Why I Heart My Media

Throughout the time I have spent using various forms of media, I’ve developed a kind of love hate relationship. Don’t get me wrong; I like how everyone is able to keep in contact with one another without having to be physically together, post photos, upload videos, discuss ideas and opinions, instant access to the latest news and updates, video games and so on, but I feel as if this level of openness, accessibility and connectivity has greatly impacted the values in which most of the west once held close to heart in a negative way.

In some cases, like religion, it’s a gift to be able to decide for your self now what you believe in rather than be forced into something you don’t even believe, but I feel there is a general decline in ability to speak freely due to what I would describe as a “mob” mentality. Many people who try to speak their mind and have open minded discussions about genuine facts of a situation and come to a different conclusion to another group of people are often ostracised and “cancelled” by people who simple don’t agree with their sentiment, which is an extremely worrying line of thought that could really disrupt advancing our values in a way that is beneficial to everyone a part of society as a whole. It makes me wonder whether or not the people who take part in this type of behaviour are doing so because they want to feel as if they are apart of some form of movement or they genuinely find what someone has said or done to be so offensive and disgusting that they would need to completely disregard their freedom of speech, which in many cases are simply people not doing enough research on a topic or misunderstood someone’s intentions behind an action or joke.

Of course there are cases where someone really has done something messed up and needs to be put into check, like the James Charles or EPD445 situations, but these are far and few in-between and often result in innocent people being severely bullied into following other peoples demands. I just find it really sad that there are many people who will go out of their way to hurt someone online simply because they are anonymous and disagree with them. I also feel as if social media, as valuable as it can be, has made some users become highly egocentric and entitled, who for some reason think they own the world because they are self proclaimed “woke”, or that they deserve respect for a follower number on some social media platform and incessantly chase numbers, putting themselves or even other people, associated with them or not, into harm’s way simply because it might get a lot of views on TikTok or Youtube.

It seems we’ve become a society completely obsessed with gaining “internet clout” and it looks as if its only getting worse in my view. Loads of people from various parts of the world have noticed this and tried in vain to get people to see why this is a dangerous and destructive line of culture, and try to get them to change into becoming someone more understanding and patient, to no avail or at least unnoticeable. The saddest part about this whole situation is that this is coming from people my age; 18 – 29, sometimes older or younger, and that these people will eventually bring up children of their own, who if the parents don’t change will most likely replicate or become even worse than their parents because they know nothing else, making their children and later generations the real victim to this behaviour. That being said however, you can’t force a stupid person to change because without their intent and willingness to do so, there can’t be any lasting change.

Student number: 13502263

I was born in a small town, having a happy childhood with my neighbors and friends around communities. There seemed no difference whether there were media in my life or not.

But since my middle school, I had lived in the capital of our province, which is far away from my hometown. I can only communicate with my parents and friends of childhood online. In that time, media become crucial to me. What’s more, for all the classmates were from different regions, we can only kept contact and shared our lives on social media platform on holiday. You know, adolescents are tired of living with families all whole vacations. So we did value media provide us opportunities to have a fancy break with the same ages out of boring and even annoying life with parents， though we are seperated in space.

Today, we live in media, with technologies connected and a lot of convenience offered by media. For example, you can easily find all kinds of videos on YouTube, which make you fun, help you cook even better than your mom, and even help you prepare for your examination when you are in the emergency hoping for a miracle. But the most important reason why I love media is still that media erasure the distance and time difference between me and my intimate friends. It makes me feel like we are always together, and forever.

We are humans, who need communicate and company. So lucky to have media , and also my friends in my life.

Student ID：13590480

– Het idee dat je met allerlei mensen over de hele wereld om dezelfde TikTok kan lachen.

– De generatie die is opgegroeid met sociale media lijkt sterker verbonden te zijn dan alle voorgaande generaties.

– Films kunnen gevoelens opwekken waarvan ik zelf niet weet dat ik ze heb.

– Iedereen is te bereiken.

– Zonder media had ik niet zo goed Engels kunnen leren.

– Over honderd jaar weten mensen veel meer van deze tijd dan wij van honderd jaar geleden weten.

