Why Americans Are Afraid Of The Wrong Things Summary

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Barry Glassner’s (2009) Culture of Fear: Why Americans are Afraid of the Wrong Things demonstrates how fear is promoted by organizations, politicians, and media with their own complex theories. This documentary demonstrates how some of the “fears” portrayed are not even a serious epidemic. Fear is a powerful emotion, which is why people become so afraid. Society has found ways to manipulate fear to capture’s people’s attention. Glassner (2009) explains how fear is used to shape consumer decision making, and it is a powerful tool to make profit. People with power and influence, know that media is important. It is a crucial source for a democracy, and that is why organizations, politicians, and media use it to their disadvantage (Glassner 2009). …show more content…

For example, the video shows how health epidemics are a hot topic. When the flu was around, many commercials were targeted towards the issue (Glassner 2009). The video also reveals how even vaccines were seen as a deadly source of protection at one point in our culture, and seen to “kill your child” (Glassner 2009). Certain fear trends are sold in the media to show the so called dangers out there, and are delivered to every demographic. News media is a huge soruce of selling fear because it is the government’s way to control a culture as a whole (Glassner 2009). Organizations, politicians, and local depend on people’s attention, and that is why fear is used to draw awareness on issues that are often not justified (Glassner 2009). Fear often becomes a conflicting trend, and it causes people to battle for it. According to (Glassner 2009), “this is done by implications and coast.” The media goes for what will sell, and the news covers what attracts its viewers. After 9/11, the fear of U.S being attacked was uncontrollable. News headline took it to advantage and manipulated people. The video reflects on how the “war on terror after 9/11 alone was manipulated in so many ways” (Glassner

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