chloe mug
When I was younger and begging for a Facebook, my mother chronically took an immovable stance against it. As an adult, I have generally tended to agree.
This is because of the modern phenomenon of “Fake News” accusations and ever increasing participation in social media discourse. However, I think that it is time to reevaluate the role social media can play in shaping our future as a community, nation and globe.
Recently I came across an article covering the “Reframing Africa” project, which compiles images from photographers across Africa on an Instagram account of the same name. The drawing card for the account is that the images are those that media outlets rejected. These images bring the viewer to a non-impoverished, war-free Africa rarely presented for popular consumption.
As I looked through the photos, I realized how media constructed my mental image of Africa actually was.
Years of casual indoctrination via newsfeed headlines and images had lead me to one conclusion, which became instantly invalid when face-to-face with the truth.
At our disposal through social media, we have the capacity to hear from primary sources across the globe; people who actually attended the event, have been to the place, or know the people who are making headlines.
The news and associated media are mechanisms for controlling global perception, and the strength of this manipulation only grows as we feed into it with our “likes,” “shares” and “retweets.”
With so many primary sources of information available to us social media, the necessity of mass media is limited.
If you have the benefit of acquaintance with an international student here at Emporia State, ask if they have a Facebook, Twitter or some other social media presence, and if you could be friends online. Not only can this provide you a window into their culture in the future, but it can also provide a window for them into yours.
I can guarantee you that this will provide you with more valuable information about the world than just about anything BuzzFeed has to say.
WE are the new media. It is time to leave the herd sheeple