As I sit down to write this column, I think about how much of an effect these words really have on the average person. When a student picks up the Collegiate Times, do they really read past the headlines, or do they head straight to the Sudoku? What I'm getting at is how much influence the media really has on the average person.
Most people would try to claim they think for themselves and that a television station or newspaper covers something won't change their already-formed opinions on the matter.
They think independently. But what I would argue is that, to an extent, the media tell us what to think. Does the media cover certain topics because we are interested in them ... or do we think the topic is interesting simply because the media covers it, and therefore the idea must be important?
Look at the last presidential election. The media loved Barack Obama. His face was not only on the cover of Time magazine, but they even made an action figure of the man. It seemed as though he was everywhere you looked, and John McCain just didn't have that kind of ubiquitous coverage.
It even was noticeable in their wives: Michelle Obama's outfits were analyzed in fashion magazines, but I don't remember anyone noticing what Cindy McCain was wearing the night of the debates.
Regardless of whether we realize it, the media has a huge impact on how we perceive things and make choices. What we must be careful of is whether we believe in the real issues, or just the image.
Did you vote for Obama because you agreed with his policies, or did you vote for him because the media showed him as cool, young and hip compared to that other old guy?
It goes much farther than just politics, although that may be the most dangerous category. Take simple shopping decisions. Why do you use the type of shampoo you do? It could be because you compared all the different bottles in the store, but more than likely you saw a television commercial and decided that you wanted your hair to look like Sandra Bullock's.
Even those billboards you drive by every day on the way to campus or work have some kind of effect. It might be more subconscious, but repetition is key.
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"The media loved Barack Obama." The highest rated cable news channel is Fox News (to much of my disgust). All of NewsCorp (one of the largest media conglomerates) fully supported McCain. Part of the media supported Obama and part supported McCain. We have freedom of the press in this country, so both sides of an issue are presented in the media. Comparing American media to Mao or Hitler is just embarrassing. I find it ironic that this article is part of the media (the CT is a newspaper) and is telling me not to trust the media. Overall, this is not a well written article and the editors should do a better job of making sure only quality work gets published.
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I voted for Obama for the free entertainment. That drug-addled comedian and media god Rush Limbaugh and that she-male media darling Ann Coulter hate him and I want to keep laughing for the next 8 years. Just the thought of the material to come makes me smile.
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I worked in the propaganda buz for 5 years and it is scary at how easily people are duped with words. Just ask any chick that has been dumped and has sobbed the words to her friends "He said he loved me." That is why there are so many people complaining about the media- what they say makes a difference. It's the simple fact that there is not enough time in the day to study for school and take the time to think for myself. Thankfully there are trained professionals on tv to do that for me. We should be thanking them for the public service they provide and not thinking making them out to be the villains.
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Detecting changes in a photo is possible nowdays with proper forensics software. For examples, with site <a href="http://www.pskiller.com/">Photoshopped Image Killer</a> you can tell whether a photo has been Photoshopped or not. The software works by doing pattern recognition, since digital camera's tend to have specific patterns in the pictures they create. Most image manipulations will change these patterns which can be recognised. The software should even be able to give some indications what kind of manipulations have taken place.
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