The Media's Role

The media molds the opinion of the middle class people. It’s designed for profit and run by large corporations. The stories are meant to entertain not inform. In between a few news stories are commercials and advertisements. The number of media companies is shrinking and the remaining companies’ control has greatly expanded. The media plays a major role in shaping our culture and guiding us to our national identity. The media provides people with a way to think about each other and what role they play in society. The structure of class has become vital and operates our daily lives. It determines what kind of work a person will be able to attain, the type of school that will completed, and even the health of a person. Throughout time, the equalities that manifest in our country are hidden by the media. This mass illusion is created by the lack of media attention. When the media does pay attention it paints a false face on poor people. The reality of poverty is unseen and causes the poor to be blamed for their economic situation. The minimal coverage of the poor is distorted and furthers the idea of blaming the victim. William Ryan has called it simply "blaming the victim". Poverty is systemic and a direct result of economic and political policies. It deprives people from jobs, wages and support. When not falsely covered, the poor is ignored. People are rarely faced with the poor and when they are it’s either on television or walking by. It’s not common to walk up to a homeless person and ask them about their life history and make connections to their endless poverty. The rate of poverty is increasing more than the population growth in the United States. This crisis is not covered and is not even considered a crisis. The death of Michael Jackson received more coverage than the amount of people struggling with purchasing food. Their problems are hidden to Americans, but every single aspect of a celebrity’s life is clearly defined. The coverage about the reports on poverty from the Census Bureau has made people desensitized. Humans have been replaced with numbers. It is simply reducing poverty to a number and making people who suffer, faceless. However, when the news does mention the poor, it’s never accurate. They choose to talk about the poor in a negative sense, as if all people who lack wealth are drug addicted murders. The poor is identified as welfare cheats and bums. A few years ago, the peer in Ocean City New Jersey was burned down by a group of homeless people. The story is not on the Internet and was covered very briefly on the news. The homeless people were living under the peer and once summer came along, the peer was needed for tourist. The police came and removed all the homeless people. A few days later, they came back angry. They decided to burn down the peer. These people had nowhere to go, and were removed from the only safe place they knew because they did not look presentable for the incoming families. The poor have become an eyesore. It’s not an issue of morality, that they have no homes, but an irritation to the middle class. The media creates a strong feeling of "we-ness". The media has solidarity with the upper class. But if there is a "we" or an "us", there will always be an "other". The other, is inferior and undeserving. They're the other and they're also the underclass. The broadcast and print news media does an excellent job of establishing this. There is the underclass and then everyone else. It is very clear that the news is provided mainly for people of wealthier and more privileged class of people. Although not many people own stock, the news spends a large amount of broadcast time on the stock market quotations. The message of the media is that the concerns of the wealthy are the concerns of us all.It is estimated that two-thirds of the US Senate is composed of millionaires. These millionaires are supposedly serving "our" collective interest. When there is success for individuals, the media hypes it up and it's well known. The stories are about celebrities and their struggles to success. There are certain magazines that serve to keep people gawking at the success of the social elite. The rags to riches stories, tells us that there are a series of smart moves for corporate success.