– In een film kan alles.

– Ik weet wat iemand die ik al vijf jaar niet meer heb gezien vandaag aan het doen was.

– Ik kan me volledig verdiepen in een compleet andere cultuur of in een ander tijdperk als ik dat wil.

– Elk verhaal krijgt een kans om verteld te worden.

– Ik kan letterlijk niet meer zonder.

id: 13983962

Media has always been an interesting part of my life. I really like movies and playing videogames but I have never really been a fan of social media. When I was younger I did not have a snapchat or Instagram account. I was about sixteen years old when I downloaded snapchat, and Instagram soon followed. I never really understood why everyone liked social media so much, sometimes I wonder if they even know why. I have had times where I was just endlessly scrolling through Instagram and then I realized that I could be doing something so much more productive. Sometimes I just wonder what life without any social media would be like nowadays.

But social media also has its upsides. The whole world is connected with each other and it is so much easier to keep in touch. A large part of my family lives in the United States and I have no idea how I would keep in touch with them if it was not for media. So I guess it is not always bad, its just a little messy sometimes.

14008610

Media can be my best ally, as well as my worst enemy. In other words, our relationship is complicated to say the least.

Taking for example an event that occurred a few days ago; one of my favourite bands came to Amsterdam and thanks to my stalking skills I found out at what hotel they were staying. I went there and got to meet them. If it wasn’t for social medias, I wouldn’t have gotten to see my idols, but nothing is black or white. While standing in front of the hotel in a small crowd of strangers at night, something did not feel quite right. Imagine being exhausted after a day of traveling, performing and giving interviews, coming back to your hotel past midnight, when the only thing you want to do is drop dead on your bed but to do so, you must get past a crowd of fifty people basically throwing their phones at you. That night I felt guilt. I realised how the media can be an invasion of privacy. While they were helping me make one of my dreams come true, they were transforming someone else’s reality into a nightmare.

Many of my childhood memories are connected to the movies and shows I used to watch on television. They impacted my growth; as I would see my role models on TV and try to imitate their behaviour, they would influence my music taste and even form my dreams. Media has played an important role in shaping me as a person. As for now, I still enjoy watching films and series, but I know that they do not reflect reality, therefore they don’t have as much of an impact on me anymore. The form of media that is omnipresent in my life right now is social medias. Which unfortunately, I would be better off without. I overuse them, I scroll for hours looking at others’ peoples lives, or rather what they want me to believe their lives are. This rarely leaves me indifferent. Unwillingly, I compare myself to these people and wonder what I could do to be more like them. I often think that I should limit my screen time, unfollow certain accounts, try to have more control over what I see online. I am aware of the negative impact these platforms have on me, so why do I keep going back to them? Why after deleting Instagram, I feel the need to download it back after one day?
Because I am addicted, I need validation, I fear missing out, a feeling that something important will happen but I won’t know because I didn’t check my socials, when I know that for most of the time it is a waste of my time, energy, and sanity.

And that, my friends, is on toxic relationships.

– Zuzanna Pieczka, 13932608

I’ve noticed myself being negative about media for a while now. Some media has perhaps highlighted some of my insecurities and I’ve noticed the same with many people around me. 

But I realise how much I actually love media when I’m sitting down in the living room with my brother and sister and we’re watching all the movies from the Hunger Games. I realise how much I love media when my friends send me funny memes on Instagram. I realise how much I love media when I’m talking on the phone with my grandparents. I realise how much I love media when I’m listening to the same song I’ve been listening to the whole week.

Obviously, many forms of media aren’t flawless, but I do truly love media.  

My relationship with media started long before I had a concept of what media was. I was lucky enough to be raised by my father, who’s a cinematographer. Growing up, I was constantly surrounded by his media tools, from cameras to computers. In my childhood apartment everywhere you looked there was camera bits laying around and data transfers running constantly.

