What do you think of when you think of a presidential election? Initially, I think of foreign policy, taxes, healthcare, etc. However, this year, all that came to mind was emails, Twitter, and media coverage of the candidate’s latest trash talk. While I think the media does provide us with some useful information and interesting points to think about, this year, they did less than a subpar job of informing us about the real issues at hand. Every time I turned on the TV, it was not about what these candidates would be able to do for us, but more of what they were saying that would make them an unfit candidate.
Because of the media’s bias views, they saw Donald J. Trump as a reality TV star with no chance of winning the election. With his crass comments, controversial views, and unclear ways of how he would implement change, he was a clear favorite for media coverage. Then, Hillary Clinton’s email scandal surfaced and stole the spotlight. Needless to say, these topics took priority to covering the media’s agenda rather than the candidate’s plans. With the constant fluctuation in media coverage, it became unfair with each party getting a larger amount of coverage than the other, ultimately influencing voter’s opinions.
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Given that the media is not just TV, radio, and newspaper, anymore this problem will only get worse, especially with the influence of social media. There are specific processes that go into getting something published in a newspaper or being broadcasted on the radio. With social media, all it takes is the click of a button to get your opinion out in the open. This is both good and bad; it’s a simple way for campaigning and expressing political views, but also an easy way to get messages convoluted and an opportunity for fake news to be spread and shared.
So, what does this mean for future elections? The media will continue to cover whatever gets them ratings; after all, that is their job. Asking for them to change their already set in stone practices seems reasonable, since as viewers, readers, and listeners, we demand the truth, but highly unrealistic. News stations will continue to be biased with their facts or the stories they cover, such as CNN favoring the Democratic Party and Fox News favoring republicans. That said, it is up to us to educate ourselves and listen to the facts that the candidates present to us during debates, conventions, and rallies and determine what we find to be the truth.
Ultimately, the media has instilled hate into our society. Too often in this election have we seen cases of bigotry, racism, and abuse on both ends of the spectrum. Part of being educated is being accepting towards other people’s opinions while being able to move forward. As a media/communications major, I also see the benefits of using media in an election if used properly. As a future journalist or broadcaster, I want to be the one to bring professionalism, integrity, and fact back to the industry, but I can’t do it all alone. If change is what we are asking for, then we must be the change we want to see. We can’t wait another four years to start. Instead, we must unite as one in order to make a true impact for the better.
