How the Media Shapes your World and the Way You Live in It - Book Report/Review Example

Mediated Critical Book Review Introduction Mediated gives us a critical insight on how the Media at large has had an impact on our day to day lives. It gives a vivid picture on how the media has been able to position itself between human being and the real world. In some way, has been there to mediate and interpret what we consume in terms of information and eventually determine and influence our thoughts and judgment. The author, De Zengotita, has not shied away from his critical condemnation point of view. Even from previous publications, he has always had a high criticism on modern acts and ways of doing things. His views most of the time falls on the negative side and tend to criticize rather than praise and acknowledge. From Meditated, we can see his warm and personal approach to the subject matter of how the media has shaped our world and the way we live in it. The book gives us a clear picture on De Zangotite’s views on what he considers being a dilution of human culture and previous ways of living. And it all has to do with what we consume in terms of information. From his point of view, nothing good and productive comes from The Media. It is quite clear and obvious that none of the modern ways of doing things is any attractive to De Zangotita. Ranging from warfare, relationships, evolution of the cultural ways and the marriage structure, the way news and information is handled and passed on these days, is something to be embarrassed and ashamed about (Mediated 20-48). In that sense, the author presents his opposing views concerning the above mentioned issues, as well as how humans should do in order to improve on where they have gone wrong. To some extent, one can deduce that his book serves as guidance towards a healthy society, which is free from corruption and any other evil vice. Indeed, his work not only sheds light on the relation between humans and the use of modern technology, but also reveals how and why technology is changing the way things are done in the societal point of view. In yesteryears, news and information used to hold more relevance and credibility. In essence, news reported would bring the truth behind the issue as well as the way forward. Noteworthy, things during those days were run in the right way possible, seeing that those involved in such jobs were competent enough and mature to deliver what the society demanded. But in recent times information sources especially the media have been seen to lean more on the irrelevant and non-constructive side. It is evident that irrelevant news has been reported in order to maintain business and accumulate profits. Nowadays media houses concentrate more on attaining popularity and views, which is not bad if one delivers the right information. But instead, they tune and alter the information especially when they know the impact is projected to be huge. Advertisements, movies and 24 hour news channels have influenced us to the point where we see ourselves as the center of all attention. A good example given in the book is the state of marriage and wedding ceremonies these days. Nowadays people are more worried about wedding cakes, bride dresses and how huge the ceremonies are, rather than the basic fundamentals and relevance of marriage (Mediated 63-98). It is something that has come to be emphasized and influenced by the media, and from what we have come to know, has become the almost entire representation of the whole marriage thing. Reflecting on the aforementioned statement, it is with no doubts that modern people are much concerned with fame and power instead of self-respect. Once our minds get to be tuned to think in a certain way, is it usually next to impossible to revert back. We are given a clear reflection of what modern day society thinks and looks like. Due to the constant bombardment and feeding by the media, we are exposed to so much information that it has become hard to interpret and distinguish between reality and hyper reality. This is what the media has come to take advantage and profit from. What they give us ultimately ends up drawing or taking something away from our concentration. We have come to be so colonized psychologically that at this point, it’s quite impossible to find people you can consider being free-thinkers or their thoughts and decisions are in no way influenced by external factors but rather on the basis of reason and logic. From that kind of viewpoint, it is quite difficult to disagree with the author or fail to recognize where his argument has come from. But this is not to say that all modern ways are evil and should be done away with, that’s not quite the case. Since its birth to the point where it has come to dominate the world, the media has been able to pass on important information, some of which could have had unimaginable outcomes if not delivered. For example it was the media that put to light the issue of The US Government illegal surveillance and holding onto personal information on its citizens. From a legal point of view it is highly unacceptable and unsafe in some way. But if it were not for the media, none of us could have known and eventually forced the government to maintain its accountability. Furthermore, our world right now is full of cunning and unreliable people. Many like to talk of what they have done or what they know, but in reality the truth has more spectators than real holders. Even citizens have been observed to just whisper among themselves on current immoral issues rather than speak out and let everyone know. This is the point where technology and the media have been able to be open and brave. Relevant example given in the book includes the former US president Mr. Clinton’s sexual misconduct with The White House intern; it is an immoral act that took the media’s participation for people to start discussing on moral conduct and obligation of a President (Mediated 129-140). The case eventually led to Clinton’s impeachment. Sometimes it takes the chipping in of the media to get things going and to spark debate. Thus, it is at this kind of situation where I tend to argue with De Zengotita. It is from the author’s stand-point and way of expressing himself, that we realize He seems more conservative, retrogressive on issues to do with industrialization and modern ways of doing things. If the world could have by any chance, evolved in what De Zengotita considered to be right and appropriate, then at this point it is quite impossible to imagine where we could have been as a community or country. Though his views may hold some pinch of truth, it takes trial and error, venturing into unknown environments to discover new, innovative and simpler ways of doing things. And it is not until one make a mistake that they realize how to correct themselves and achieving end goals in life. This is the same case with globalization and technological advancements, which the author seems to oppose with his very strong points of view. The world is becoming a global village and this means cultural practices and social lives are bound to change. And the media is at the top of all of this, whether one likes it or not. It is almost impossible to imagine the world without the media. How will information be passed from one side of the continent to the other? How will you guarantee that at least a reasonable number of people are able to be reached in ample and precise time? This are the kind of questions that the author’s views cannot seem to answer. And for this reason I end up not agreeing with the arguments pointed out in this book. In retrospect, the author needs to realize that the world needs to evolve and certain changes need to take place, and the media is not about to let go of its influence to ensure we get to where we are going. Thus we can say the book has very good and relevant points, only that they are insufficient and overshadowed by modern ideologies. Also the way the author has presented it, seems to me that he’s not even seeing the good in having an informative Media, but rather puts all his concentration on the negative aspect of it. His way of thinking is somehow of a person still living in the mid 90’s and refuses to change at whatever cost. Mediate is good book only when presented in a proper and relevant format. It can be full of rich material for a person who is interested in consumer awareness and the Mass Media and how it influences our way of doing things, especially our moral way of thinking. And if the author could have been able to balance his views to give a clear picture of what our society behaves and looks like and what else influences us apart from the media, then we could have been looking at a masterpiece. As a point of conclusion, one can deduce that the author of the book has presented insightful yet informative information through the chapters. The book can and is useful to any reader who is interested in understanding where the world has gone as far as technology is concerned. Through the readings, the importance of technology in the field of media and other fields has been defined thoroughly, in addition to the manner through which it has impacted human life negatively. In that sense, the author has strived hard to pass the intended message to the reader through the use of valid examples in the course of his discussion. It is important to note that the author does not only criticize the relation between humans and technology, but also provides the best way forward. This, has been achieved through comparing the past use of media/technology to the society and the present usage. Through this comparison, one can notice that there have been changes, which in one way or another have defined modern people as been selfish. Indeed, the author has attained his objective i writing the book, thus it is helpful only to those who wish to understand the impacts of media in our society. Work Cited De Zengotita, Thomas. Mediated: How the Media Shapes your World and the Way you Live in it. New York: Bloomsbury, 2005. Print. Read More