Is the Media Controlling Our Minds?
Greg Woodruff | Staff Writer

Have you ever given any thought to your thoughts? Have you ever thought about the reasons behind the beliefs that you have? If so, what do you think those reasons are? Do you think maybe, just maybe, someone or something has influenced you in some way to get you to think what you think? Have you ever thought about how the media affects your thinking? Well, here's your chance to give it a thought.

You're probably asking how someone could think something so ridiculous. Well, it's not so ridiculous after all. Think about what you think, what you believe, and how you act and then think about what's going on in the media. Quickly after doing so you should easily find a correlation. Let me give you some examples and then maybe you will catch my drift.

Do you remember the Oklahoma City bombing? Of course you do, because, like always, the media shoved it down your throat until you could take no more. Well, when the government finally decided Timothy McVeigh was guilty and that he was going to be put to death, did you support it? More than likely, you did whether or not the bombing directly affected you or not. Why did you support McVeigh's execution? Probably because the media took its message and shoved it down your throat until you accepted it. What was the media's message? That McVeigh was guilty and an animal and should be put to death.

Now let's look at a more recent example, the World Trade Center incident. Now the media is telling us all its message: terrorists are evil, America is good, let's get revenge. They're shoving it down our throats, like everything else, and they've given us their message in many ways. They showed us the plane crash over and over again, they showed us people crying, and they showed Bush frequently. What is it they want out of us? Well, have you noticed how everyone is patriotic all of a sudden? Obviously the media has succeeded. We're all proud Americans, and what are proud Americans good for? Supporting a war.

The economy is failing, the world is (supposedly) supporting our cause, Bush is giving impressive speeches, and we are constantly bombarded by video of the plane crashes and crying victims. These are the things that are stirring up our sympathetic, angry, and patriotic feelings.

Now, think again. What do you think? What do you feel? Why do you feel that way and why do you think that way? Do you see anything that might be there due to the media? If so, then you should step back from the media, think for yourself, and observe what the media is trying to tell us and what the media is trying to get us to do. With this new knowledge, you can be a better consumer of the media and a better educated individual in a society that is controlled by the media.