By Frank Manriquez
Whether we believe it or not, social media, music, and movies have all had a lasting influence. For instance, I saw a video on Twitter that was titled, “The father, the son, and the holy Tebow.” As most people know, Tim Tebow, who is a devout Christian, often times gets mocked for his beliefs. We see the media frequently create this picture that Christians are naive and narrow minded dummys. In turn, this has a positive or negative influence on many people. Some may see it and be frustrated, while others might not even know Tebow and because of this, they think he is some kook! In this blog we will see how the media as a whole has affected millennials.
Social Media:
It is a powerful source, with a lot of force behind it. People are able to voice their own opinions, disagreements, and beliefs. First, let's take Twitter for an example of the influence it may have. When one makes a profile on Twitter, they are able to follow whoever they want, and have whoever they want follow them back. So a newsfeed could only consist of celebrities, or just political news feeds, or even religious accounts or people. Therefore one could have a biased opinion, or be influenced by other media sources within their news feed. On the other hand you have Facebook, which nowadays mostly consists of viral videos and shared posts by thousands. For the most part, the posts shared are one sided and most viewers, unless they took the time to research, would only believe the content at face value. Therefore, these posts influence their opinions and or views on the subject. Lastly, Instagram! Let’s face it, it is a huge influence on millennials today, especially on young women and how instagram portrays what a female body is “supposed to look like.” It’s terrible and not realistic in any way!! I covered the negative influences social media might have, but it’s not all bad. Social media could be used as an important tool to receive and see news at the tip of our fingers. We could see something and it could impact us to want to change our eating habits, beliefs, or even our lifestyle.
Music:
It plays a vital role on our generation today. We have access to various sources such as Spotify and Apple music, which allows users to stream any and all music immediately. Millions of millennials listen to all styles of music which have a lasting influence on them. For example, many hip-hop artists rap about sex, drugs, and alcohol in their lyrics. They also degrade women and feel the need to flaunt their money, making it seem like these materialistic possessions are the most important assets in life. We the listeners may not feel like it influences our lives, but it does. The way sex is portrayed and spoke about in music is a complete distortion of what it really is and it also takes away the value of how it’s supposed to be.
Movies:
Let’s go rob a building, flip a car, or even get the cutest girl in school! No...no that’s just what they do in movies. But for real, why do movies make it seem so easy to do these things? Regardless if movies are over the top or not, they are extremely influential. This could be a good thing and a bad thing too. Movies can help someone muster up some courage to talk to their crush, or could help someone find their way to jail after drifting their car down mainstreet!
Although the media can be very influential in a negative way, it also can have a positive influence on some as well. I myself think that the media itself is a great tool, it is just used in the wrong way. This in turn, creates this negative influence on many young adults. Through what goes into our eyes on social media, what we hear in music lyrics, and how we feel about movies, they all paint a picture of what kind of person we are. People may not believe that the media influences their lives, I disagree. How we speak publicly says a lot, what we listen to says a lot, and what we watch says a lot. As Christians, we have to be careful what goes into our eyes and ears and let God be the powerful influence that directs our lives. 
No comments:
Post a Comment