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Kula Browne Dr. Alesha Gayle English 0701-057 15 Oct 2013

The media impacts Americans lives by shaping what influence the public to form an opinion.

The media affects the American culture in several ways, both beneficial and harmful. The media affects the way people view the world, others, and the way they live their lives. In addition, media also influences the way people learn, network, and connects with the rest of the world. The media is a way of communication comprising of radio, television, newspapers, internet media networks and magazines. Through these means, media institutions reach the public with news, current events and information that influences people widely on each given subject, depending on how the issues are presented in the news. The growth of media has spread massively over the years due to technology. With the help of the internet, one does not have to wait for a news crew to get on television. The internet provides users or people immediate solutions to all their quests for information within seconds. The media introduces many new things to the public, both positive and negative. For instance, in the case of the Steubenville rape case as a classic example of how the media can influence society to form a positive or negative opinion about an issue. According to an Aljazeera March 26, 2013 web post, the Steubenville rape trial sparked public discussion of rape culture that many advocates consider long overdue (White, 1). The

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case didn't only bring sexual violence into sharp focus but, the media itself went on trial in the court of public opinion. Poppy Harlow covered the Steubenville verdict live, reporting back to Candy Crowley, a CNN host. The segment garnered particular outrage, especially Harlow's statement that it was difficult to watch as the two defendants, Ma'lik Richmond and Trent Mays, were sentenced. How is it difficult to see a rapist face legal consequences for rape, after all? Harlow was criticized for her description of the defendants, two young men that had such promising futures, star football players, very good students. Her reference to their lives falling apart seemed to void their responsibility for the crime. According to Harlow, this rape conviction was something that happened to them, catastrophic as a sports injury, not something they brought upon themselves by committing rape. Critical reactions like MSNBC's Watch how sad these CNN reporters are for Steubenville rapists, invited readers to answer the question, What do you think of their coverage of the verdict? Critics have gone so far as to write an online petition demanding an apology from Crowley and Harlow. Thus far, neither reporter has issued an official response, although an article in the Huffington Post claims that Harlow is outraged by the criticism. Have Crowley and Harlow failed miserably, as the petition says? Is it possible to humanize perpetrators without diminishing rape? They tried to paint the rapist as good kids in order to elicit sympathy from their audiences, influencing their opinions. Comments made by social media clearly indicated that the media lost focus of the crime that was committed. Social media like tumblr, presented the issue to the public as though the victim was raped as a result of her getting drunk. According to a Cleveland March 18, 2013 web post, some comments expressed on tumblr publicly shamed the victim, include social media commentary like, Be responsible for your actions ladies before your drunken decisions ruin innocent lives

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(Dissell, 6). In response to the media bias coverage of the Steubenville trial,The victim's attorney told the media, The mom and the daughter and the family want people to know rape's not acceptable conduct. The response of the victims parents should have been the focus of the media, which is, rape is not an acceptable behavior under the law, no matter if a person is intoxicated or inappropriately dressed. On the hand, the media positively affects the American culture in many ways. The media through the use of television, radio, newspapers and the internet help educate the general public about the day to day events at home and abroad. News, tele-films and documentaries orbiting around social issues enhance the social awareness and increase the concern of the people regarding an issue in society. According to buzzle.com September 26,2011 article, The media provide the general public with a platform to give updates about their parts of the city, exchange their views over different issues that the society faces and share their thoughts on a larger scale. Today, the media is the best medium for the rapid dissemination of news about important incidents or events happening anywhere in the United States or abroad. Through the media, news reach the public within minutes. Technology has enable the media to be more helpful in times of crisis in disseminating news needing immediate attention with in minutes.

According to the buzzle.com article mentioned above, research has revealed that the media is responsible for influencing a major part of our daily life. Media contribute to the transformation in the cultural and social values of the masses. Media can bring about a change in the attitudes and beliefs of the common man. The influential nature of the content presented over media sways the thoughts and behavior of the general public. The recent advent of blogging in the media world and practices like public polls and citizen journalism, have led to the

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achievement of a social control. These concepts have strengthened the relationship between the media and the common man. They have brought the general masses closer to their society.

