The Lack of Trust in the Media

The Lack of Trust in The Media

By: Alexis A. Impastato

COMM/215

March 8, 2015

Instructor: John Cantlon

The Lack of Trust in The Media

        In The United States, freedom of speech is important. However, many people believe that the media uses its power abusively to influence the public. Some people have a negative attitude about the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the media’s relationship, which causes people to disbelieve the media. At the other end of the spectrum, some individuals view the media, without a doubt and full of trust. As technology advances, the media uses different approaches to captureing the attention of people.

        World differences in the media are seen as a more captivating and truthful means of boosting numbers. The interviewer, today provokes debate, slander, and even anger out of the viewers. Take, for example, healthy living experts; the individual appears on television to promote the benefits of a product and attempt to convince people the product is safe for consumption. However, the media may be more interested in falsifying information during the interview rather than promoting the truth that matters to the people. The media is more interested in showing off to the sponsors of the product with the questions asked, rather than focusing on the real truth behind the safety of the public. “The courts implied there was no restriction against distorting the media”. (The Media Can Legally Lie. (2010).

        A controversial issue that appeared in the media involving a couple that were fired for revealing the truth about “milk that is ‘unfit for human consumption’ due to Monsanto GMO meddling”. (2 FOX News Reporters Fired for Covering Monsanto’s Cancer-Causing GMO Milk. (2013). The company wanted the reporters to give false information on their products so they would get more business and better reviews. The individuals refused, and threatened to report the media station and were fired. The media determined there are no written rules in distorting the news, the press created the controversy over a commercial product. The created controversy ensured that the media has a solid defense for devils advocacy in the public eye.

        The corporation in the stated example used power to influence the broadcast, which falsified information. Some organizations ensure the public the media is worthy of individual trust. The media is just trying to give the people what they want. This type of information could lead to the absorption of information from people to believe word-for-word what the media is telling them. The media can make an individual believe what she sees is what she wants. Each interprets information differently. The media presents manipulation to the public, or is it just selective presentation to a targeted audience?