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  • Essay / Media Coverage - 2621

    Media CoverageBefore the advent of modern mass media, giant news events could only become known to the public long after they happened. The media has always placed disasters and wars at the forefront of the news. These events have always been at the heart of the news in recent decades. And with the development of television and other technologies, the ability to show the public what is happening has become increasingly easier. Now that media were available, the public could almost immediately see or read about disasters and wars. Average Americans could now sit in their living rooms and watch what was happening during the Vietnam War. They witnessed the explosion of the space shuttle challenger. They saw the frightened teenagers fleeing Columbine. Perhaps the most astonishing event that the media brought into our homes was the September 11 terrorist attacks in New York. Mass media has grown so much in such a short time that society has difficulty coping. Some people wonder if the public needs to see such terrible things on television. Some question whether the media are accurately portraying the events. Today, media is so big that it could potentially harm our society. If we look back at past events and the recent tragedy of September 11, we can criticize the way the media has treated them. To become more media literate, we need to understand how events such as disasters and wars have been handled in the past. It is called "the new day of infamy", "worse than Pearl Harbor" and when we see how many Americans were killed and affected by the tragedy of September 11, it is. Innocent casualties are estimated in the thousands, but the Americans informed that morning appeared to be all citizens. At 8:48 a.m. ... middle of paper ...... continuing reporting. After examining these events, we can see that there are many different aspects of media coverage that one can criticize oneself. This is simply an independent look at how past events covered in the media relate to recent events. Hopefully, after reading the coverage of past events, one can better understand the recent coverage of 9/11 and its aftermath. This media literacy can then be used when witnessing future events as they occur. Ultimately, Manson begs the question: Is it the entertainment or the music that is to blame? The answer is no. He challenged media commentators to ask themselves this question, because their coverage of the event "was some of the most horrific entertainment we have ever seen" (Manson, page 3 of 3). You can clearly see that the media has gone too far in reporting this situation to the public..