Every morning, I wake up at 6, sluggishly drag myself out of bed, make breakfast, and proceed to sit down on my couch, turning on the only thing that crushes the effectiveness of coffee on my mood: the news. Honestly, I don't watch the news only for the information it crams into our minds, only to be spewed out at the next person you see in order to prove your exquisite knowledge of Barack Obama's favorite cuisine... I watch these broadcasts as entertainment. No, I'm not a super-political beast, nor do I follow foreign affairs as a seagull would a french fry... I just love watching what corruption the media has become. Sure, the political aspect of the news is well... news, but then the broadcast gets to it's "Breaking News Stories" with explosive 3D effects and epic whooshing noises. Good lord... something terrible must of happened, right? Well yes, something did happen; a man was shot by his son in Oregon during a heated fight. Now sure this is news, but telling the entire nation this tragic instance? I believe this may be a little over the top...
Now here's the kicker: I come home later that same night, expecting to be greeted in a manner such as, 'Oh hello son, how was your day?' or merely a overthought 'Why were you out so late?', but no... I get a 'You better not shoot your dad like that kid on tv... you're showing the 5 signs they showed on the news...'
So at this point I smirk and head to my bed-chambers (had to say that at least once), wondering if perhaps more than just my mom had thought of this one instance as a sign of a mass father-son slaugter-thon. Perhaps every mom now keeps a knife under her pillow, waiting to defend her partner when their blood crazed offspring attempts to tear into his father... what has this world come to? People are being scared off in the millions by one channel on national tv, because some kid had an over the top moment, that unfortunately ended up in a death... because of ONE reporter, people all over the nation now think their kids are crazy. Media is corrupting a nation. And people buy this garbage, because station X is 'The number one source of national news' *cue corny whoosing noise, followed by the logo... I feel like I'm watching the world end in some blockbuster movie, not watching everyday life go on. Half of what these reporters are saying is so exaggerated, it makes eating fast food scary, and eating vegetables a trip to hell. If I eat a big mac, my life will be decreased by 15 minutes? If I eat lettuce, I'll be eaten alive by microbes?? Garbage... if only we can have news that matters, not filler gossip that sparks more fury than something even a presidential candidate had said... my lord, what a corrupt nation.
I'll wrap my rant off fairly briefly, just with a simple word of advice. Anyone who reads/watches/ hears the news: please don't go bananas over a shooting or a bad batch of Cheerios... your son or your breakfast have almost no chance of killing you... please, go vote or something...
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1 comment:
Absolutely loved this post. Fantastic. Though you didn't focus on any particular story per se, you used a recent example of media doing what they do best-- creating news rather than reporting it-- as a springboard for your opinions on what the media has become. What I appreciate most was your presence, your voice in the writing. The writing was effective, sharp, humorous and definitely you. Good work.
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