sure

So it has always been pretty obvious to me that the news was just a big media stunt, where it only talked about things that our society was interested in hearing.  However, I never knew the extent to which it did this.  I think we think so much about news skewing stories because of society and think less of the other things such as the book says when it talks about people begging for their friends or families names not to be put in the article or the people who send things over to companies hopping for more coverage.  These are things that should not be overlooked and we should think critically when reading the news. 

 I have a friend who just recently got his life back on track, and I sat down with him for lunch and we talked.  Apparently he had joined a group in lethbridge centered around trying to prevent racism from happening.  They follow three criteria, and one is to always ask why.  I think this is very important not only for battling racism but also for questioning things that many assume as true.  Many people listen to the news because they feel it is unbiased, when in fact it is biased.  Asking why allows one to think critically about what one reads, hears, and sees and prevents them from taking things at face value, which I feel is important.

 I found the article also very interesting because of its discussion of 9/11 and how many other news worthy things were going on but the media was aware that no one really wanted to here of these things more than that of 9/11 and therefore, they were not played.  I find this at times sad.  I mean think about the poor guy who was killed when Princess Dianna died in her horrific car accident.  I mean did anyone even know that he died as well?  I find it scary to know that I was unaware he was in the vehicle as well, and even more alarming that I don’t even know his name.  But, since Princess Dianna was the main topic, she was what was covered.  People didn’t want to see or find out the condition he was in, because he is not famous(which is terribly sad), but Princess Dianna we hold in such high regards, and therefore, it was a big breaking news story.

I found this chapter very interesting and I look forward to the lecture about it!