Where Modern Journalism has Failed the People

Without the power of the press, a free republic and a fascist government are one in the same. Journalism is the last check upon a tyrannical government, riling the free will of the people to stand up for their owed liberties. Yet I contest, journalistic media in the modern era has fallen grace and has failed to be competent-resulting in the people having less and less power. 

To identify the particular moment when such incompetence took place would be impossible. However the first place anyone should look at when scrutinizing modern media is news talk shows such as CNN, or Fox News. What these party affiliated talk shows have done is polarized the people of this country. The viewer either strongly agrees or disagrees with the show as both given examples often reside on the extremes of every political issue. If the viewer affiliates with the latter of the two, then they switch to the other news network to hear what they want to hear. In turn this has created a political culture where citizens refuse to hear perspectives outside their self imposed bubble, killing any chance at proper dialogue. 

For change to begin, both sides must reach a fair and proper compromise. However due the political polarization caused by modern media, this compromise has become a dream not dreamt by a single individual on any side in any recent controversy. All perspectives would rather see the issue go unsolved than to compromise and initiate change. The best example?: Gun control. 

Since the foundation of this nation the issue on guns has been intertwined with its political culture. Yet since the foundation of this nation, no impactful change has been achieved. In the first half of 2023 there have been 101 mass shootings in the US alone, as opposed to 49 in the rest of the world (WiseVoter, 2023). 

Yet American voters, election after election, continue to vote party line as they are convinced that ‘the other side doesn’t get it.’ All a very nasty side effect of a lack of exposure. We see politicians and newscasters argue on TV everyday, but we never see them have a meaningful conversation; an important distinction that has been lost in this world we live in. Rather than discuss solutions, we’d rather discuss why someone else is wrong. 

Bias has never been more prevalent in our society and that has become increasingly clear when people would rather vote for an incompetent candidate that aligns with their party over a candidate whom’s first and only priority is to serve the people. Bias, above all else, has been the reason why the American people refuse to see any other perspective than their own. Within the bubble they’ve created by accessing information from party affiliated news networks, they’re convinced they’re amongst the sensible majority giving their opinions more confidence not clarity. As a result, both sides will never meet at a middle point, and the direction of this nation’s future is thus compromised.

In today’s world bias cannot be discussed without the mention of misinformation. Not directly the fault of modern media, rather the fault of a government diving head first into unfamiliar terrain, without a backup plan. Unregulated media has led to flat out lies to circulate around social platforms. In three stages this comprises one’s understanding of their world and their media literacy.

First, the content of misinformative media polarizes the viewers leading to a vicious cycle of ignorance. The viewer either fully supports or completely disapproves of the media leading to them sharing, in support or spite, the misinformative media. Then the media gets more and more views until it's established as fact rather than fiction.

With fictitious media mingled within the news circulation, the average viewer is unable to decipher the truth amongst the lies causing media literacy in America to falter. Rather than be skeptical of what they see, it's easier to digest all of it as truth. 

No matter what, the root of many issues regarding political polarization stem from credible journalism and the end result is change being prohibited starting. Meanwhile, the government gets away with not doing good on its duties to the people largely thanks to modern media. 

Journalism is the final wall barricading a tyrannical government from the free people. Yet without such a barrier, the people would be subjected to unutterable abuse. Any power is innately deceitful so to protect the people a layer of truth is needed.

Journalism can be as minute in scale as telling the weather, or as important as giving live updates on a war while in the trenches amongst the troops. Either way, truth is embedded from the very roots up and till the branches, giving the people what they need to hear, not what they want to hear. The latter sells, but the former saves. 

7/29/2023