Aww the wonderful media.
Here in America we have our rating hungry media. Our cable networks who barely grace our minds with any news rely on shock and awe to keep us tuned in. We have our wack ass local news, if they aren’t pushing their views; then they are barely providing you with any real information. Then you have, what I call, our underdog news sources. Folks like on Democracy Now or PBS, they usually provide us with political news. While the news they provide is good; it usually is about national and international political news. Now don’t get me wrong we have our exceptions like Melissa Harris Perry, who really goes deep into minority and gender issues. Perry pulls out the stories that the mainstream isn’t covering. You have Rachel Maddow, who has to speak fast because she includes sooo many facts in her show each day. No one can watch Rachel and accuse her of spin. All of her information is supported by a reliable source and she is over flowing with so many facts. Then you also have those who spend an hour expressing their opinions, whether you agree or disagree, all they are are opinions. It makes for good entertainment, but not good news.
With that being said, something has GOT to change. Our media is so invisible when it comes to the actual problems of actual people in this country, that non news sources are coming in and having to fill the blanks. What’s wrong is that these outside sources tend to only attract those that are looking for them instead of reaching the masses, those that need to know the information that is being given.
A good example is the show “Find Our Missing.” This is a show that is on the TVOne network, a network that is geared for an African American audience. See the show was created because while blacks only make up 13 percent of the United States population, they make up 33 percent of those missing. That 33 percent rarely see’s any media coverage, especially if the missing individual is black and male. So while this show is a great asset to the AA community, it really isn’t if it’s only reaching a black audience. The media, whether it be local or national, should be covering these stories of the missing in great length. We shouldn’t live in a society separated by race and only supported by their own. We are no longer separate but equal so the media shouldn’t be acting as if we are.
I have also noticed that newspapers over seas tend to cover the stories that our newspapers try hard to ignore. For example when it comes to many police brutality and racial profiling stories, you have the Daily Mail in the UK getting these stories out to the masses stat! While our newspapers wait until a riot breaks out before they decide to look into something that was news worthy to begin with. (ie. Oscar Grant).
I could conclude this with big ideas on how to change our media, but as it is, the only change we will see is the change we make. Keep pushing your media to cover stories that you know aren’t getting the attention they need. Blog your heart out if that’s what you do. Share stories on Facebook or Twitter. We are our only chance.
Sources:
NewsOne (2012) Tyler Perry Offers 100k For Information on Missing Men of Color. http://newsone.com/2132511/tyler-perry-find-our-missing/
The Bart Shooting of Oscar Grant http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BART_Police_shooting_of_Oscar_Grant
Reblogged this on The Political Layman.