One of my first major experiences with media was because of my father. One of his clients had purchased a large digital billboard close to Madison Square Garden, and I was lucky enough to appear in an ad on this large screen in front of millions of people daily. I was fourteen at the time and the scale of the viewership of this billboard was somewhat lost on me. When I went to visit the screen one winter, I would point to the sign and show random people that it was me all the way up there. They always looked at me like I was delusional. Lots of kids at school didn’t believe me, and dismissed my proof as photoshopped.

This is a long-winded transition into fake news. Donald Trump’s inauguration shook my family to the core and we all saw the misinformation system’s influence coming a mile away. It causes us a great deal of anxiety wondering where these conspiracy theories and lies would take us and our country. Half of my family managed to escape to the Netherlands, living in an ignorant bliss while the rest of my family remained at the mercy of a crooked media machine. The only thing they have to protect themselves is their common sense and the sane people they surround themselves with.

All these lies and deception add up to a war on information, and I’m not optimistic that this will be going away anytime soon. The wounds of misinformation are here to stay too.

I love the extent of media and the endless possibilities and aspects of it. There is always a form of media that I can use to make me feel better, to be productive, ease my boredom, help me create something, etc. There are, of course, aspects of media that I am not so fond of, like how social media can suck me in and make me spend hours mindlessly scrolling. I don’t like how it wastes my time, but at the same time, I like social media enough to not delete it. It still has its advantages that, for me, outweigh the disadvantages. It keeps me connected with my friends, it makes me entertained, keeps me updated on how the world is doing, and allows me to look at beautiful photography and art, from the comfort of my home. Sometimes, I really want to delete social media, and I have before, but I will always come back, because of these reasons. Anyways, my favorite forms of media are definitely TV shows and music. Those forms of media will never make me feel like I am wasting my time. That is why I love them.

Student ID: 13877178

Why i heart my media

I don’t love media.
I think they are necessary.
Necessary to connect with others, to spread awareness, to educate, to hold people accountable.

Holding people accountable has been a prominent matter over the past few years.
Many ¨Karens¨ have been exposed on social media, racists and rapists have been identified because of the media. I think this is quite a good thing, as it usually has a positive impact for those affected. Some people say that our generation has ¨gone soft¨ or that we ¨cant take a joke¨. I just think that people can’t get away with things as easily anymore. I think that is necessary.

By now, 2021, media has become a big part of our life. The people are more connected than ever in the history of humankind. We connect with other people and various services with few touches on the screen, being able to share feelings and stories across the whole world. Many love the media. I love the media. But, some fear the media at the same time.

Media helped people to overcome the restriction of space that exists in human interaction. It allowed people to connect to those who are outside of their town, but the whole globe.

It further connected us to many of the already existing services such as the news, weathers, maps, shops, in an elevated form through the internet, which provided the room for those services with much easier access and use for the people. Many of us love the media for such reasons- it connected us to one another, variety of services in just few touches, elevating the quality of life. Of course, with exception of people that were in charge of the old forms of such services -newspapers and paper maps.

But even the many started to fear the media when people began to know how exploitable the media was. Let’s look at one of the biggest media platform – Facebook. While having over 2 billion active users world wide, Facebook is often criticized. Why? Well, remember Mark Zuckerberg’s meeting with the U.S senators? While media provided such convenience in our life for “free”, it wasn’t really costless. Instead of charging money for those services, they charged us our information.

Most of the media services such as Google, Facebook, YouTube are driven by advertisers who pay those platforms to share their ads. Those firms with established community of people will allow the ads to be exposed to people. Enabling more spending from the people allows the market to grow bigger. During this process, those firms want to deliver the ads that are suited to us the most. They want to know whether I’m interested in video games rather than Nike shoes.

Media platforms seeked for more of our information, and accumulated them as their assets. This seemed pretty harmless other than hackers holding hostage of such information for blackmailing time to time. But the case of Cambridge Analytica showed how threatening it is with their use of our information. Long story short, they were able to politically sway a lot people into voting for their candidate during some U.S elections, by analyzing the “persuadable” online population and bombarding them with political ads.

Even after those event, I love the media. Many still love the media for the convenience, connections it provides. However, I also fear for what’s coming next. How will the media firms try to maintain and increase our connections in the future, and what will this lead us to?

14019787