduction The media re-present our politics, our social institutions, our governments and us. A plurality of perspectives has been said to be essential in developing an engaged, mutual understanding of the differences and similarities that exist between us as human beings. Media construct our reality and help to define who we are and even who we wish to become. Communication is ‘the creative making of a social order that is confirmed and exercised within communication processes. Relationships are shaped and societal boundaries are formed through this expansive exchange of information. Research has argued that these communication channels should reflect the diversity that exists within society. Such interconnected diversity has been said to be absolutely central to a thriving democracy. To put it plainly, the importance of a mainstream media to the enrichment of our daily lives simply cannot be understated. Questions to be answered: 1. Who controls the mainstream media? 2. Pros and cons of mainstream media? 3. Is mainstream media a liberal media? 4. Could mainstream media be trusted? Method of research: Internet. Q1) Who controls the mainstream media? This is an extremely important question because whoever does control the  Mainstream Media does control the world. However, the stark reality is that it is impossible to know just who it is that controls the mainstream media. Why? It has become obvious that the usual suspects which are trotted out on the stage of alternative journalism are so far from the true locus of power and control that these corporate media behemoths are but flimsy fronts and superficial shell games. Working back through the numerous levels of stock ownership and bondholder positions, holding companies and offshore subsidiaries, interlocking directorships and corporate law firms, etc. to a layer of genuine control requires an extraordinary exercise in investigative research. Even these paper trails and audit trails will lead to a perceived ownership which is in name only. Nothing really new or eye-opening here. Simply put, knowledge of the actual ‘owners’ has been made impossible to ascertain in this particular age †¦ for very good reason. Why? Because â€Å"Whoever Controls The Media Controls The World†. Thus, we as normal people living in this world can only keep on living and trusting the media given and not knowing exactly who or what leads this mainstream media. Q2)Pros and cons of mainstream media? I believe there are many factors that we humans benefit and lose to the media. The points below shows the examples of the pros and cons of a popular mainstream media which is the social network; pros  · They allow those who are shy or have trouble making friends to socialize more easily. That’s also true for those with disabilities.  · They provide another option for those looking to date but are unable to find the right person.  · They allow those with similar interests to connect and converse.  · They allow professionals to network more easily. and public entities to share information with customers and clients, and to market themselves inexpensively.  · They allow people to reacquaint with old friends or those who live far away.  · They allow for grass-roots causes to organize, recruit new members and spread their messages. Cons They give hackers an opportunity to steal and misuse personal information, especially if users don’t correctly install privacy filters. And even with those safeguards, posted information is never fully secure.  · Online interaction can become a substitute for actual meetings, which can hurt social development and isolate users.  · They destroy marriages by providing covert connections with others that lead to infidelity.  · They waste time, especially for those who compulsively check or update them. For employers that means lost productivity. They let bullies spread destructive information, photos or lies about others.  · They allow unscrupulous people to misrepresent themselves, take advantage of others or spread false news.  · They can be costly to those who post regrettable information or photos that are discovered by colleagues or prospective employers. Once information goes online, it never goes away.  · They bring out the nastiest conversation, because participants feel anonymous, or at least have some distance from those they are insulting.  · They cause users to spend less time outdoors and to be less active. Media bias refers to the allegedly objective journalists in print and media who intentionally and sometimes unintentionally report or cover stories in a way favorable to Democrats and liberals and unfavorable to Republicans and conservatives. Examples of media bias are endless. Barack Obama received free passes in both the 2008 and  2012presidential races as the media was primarily interested in highlighting the historic nature of Obamas campaign. While Sarah Palin was heavily criticized by the media as lacking the experience to be Vice-President, the question was never a major issue with the decidedly less-experienced Obama. In 2012, the media turned every statement by  Mitt Romney  (in context or otherwise) into stories that lasted weeks, while at the same time refusing to cover the Fast and Furious scandal or the Benghazi attacks with seriousness. While VP Joe Biden could barely take the stage without making an hysterical gaffe during his tenure, his sanity or competence was never questioned in the way that Dan Quayles was for once adding an e at the end of potato during a spelling bee. That the card was given to Quayle by the school with the incorrect spelling and that Quayle had questioned the spelling on the card is the part of the story the the media always enjoys ignoring. While Democrats regularly get softball question and answer sessions from serious journalists, conservatives are usually left answering absurd questions based on absurd assumptions. When a shooter shot congresswoman Gabby Giffords of Arizona, the media had absolutely no problem claiming Sarah Palin was to blame because she once had a map on her website that had used a target on it to imply that it was going to be a competitive congressional race. The problem with media bias is that the journalist and media personalities are claiming to be unbiased, fair, and objective but typically end up delivering one-sided viewpoints disguised as fact. Many Americans will not look deeper into every issue presented by the media, instead taking the stories at face value. Any information that might dispel the media bias myths has to be actively sought. Could mainstream media be trusted? Do we believe that we really think for ourselves? Did we come up with our attitudes, opinions and beliefs on our own, or are they continually being shaped and molded by someone else? Could it be possible that we and everyone around us is actually hooked into a real life version of the matrix that is constantly defining our reality for us? Sadly, the truth is that almost all of us have willingly hooked ourselves into a colossal media system that literally tells us what to think. We spend huge amounts of time watching movies, surfing the Internet, reading books and magazines, playing video games and listening to music. Many people all over the world are so addicted to being connected that they will actually become physically uncomfortable if they are at home and there is total silence. Unfortunately, somewhere around 90 percent of the information that we are allowing to be endlessly pumped into our heads is owned by just 6 gigantic media corporations. So could it be possible that the thousands of hours of news and entertainment that you are allowing these gigantic corporations to fill your head with each year is having an effect on us? Does the mainstream media have more control over us than we ever dreamed possible? This could be a huge possibility. When we go to work or to school in the morning, what is everyone talking about? Usually, people are talking about something that they saw on television or that they heard about in the news. In our society today, the limited interactions that we do have with other people are usually defined by our mutual connection to the media. The mainstream media literally defines for us what is important and what is not. If the mainstream media does not talk about something, then it simply does not matter. All in all, till today, we people still have no clue whether or not the media could be trusted.