I wrote this in response to a discussion on todays media started by a friend. Since theyre my words, I hope he wont mind me duplicating them here for public consumption. Because I believe we live in potentially the greatest age ever. ---------- Two wonderful things have happened to media. First, it has become democratized. It no longer is in the hands of only an elite few. The second is that it has become accessible to everyone. Anyone with a smart phone or computer and internet connection can become a part of the media. All one has to do is write something that others enjoy reading, and they will find an audience. We live in incredibly exciting times. When I was a kid, there were only a handful of information sources. We got news from ABC NBC CBS, or from the Winston Salem Journal or Charlotte Observer. Locally it was the Elkin Tribune, or the Wilkes journal Patriot. On the radio, it was WIFM, or WKBC. For national sources at times other than the evening news, TV and radio basically had two sources: The Associated Press and UPI. If a person found a story, and didnt think they were being told the whole truth, or thought the perspective a story was being told from was suspect, there was practically no way to confirm the suspicion. Today, if I read a story on Huffington Post, and think Im not getting the whole story, I can go to the Wall Street Journal, or the New York Times, or if I think big media is missing the point, I can read the same story written by a blogger. People complain about media bias, but the simple fact is there is not infinite space for the printed word, or time for a broadcast. Something will always be left out. Bias is inevitable, and critical to the process. Bias is simply deciding what stays, and what goes. Every news story from every source is subject to the bias of the reporter, and the editor. Not only is there nothing wrong with that, but it is a beautiful thing. As long as reporters and editors are honest with their audience about what their biases are, in other words what they feel to be important, their audience has a starting point for further investigation. And to aid in that investigation, there are limitless resources, and nearly limitless people to turn to for help. More information, and the ability to compare perspective with people from all walks of life, and every corner of the earth, is an absolutely amazing thing. The global proliferation of media has made it possible for a blind guy from the middle of nowhere to continue working, and to find an audience in Spain, England, Ireland, Scotland, Australia, Canada, Bulgaria, Israel, and anywhere else a person chooses to listen. Todays media environment has made available to me as paying clients people I will never meet, in places I will never visit. I am afraid that without access to this amazing digital world, I would be isolated, unfulfilled, and poor. The media environment we live in, has made it possible for me to continue to work and thrive, long past what would have otherwise been my expiration date. And theres nothing special about me. I work with many people Ive never met, who are exploiting exactly the same opportunities. More media means access to more people, and more points of view. And that is always a good thing. Instill in children your values, and trust them to decide for themselves what is good or bad to read, watch, or listen to. They probably wont make the choices you would. Did any of us choose exactly as our parents would have chosen for us? Media is simply a tool. As with a hammer, it is neither good, nor bad. Its merely there when needed. What we have now is a nearly limitless supply of hammers. As long as we dont hit our thumbs, or drop them on our toes, I dont see how that hurts!
Posted on: Tue, 05 Nov 2013 03:23:41 +0000
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