Three Semester Review

Since entering the Media Scholars program three semesters ago, I've become far more aware of why I consume the media I do. This shift in mentality has affected the way I look at all media. The effects are most prevalent in my consumption of news, music, and video games, as these are the primary mediums I pay attention to. Throughout my life, I've viewed most forms of media--music and video games in particular--as a form of escapism. I am not at all unique in this regard. I believe that in the digital age, boredom is more of a choice than an affliction, as most of us have access to an unfathomably large amount of entertainment that would last us countless lifetimes. This perception has strengthened since beginning the Media Scholars program. During the past semester, however, I came to a realization as to how I choose to occupy my time with certain artists or games over others: media tends to find us more than we find it.

When someone says, "Look at this cool new [insert thing here] I just found," one of the first questions I'm tempted to ask is how they discovered it. The person I'm talking to never answers me with a detailed description of a deliberate hunt for a new piece of media within a particular medium. I've realized that we tend to find our favorite TV shows, albums, games, or other entertainment through recommendations. The recommendation could come from a number of sources: friends, family members, media influencers, other entertainment, algorithms, or other factors. We're not inherently destined to consume what we consume, but our own free will plays less of a role in the media we consume than many would like to believe. The music I'm listening to while writing this was indirectly recommended to me through a music reviewer on YouTube I frequently watch. I gathered the motivation to play the most recent game I completed, Metroid: Zero Mission, because I recently completed Metroid Dread (which came out just two months ago) and wanted to see what I was missing. While there was certainly an element of conscious choice involved in my selection of entertainment, it can be argued that it found its way to me more than I found my way to it.

Applying this lens of analysis to news coverage and the public's perception of current events has made me more cynical of mainstream news' role in our lives. While 24 hour news networks do play an important role in our knowledge of the world around us, the profit incentive has caused each major network to focus more on entertaining the viewer with compelling narratives than simply reporting the facts. Those who enjoy a certain network's narratives will continue to have their overall worldview shaped by similar stories, and those who are dissatisfied will simply find a new set of figureheads who will say what they want to hear. Many people feel overlooked by this model of news coverage, causing them to either grow apathetic toward current events or actively search for an alternative source of media which will confirm their biases and reassure them that they are more sane than others. In many cases, people do not search for their source of news, the source of news searches for them.

When looking at media this way, it's easy to feel as though you're being chased into a corner by a sea of predators. Luckily, much of what I learned in Media Scholars has helped me navigate the endless stream of information and entertainment I'm bombarded with. It's astonishing how much more informed a person can be just by utilizing simple media skills like fact checking and understanding bias. What has helped me construct a more well-rounded view of media as a whole is understanding what the creators intended. Guest speakers during classes were essential in this development. After hearing the thoughts and opinions of an experienced professional, media creation and analysis becomes much less abstract than before.