Media Influence

The media is inescapable given that everywhere we go; we are surrounded by magazines, newspapers, computers, and televisions. The media is sculpting our society as it controls the structure of our civilization. Granting everybody is being affected; teenagers are more vulnerable to the media and suffer the highest impact. This is because; they are exposed to the media eight hours a day typically. They spend more time under the media’s influence than with parents; instructors, or even friends; as a result, these deliberate and unsettling messages rendered by the media are demolishing the mentality of teenagers today as it alters their views of the world and their place in it.

Teenagers feel immense pressure to mimic the twisted images being shown by the media. Even though, these images that are being presented are, in fact, unrealistic and unattainable to the majority of the people watching it. So, in an effort to turn out to be identical to these individuals seen in the media, teenagers face an enormous assortment of self-esteem issues, disturbance in eating behavior, and sometimes depression. This is because; during their regular disclosure to the media, they think as if society has set the standard for good looks, and if they cannot live up to these principles, then they are not beautiful. They critic themselves by the media’s standards and compare themselves to others as they endeavor for fresh looks. In magazines, the messages portrayed by the media are blatantly signifying that one’s body should be without faults. Katharine Seelye the author of “Lurid Numbers on Glossy Pages!” says that “Sex still sells, of course, especially when mingled with celebrity” (Seelye 606) which completely agrees with my argument. For females, ti...

... middle of paper ...

...mplexity than programs in the past; However, that in itself proves nothing. Johnson’s idea of how “TV Makes Your Smarter” is total nonsense, and I completely have to disagree with him on this subject.

Clearly, the media has prevented teenagers from distinguishing the distinction between what is seen in the media, and what is seen in ourselves and those all around us. This is because; the media has successfully manipulated our world and our assessment of the world. Knowing this, it seems as if the media has destroyed any recognition and counter action that might aid to transform this environment that the media has shaped, in affecting our idea of beauty, influencing the way we behave, and dictating standards of appropriate attitudes. After all, the impression of the media on a teenager’s world today will play a big role in shaping their minds when they are adults.