Someone recently told me that the younger generations are more distrusting of the media than his (older) generation ever was. A couple thoughts came into mind after hearing his statement: “Why is that?” and “It must have been nice to live in a time where you could take what the media said as true.”
Thinking more about why people are more distrusting of the media now than before, I realized how different the times are. With the invention of the internet and smartphones came the ability to receive information instantaneously, enabling people to connect through various forms of communication (texting, social media, video calls) giving rise to the demand for instant information or connection.
When a news story breaks, there is a hurry to be the first one to report on it, often leading to rushed and inaccurate information being reported. Even if corrections or updated information is later released, it is likely too late because the information has already spread to so many and they have probably already moved on to the next story anyway.
Scams have increased with technology along with the amount of people who have fallen victim to these scams. With people being scammed through phone calls, emails, texts, identity theft, and countless other ways, it surprises me how there are still people who trust anything.
Not only that, story after story come out telling of high-profile people, people in authority or prestige, who are thought to be of high moral character only to find out they were lying, cheating, stealing, or performing other disgusting acts against their fellow humans. Even “friends” on social media cannot always be trusted with filters changing people’s looks and most posting only the best parts of their lives creates a skewed vantage of who they truly are.
With all the ways people are deceived, it is no wonder the younger generations are more distrusting of not only the media but simply in general. For me personally, I am leery of most things, not believing in something without proof which is why I wondered what it must have been like to live in a time with less deception.
Now, it is entirely possible there was just as much deception back then as there is now (however unlikely), and people simply did not know any better, or the internet has made it easier for this deception to exposed. In either instance, living without the thought of whether something was true or not must have been peaceful. The uncertainty experienced by people now likely contributes to increased anxiety.
Of course, media is not all bad or untruthful, and can be wonderful and is wonderful. Stories are written and shared about life and the experiences we all go through, whether good or bad. Sometimes, the bad parts of a story need to be shared so the good parts are highlighted. Sometimes, bad things need to be revealed so people will take action. Poems and books are written for pleasure, movies are made for entertainment, and music is played so we can dance.
Hopefully, more media will be produced with honesty, integrity, quality and creativity to reform the negative perceptions about media and its trustworthiness.
Matthew Lesseg media 