Media is a popular source of information to every demographic group in the United States and globally. Technology and high literacy levels have created a conducive atmosphere for media companies to grow and disseminate content. Mass media organizations and social media have become the main source of analyzing global details or facts and distributing them. Currently, an incident in one part of a community can reach most of the global population in hours. George Floyd’s death was played or announced in almost every media outlet worldwide in one day. The news became viral in hours resulting in a public outcry in several towns and cities. High media literacy levels have made it possible for Media outlets to play an important role in transmitting the information.
The global literacy level was low at the beginning of the 20th century but has increased with more emphasis on education. The print media being the main source of information then, it was a challenge as a few individuals could read the information. The current level of educated people in the population has made it possible for any content to be analyzed and absorbed with ease. Media literacy is the public’s ability to access, decode, evaluate and transmit a message from media (Yildiz & Keengwe, 2016). The current society will easily understand knowledge from print, digital, television, radio or social media. The digital age has made knowledge to be available at the click of a button. Technology has created a global community where information is shared easily and efficiently.
Floyd’s death revealed how the current global community is technologically connected. The victim was stopped by police and arrested for a crime he committed. While under custody, a police officer put his knee on his neck and suffocated him to death. Security cameras captured the incident, and mobile phones then shared it on social and mainstream media. The viral nature of Floyd’s story proved that media literacy and journalism are at their highest levels. Social media has made it easy for anyone with a mobile phone and internet to be a journalist. Shearer and Gottfried (2017) state that more than 60% of the American population uses social media. Viral news on the platforms has the potential to reach more than half the population in hours. Most American get their news from social media, making it vital for information sharing.
Media information has become an undeniable presence in people’s daily lives. It is easy to overlook, but exposure to media begins at a very young age. Children younger than two years spend an average of two hours watching television every day. Older juveniles spend more time on mass media, while teenagers consume more than seven hours of media information a day (Gripsrud, 2017). In essence, teenagers spend more time on social media and television than in class. Therefore, consuming the wrong information can be detrimental to such students. Media literacy is not merely a skill in the current generation but a huge part of life. The current generation access more information from media sources than from their teachers or parents.
Individuals and media outlets shared information about Floyd’s murder with an agenda that positively or negatively influenced the public’s opinion. The protests immediately began after the incident, with the rioters and media recording and sharing videos, each with their motive. Images and motion pictures spark an emotional reaction, and technology has made access to such information available at the click of a mouse or tap of a screen. One person’s experiences or bias will interpret an image differently from another. For instance, news of Floyd’s murder was perceived as American hypocrisy by the Arab world, while in other parts of the world, it revealed an existing history of racism. Media is a powerful tool that can change opinions; therefore, there is a need for media literacy education to avoid consuming information at face value.
Moreover, media outlets drive certain narratives to their viewers or listeners. News outlets in America intentionally used certain words to sell their agenda. Some channels used phrases such as “violent protests” to discredit the protestors (Media bias in the coverage of George Floyd, n.d). Furthermore, certain houses concentrated their news on the victim’s reason for arrest instead of highlighting the unfortunate events that led to him losing his life. Each narrative has an intended message and a target audience. A racist narrative will attract a racist audience, and a radical opinion will attract a revolutionary viewership.
Several organizations advocate for media literacy or education to reduce the negative impact of media narratives. The Media Education Foundation releases printed articles, films and scripts and distributes them to provoke critical thinking on political and social issues from the mainstream media. Additionally, the Center for Media Literacy provides education and leadership nationally and internally to promote media literacy education. Several other organizations but the Media Literacy Project remains at the forefront by providing robust presentations that enhance media literacy in schools and education institutions (Gripsrud, 2017). Concentrating on institutions of learning targets teenagers who are often misguided by unproductive narratives. Improved media literacy and education will enable the responsible consumption of information.
References
Gripsrud, J. (2017). Understanding media culture. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Media bias in the coverage of George Floyd. Signal AI.
Shearer, E. & Gottfried, J. (2017). News use across social media platforms 2017. Pew Research Centre.
Yildiz, M. N. & Keengwe. J. (Eds.). (2016). Handbook of research on media literacy in the digital age. IGI Global.