A free press is crucial for an effectively functioning democracy, but if the media is not totally neutral, it can be used for manipulation and concentration of views of the American people, thus undermining the political system American society. Chief Justice Roberts understanding the media influence on public opinion, wrote an opinion in The New York Times on June 26, 2013, stating our country has changed. While any racial discrimination in voting is too much, Congress must ensure that the legislation it passes to remedy that problem speaks to current conditions. This decision had the American public forming an opinion about Justice Robertss decision to strike down section five of the Voting Right Acts of 1965. This acts protected minorities American to vote freely for 48 years. Politicians use the media to preach hate, lies and propaganda to influence American society to get their messages across. According to Goshgarian, propaganda is expression of opinion or action by individuals or groups deliberately designed to influence opinions or actions of other individuals or groups with reference to predetermined ends. (427). Dramatic coverage of the recent government shutdown process and selective media coverage of certain events or politicians not giving the whole picture or telling too much information by overloading the public; this is influencing the American public to form an opinion about what is affecting the entire country. One can expresses his or her actions through the media to allow the American public to form an opinion. Conley writes in his book Honky, in society overall it may be that those who are in control have a larger voice, the ability to fill up the newspapers and airwaves with their

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opinions (77). Power makes them untouchable because money gives some people choice to influence the media. Goshgarian writes in Exploring Language, Lincoln must have had in mind citizens who could balance their emotion with intelligence when he made this remark. That you cant fool all of the people all of the time (428). Politicians may choose to lie to some senior American, but some young American will not believe what they are saying. President Lincoln used plain folks in his speech to make the common man believe in him more than his opponent. In todays Republican Party, some group of the Tea Party Republican, are trying to get the American society to believing that Tea Party do not want the government shutdown, but Tea Party are not doing anything about reopening the government. This government shutdown is all over the media and the media has influenced society to form an opinion again. By reporting about the Americans who are affected by the shutdown, and social issues like kids who are supposed to be in Head Start are not, and government offices that are closed, veterans and senior citizens who are not too sure if they are to going to receive money/ income for this month affects public opinion. Social capital can provide a person many opportunities depending on their status, who they know, their worth, and their family background. An individual social capital might measure time and energy one invest in digesting the messages from the media. The size of the conversation that has been discussed in the media has an important value to influence the public opinion. In the Steubenville trial by twitter there were people around the country whose social capital were invested well in that case until the last day. Many People traveled long distance to the court to hear the case, while others living near the court had the privilege to hear the case not too far from home. Alicia, a rape victim protesting for justice for the victim at the Steubenville trial, stated I am a citizen of Steubenville and I was raped by one of the football star in 2000

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(Levy, 10) She reported the case to police and nothing was done about it. Alicia went to the court to seek justice for her and the others who could not get justice at the time of their raped. Alicia in this context used her Social capital to network with other Americans in their quest for justice for the rape victim, so as to deter other rapist from raping people, no matter their state of mind. Social capital is useful in interacting with other Americans. One can be treated differently due to their social status in society. If Alicia had the necessary social capital at the time she reported her rape case, the police authority would have taken the case serious and ensure that Alicia get justice for the crime committed against her. Finally, it is important that the media use its influence on the American public in a more positive manner. Presenting issues in a bias way can be detrimental to the way a society judge and react to certain issues, as seen in the way the public reacted to the media coverage of the Steubenville trial. Today we are constantly engulfed with images and messages from the media. This include, print media and screen media. Often the question raised, is whether all of these forms of the media shape us as a society, or if we as a society shape the media. The role the media play in our lives requires a critical eye. The extent to which the media has influenced society today has been argued about for years and will be an ongoing critique. It can be argued that the mass media is used as an apparatus that is more powerful and more elastic than anything in earlier existence, for manipulating people into certain ways of belief and understanding within society.

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Works Cited Levy, Ariel Trail By Twitter the New Yorker August 5, 2013. Conley, Dalton: Honky University of California Press Publication date: October 2000 Liptak, Adam: Supreme Court Invalidates Key Part of Voting Right Act Published in June 25, 2013. White, Jessica: Outraged by outrage and the Steubenville rapists. Retrieved from http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2013/03/201332513290657792.html Goshgarian, Gary: Exploring Language Thirteenth Edition: 2012. Dissell, Rachelle: Steubenville rape case verdict draws strong reactions, and media coverage comes under fire. Retrieved from http://www.cleveland.com/steubenvill-rapecase/index.ssf/2013/03/steubenville_rape_case_verdict_2.html

Oak, Manali: Positive Effects of the Media. Retrieved from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/positive-effects-of-the-media.html