Affect of Modern Media on Society

Effect of Modern Media on Society

The media is everywhere - on radio, internet, magazines, newspaper, television - and it affects everything involving the society - politics, education, sex, relationships, work, teenage and parenthood. But how strong is the media? Is it something that just goes trough our ears or is it something that affects our personality and behavior?

One first point to be observed in media is that it secures our democracy. The power of receiving it and participating on it makes the vehicles which were supposed to oppress lose their reach. This happens because expressing whatever it is became normal and a everyday life fact, in just one click we are able to make a speech or give an opinion about any subject.
The way of accessing the media changed. Years ago the only way of getting news was waiting for the newspaper or the news in television, what made the news easily manipulated and late. Now we have the choice of going online and finding out about something that happened minutes ago on social networks, blogs or news online, what makes the internet the faster vehicle in all the media range. Another fact about our way of connecting to media is that sometime ago we would have to wait for a movie or a tv show do be released in other formats to purchase it and then watch on the screen. Now, with internet, we have the choice of downloading it and watching it anywhere we want, even in really small screens like iPods and mobile phones.
The media's influence is present in a lot of details in the modern way of living, specially the television. Most of the television shows deal with cheating, teenage pregnancy, violence and relationships - coincidently, researches show that divorcing rates are increasing each day and the main subjects between 12-17 years old girls are sex and pregnancy. But it is not all bad news - the image of the independent, mother and successful woman is present in movies and series, what positively influences the way the women are seen today. With modern media comes modern ideas, what means that censuring taboos like sex, drugs, homosexuality is not acceptable anymore.
Since the 20th century it has been said that the controlled media (television, newspaper, magazines) has the intention and power of manipulating the mass and its opinions as a instrument of social and political control, afirming that we can not deny that the creation of the new media (internet) gives you the opposite chance, that is creating or choosing your own ideas. The cause of this fact are the different writers and people who are not pundits on certain subject being able to give their opinions or coment about anything - what leads us to another problem: The lack of trust on online sources, any person can write whatever it wants, this may bring fake news or wrong information without any responsible to answer for it since the creations online can be anonymous.
Finally, we understand that a lot has changed about the media over the years. If on the the XIX century the media had political concerns, now it has entertrainment, education, religious purposes and it brings a even more open society with this revolution on communication.

International Volunteer Program

Our subject in class today was people that had a gap year and during it went traveling abroad for a volunteer work that envolves helping environment, kids, elderly people, constructing houses. I plan on doing a program like that in the future and would like it to envolve repressed woman, children in need or people with aids. Africa is the main place where people are going to volunteer because there is the place with a lot of these issues.
Searching more about the programs I've seen that they begin since one week until 1 year of duration, and the most popular are the summer program, when people give up on going to the beach to have fun or just relaxing in home to help people that are really in need. These programs are not cheap, they are usually expensive, so why volunteering? If you have at least a little experience with making others feel good, you should know that it is good for both, sometimes even more to you. Besides that, seeing how people in need live and how they behave makes that one who helps give more value to his own things and life.

One Week Later

I've been here for a little more than a week now and a lot have already happened... I was without access to photos, that's why I'm taking so long to post.

My flight, as usual, was really boring and I heard to all the playlists and music that I didn't even know I had on my iPod. I arrived really early at the Newark Airport, EF picked me up there and I got to the school.

My dormitory is good, not the best that I've seen here, but still in a good building and a nice room. My roomates are from Colombia, Chile and Holland. I think the hardest part in it is sharing the space for clothes, I'm trying my best to be more organized or the mess comes up in 15 minutes.

I think that getting homesick will take a little longer, because it's all about news in here: meeting new people, shopping, exploring the city.. But in some point I can be sure: I miss food from Brazil. The food here is bad, we have a lot of options in the school's cafeteria, but they all seem without taste and the same. At least the cookies are great!

On the second day here I went to Manhattan with my roomate and on the third day we had a meeting about how everything works here, the rules and classes schedule. And later that day we had a tour in Manhattan and went to the top of the rockfeller.