The media shapes us...and reflects us
May 23 '00
I begin with a quote from the Stone Temple Pilot's album Core (apologies to those of you who want nothing to do with constructive profanity):
"...And to you, dead and bloated nation of sleepwalkers, so content to drown in your own rancid apathy that your own minds and the minds of your children are being bought and sold on the auction block by swarthy old hogs--oh, set a place for the auctioneer, he'll be coming to dinner tonight. No need to bother, honey, he'll be coming live via satellite direct, right through our brand new motherf***in' super-mega-screen Home Monitor System..."
The comment is wise. Reminiscent of Fahrenheit 451 and 1984, it invokes an image of slavery, of an institution in which the screen becomes our shackles. I am truly scared of the direction culture is going. There is no shame in admitting that watching carnage like Soldier of Fortune or Quake III is pretty disturbing, like it or not.
And on TV and in movies, there is no Hitchcockian restraint. In the recent Psycho, all elements of suspense were dashed, as the movie bloodily ruined a masterpiece of film. In the past year, I have seen so few movies that provoked any sort of discussion it's unbelievable. But believe it. Shows like The Simpsons or Law and Order are few and far between, and quality games are even harder to find.
My favorite game of all time, and I have to agree with PC Gamer on this one, is probably Civ II. This doesn't mean I run from violence! On the contrary, I was addicted to Half Life and I like horror, and Sci-Fi if it's well done. The basic idea is that violence in the media won't make me run out and kill anyone.
But this doesn't mean that we as a society are free of responsibility! This is a call to action, that we must bring back intelligence into our culture. Now I'm sure there will be people who disagree with me...that's good! I hope this editorial will make people think.
So next time there is a school shooting, of course, don't blame the media, but realize that the media reflects us. If we value violence above intelligence, we should be scared. Don't find a scapegoat, but don't escape responsibility. Food for thought...?
Please post comments, I'd love this to become a discussion.
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
beast003
|
|
Member: Eli
Location: Washington DC
Reviews written: 42
Trusted by: 10 members
About Me:
The world is a wonderful place.
|
|
|
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.