Wow! I can not believe we are at the end of this class. It has been a semester of discussions, agreements, disagreements, conflict and in my case internal conflict. This class has made me realize how much of a grey area actually consumes social issues and problems. This class has made me wish everything was black and white and easy to distinguish right from wrong. Where do we draw the line between acceptable and unacceptable? When do we become accountable for our actions and stop blaming the past for the problems of the world?
It seems this class has opened my eyes to the future. The future starts with me. If I disagree with how people are treated and disagree with how things are being done, it is up to me to change them. We have more power than people ever really realize. We have to be the change we want to see.
For the most part, this class has opened my eyes to the power of the media. The media has more power than I ever gave it credit for having. I thought it could have power if people chose to allow it to have power. But, I realized it does not matter how educated and how smart you think you are the media still has power over you. Everyday, the media is shaping perspectives regardless if we chose to recognize it. I was one of those people saying I was not affected by the media and I could read between the lines of a story and find the truth, but that is not what I was doing at all. I was allowing the media to shape my opinions of all races. No, the media was not all that was shaping my perspectives, but it did a lot more than I ever realized. As a society we have to take back some of the power. We have to demand equal representation and when we are represented we need to be represented in a fair way, whether it be a good or bad light. We also have to become more aware of the bias that is taking part in the media. It is up to us to find the truth in the news. Read between the lines and find the whole truth not just what that particular news station wants you to believe.
In regards to blogs, I hated them. I hated putting my thoughts out on the internet where anyone could read them. But, on the other hand, I loved them. Blogging made me put my views, perspectives, beliefs, and feelings in black and white. I had to chose a side and stand by it with my words. It forced me to think about things I did not want to think about. In a classroom situation, if you do not like the topic of discussion you can chose to not say a word. You can act like the topic is of no concern to you; it does not effect you so why would you even care. Blogging eliminates this. To be forced to blog is to be forced to speak. When we blogged you had to say what you thought otherwise you did not receive a grade. Blogging forced us to “speak” about uncomfortable things. It forced us to acknowledge the flaws of the media and the flaws of our society.
Overall, this class taught me a lot about the country I live in, the workforce I will soon work in, and most importantly the life I am living. I now understand the power of the media and the good and bad it can do for a nation.
